Firearms Expert Reacts To Halo Infinite’s Guns

Jonathan Ferguson, a weapons expert and Keeper of Firearms & Artillery at the Royal Armouries, breaks down the weaponry of Halo Infinite, including the iconic Assault Rifle, and the SPNKrr Rocket Launcher, alongside a host of alien guns.
In the latest video in the Firearm Expert Reacts series, Jonathan Ferguson--a weapons expert and Keeper of Firearms & Artillery at the Royal Armouries--breaks down the guns of Halo Infinite and compares them to their real-life counterparts.
If you're interested in seeing more of Jonathan's work, you can check out more from the Royal Armouries right here. - / royalarmouries
If you would like to support the Royal Armouries, you can make a charitable donation to the museum here. - royalarmouries.org/support-us...
And if you would like to become a member of the Royal Armouries, you can get a membership here. - royalarmouries.org/support-us...
You can either purchase Jonathan's book here. - www.headstamppublishing.com/b...
Or at the Royal Armouries shop here. - shop.royalarmouries.org/colle...
You can subscribe to the Armax Journal that Jonathan Associate Edited here: www.armaxjournal.org/

[@robertnewman4854]

The Needler is actually really interesting in the lore, in that the UNSC (humans) can't actually figure out how it works. What is known is that the trigger is not linked to the firing mechanism through any mechanical or electric means, and that the bottom weighs more than the top. That's all anyone has been able to learn in 50ish years. It's also worth noting that it seems to be designed to self destruct/break when tampered with, but weather this is a product of how it works or an anti-tamper method is unknown.

[@justmemeing9787]

All that is really known is that before the events of halo 2 most of covenant weaponry was made in forerunner forges the only specific example can remember is the fuel rod cannon which is why most weapons changed design during halo 5, 4, and infinite

[@unscinfinity3337]

@@justmemeing9787 wonder why didn't they mass produce sentinel beams which i assume the forerunner forge would definitely have design of

[@finn4019]

This is probably a deliberate joke by bungie/343 isn't it.

[@cymond]

I'm guessing they learned to reload it, too, since, y'know …

[@StrifeRixa]

Especially strange since you can find needler ammo on the ground in Halo Combat Evolved, suggesting the gun has some sort of magazine that isn't shown or actually used.

[@fearlesswee5036]

Fun fact about the assault rifle: the creator of the design actually didn't find out about the real life F2000 until *after* Halo CE had shipped. He was actually kinda disappointed that the sci-fi assault rifle he had designed looked so similar to a real life modern-day gun.

[@ChrissieBear]

Yeah he said that in the previous video.

[@ganggang2537]

Yet the entire aesthetic of the UNSC is very modern/semi futuristic, something you’d see in bo2 or battlefield 2042

[@mogbog2]

I don't think he should have been disappointed by how similar it looked. He designed one of the most recognisable video game rifles ever made.

[@strangewolf1261]

This is something I've always wondered BUT.... it is possible the Dude might've just lied about that right? Idk. Just a thought...

[@TaimatCR]

@@strangewolf1261 I think Jonathan mentioned on the previous video that the halo one predates the fn for a few months, at least the release of the game and the announcement of the fn rifle or something like that, so unless the guy had some sort of connection or insight into FN's design it seems like a coincidence still

[@ODST_Parker]

The Marine "clown car" is the funniest thing to come out of this game, honestly. Arm them with whatever overpowered weapons you want, then watch them go to work.

[@shawnkemp6775]

I just wish there was more to do when you beat the game. Like, if you could reset all the FOB’s and Outposts and just keep doing those. The ring feels dry when all that stuff is completed

[@BrSgtJordan]

Arcane Sentinel Beam, hands down best loadout for that

[@Rehteal]

A whole pile of marines with fuel rod guns in Halo 3 never stopped being entertaining.

[@michalis75]

That's exactly what I did! Armed them with the special sentinel beam and they just melted everything in front of them. 10/10 would recommend.

[@ODST_Parker]

@@Rehteal My favorite is actually the five Marines you free from the brig on High Charity. Give them carbines, and they'll basically be snipers who obliterate anything they come across.

[@TheWildSlayer]

God he always has such nuanced takes on how mechanics should and would work but accepts video game logic and has fun with it. Jonathan you're a treasure.

[@jonathanferguson1211]

Thank you!

[@reidb6327]

Yep

[@BurandonHeat]

It would be interesting to see his take on designing alien and fictional firearms.

[@afd19850]

@@jonathanferguson1211 if anyone deserves a Knighthood its you! Thankyou again good sir!

[@juandemarko8348]

Yes he is an awesome man

[@ChrissieBear]

The battle rifle is officially classified as a Service Rifle, Battle Rifle is a colloquialism for it.

[@sylaconnocalys8443]

Makes sense since the rounds used in the BR is smaller than what would conventional be considered a Battle Rifle. If anything the AR is more of a battle rifle than the BR since it fires a full powered cartridge.

[@davidn4956]

@@sylaconnocalys8443 The BR uses special higher pressure propellant that gives it much more velocity than 7.62 NATO, so it is indeed a battle rifle. 7.62 NATO is most likely considered an intermediate cartridge this far into the future with the advancement of body armor (and recoil control systems).

[@sheilaolfieway1885]

9.5 mm rounds one of the few handheld guns in the UNSC that doesn't use the 7.56x51

[@shanebisme]

These terms are not necessarily interchangeable. A service rifle doesn't have to be a battle rifle, it may also be an assault rifle (M16, M4, AK-47, AK-74), carbine (M1 Carbine) or bolt action rifle (SMLE, 1903 Springfield, kar 98k). The term service rifle refers to any rifle in service with a military issued to regular troops.

[@MichaelDavis-mk4me]

So it's a "rifle for battle" rather than the concept of a "battle rifle" than we have. The definition could indeed change in the future.

[@Mr_T_Badger]

There’s something awesome about seeing Johnathan dual wielding a pair of assault rifles.

[@jonathanferguson1211]

I try not to 'big-time it' but couldn't resist this time :)

[@bradawood117]

Dual wielding confirmed?

[@joaquinvelasquez6252]

I think both rifles are ambidextrous aswell. So one as epic as Jonathan can pull it off!

[@plasmaoctopus1728]

Duel wielding the manglers would be awesome

[@gestaposantaclaus]

A VHS-2 and FAMAS at that, the ultimate combo.

[@planescaped]

Jonathan has gotten a lot better on camera than he used to be. He's a regular Othias/Ian now.

[@ninjaskillzyt]

what

[@planescaped]

@@ninjaskillzyt Yesn't

[@jacklucas5908]

What does this mean?

[@datenshi_zero]

@@jacklucas5908 They're Jonathan's friends in the firearms history community who have had established KZbin channels before he started this series. Othias is one of the hosts of C&Rsenal and Ian's the host of Forgotten Weapons. Check them out if you haven't already.

[@abelcheng2073]

What I really want is Jonathan to start ranting about guns like zac

[@Torofad]

Regarding the Pulse carbine: plasma weapons have a tendency to overheat, so the burst might be implemented, to prevent the gun from overheating to fast

[@finnbergermann]

Wouldn’t this also save ammo by stopping you from spraying full auto?

[@PromethiaSHADOW]

the pulse carbine also only fires in Burst Mode because according to the lore of the Covenant figured out that firing it and full auto damages the battery so it can't be recharged

[@ComfyCherry]

Exactly my thought when he started saying that burst didn't make sense, plasma is hot

[@RLeezyDeezy]

Well I think if there is a gun capable of dealing with that heat that it probably wouldn't even overheat at all. I don't think that they would even

[@TheT7770ify]

So if I remember right no human in halo actually understands how the needler works because when they tried taking it apart it had no moving parts. It basically just inputs some data into the crystals, which is some kind of exotic material, and the crystals shoot out and heat seek the target.

[@AFlyingSwive]

so the needler in cannon doesn't even make sense to humans, fair play

[@sacredprovenance]

It's only understood by the elites. I crystals come from a sanghelli moon.

[@pioxels2311]

Why dont they capture an elite or smth to explain how the needler (and the needle rifle) works? Smh

[@arcelay4764]

@@pioxels2311 Most of them also have no idea how it works, only the ones that made it knew how it worked. Elites would only be able to tell you what the crystal was but not how the weapon worked.

[@haloinfiniteisagoodgame1163]

@@pioxels2311 if it was made long enough ago, they dont need to know how it works, they just need to know how to make it

[@caelvanir8557]

I imagine the idea of the battle rifle is “ok, our enemies have shielding. Let’s make a gun that puts out a burst of rounds to punch through the shield and then hit the target with each trigger pull”

[@isaiahwiita4474]

A prototype of the battle rifle was actually made before they even meet the covenant

[@reallydontlikethem]

The BR was meant to meet the insurrection at a longer range. The rebels commonly chose short range weapons like pistols and SMGs to easily conceal for hit and run attacks and so the assault rifle put troopers in the range of the most common enemy weapon selection

[@DonStafo]

Its the best weapon in this game for me.

[@caelvanir8557]

@@DonStafo Yeah it’s ability to dome people in multiplayer has had entire maps be balanced around having it in several halo games

[@kaiserruhsam]

@@reallydontlikethem ah yes earthgov oppressing farmers.

[@redraven5109]

4:28 Yes, the various helmets of the spartans have an integration with scoped/precision weapons, called a Smart Link. They can use this to "Zoom In" without actually looking down the length of the gun. Some more specific than others, Gungnir. Aka the Toaster helmet, has integrations with the Spartan Laser. The "BFG" of halo, if you will.

[@The_Blyatman]

Fun fact, this is actually also why the Halo Magnum has such a large front end, it’s not a laser or anything, it’s the Smart Scope housing

[@ChrissieBear]

4:15 It's actually a smartlink HUD sight. The sight is not actually physically showing anything, the visuals are entirely augmented reality in the helmet HUD.

[@ChenAnPin]

It at least retains an ironsight, should you ever not have a helmet that can link to the weapon sight.

[@jonathanferguson1211]

Aaaaah. That makes sense. Thanks :)

[@freezy2755]

In halo 5, they used the physical sight but they changed it for the weapons in this game to make it feel more classic

[@bombomos]

@@freezy2755 funny thing is you can't use weapons actually sights with a full cover helmet. You'd need special sights or in halo lore a camera on the gun that links with a helmets HUD to show the sights of the gun

[@BrSgtJordan]

@@ChenAnPin the MA5 rifles canonically have pop-up ironsights. They're visible on the H5 MA5D model

[@Super-Kuper]

I know it's a fairly old franchise but I would really love to see Jonathan react to the weapons of the original Bioshock

[@cameronwheler7367]

Seconded!!

[@crktritual]

All the Bioshocks !! I’m playing Burial at Sea right now.

[@joaquinvelasquez6252]

Oh I'm sure they will. They better. Jonathan likes steam punk stuff...

[@illya673]

Yes!!!

[@planescaped]

He's looked at games older than Bioshock already. A really good one would be Perfect Dark, as it has lots of weird fantasy guns that are also believably shaped.

[@LDSG_A_Team]

As far as the rocket launcher goes, when you reload, you remove the entire rotating section, including both barrels, as a unit, and the replace it with a new set. I believe the barrels are meant to be disposable. As it seems to be that this would work similarly to a lot of currently used guided missile launchers, where an explosive charge launched the missile out of the tube far enough that it doesn't hurt the shooter when the rocket motor ignites. This could be where the recoil is coming from.

[@arcelay4764]

which also would explain the lack of a backblast.

[@DreadInside]

I was going to say reminds me of the AT4, but a two shot.

[@spiritwolf5792]

​@@arcelay4764 RPGs are explosive fired (only after 3-5 meters the solid rocket motor turns on) and have a backblast and (because of that) are recoilless.

[@The_Blyatman]

I believe the lore stated intention of having two tubes in one unit is that it meant they had to reload less often.

[@a7v976]

Someone must have already mentioned it, but in the Halo universe, military technology is moderately advanced. The problem with having a civilization scattered across the stars is that it's really difficult to transport material from one place to another. Logistics are poor and standardization is a dream. It is much easier to distribute known and relatively easy to manufacture material than trying to do it with the most recent projects. It's old but it works. Also, considering how well organized the rebel groups are, UNSC material often fails to reach its destination.

[@rocci99]

Nah, it just video game aesthetic. 500 years into the future, humanity should not use 20th Century weapon.

[@yellowcrayonkid]

It’s really more about what was actually going on at the time. Humanity had the longest period of peacetime in history, so there was no need to develop new weapons. Of course when the insurrection got started weapons development continued and things like the Mac cannon, battle rifle, etc were developed, but it hadn’t been going on long enough for them to create laser guns or whatever by the time the covenant attacked.

[@guydunn5354]

@@yellowcrayonkid So what’s the story behind the Spartan laser?

[@cymond]

@@guydunn5354 IIRC, it's the most expensive weapon in the armory. It costs as much as 3 Warthogs and weighs so much that a normal human can't wield it.

[@jasondahfolf4325]

@@guydunn5354 The Spartan Laser was developed with the Spartan program in mind.

[@acanadianderg4035]

The skewer is actually supposed to be held like a rifle, but has to be held on the shoulder by humans because it’s too powerful. Edit: The reason why I said it’s too powerful for a human to hold the weapon as indeed is because doing so would most likely implant a human’s shoulder into any nearby object(s).

[@scelonferdi]

Not only by ordinary humans but by Spartans as well, which says a lot.

[@austingentes5842]

Not necessarily its power, more its size because it's made for brutes, which are 10-12 foot tall monsters

[@sainterasmus4545]

It's weird that the brutes would hold it like a standard rifle, when the optic is on the side of the gun. Unless you can raise the sight or flip it on top of the gun somehow without blocking the reload mechanism, then the gun pretty much has to be fired from the shoulder. Unless of course you don't want to use your single shot, slow reload, likely super expensive gun accurately.

[@Sturmischer]

@@sainterasmus4545 the brutes’ heads are also lower down than a human’s head

[@sainterasmus4545]

@@Sturmischer Yeaaah, but not that low, let's be reasonable. At least imo, when looking at pictures of brutes and the skewer, it doesn't look feasible. It's kind of funny that the scope couldn't have been placed somewhere on top of the gun, back towards the stock, since the reload handle thing doesn't need to be pulled all that far back anyways. But then again, the gun couldn't be aimed by humans. Which would be bad for gameplay.

[@ganggang2537]

I always loved how the aesthetic of the UNSC has a very modern military feel to it

[@Miestwin]

And I hate it. It's like if you'd have a modern commando drop down from a helicopter, and and then brought up his blunderbuss and start loading it with a black powder horn.

[@rickygforce4217]

Yes I love it too, from a narrative point of view it makes the UNSC feel archaic and ancient in comparison to the advanced and sleek designs of the Covenant

[@ionizedbeam8089]

@@Miestwin that sounds awesome though

[@Tenaxis]

@@Miestwin Dunno about you, but sounds to me like the most badass thing I could ever see.

[@KillerOrca]

@@Miestwin Halo 4 and 5 started to advance that with stuff like the Railgun and the Hydra and the newer designs for the BR, but the fandom REEEEEEE'd about it so now we're back to CE style

[@Hostile_Design]

I have always imagined the Needler to function sort of like a conical burr grinder. As in, the needles go down the hole into a grinder, which turn them into shards, which it then fires... Somehow. And the ammo being like something that grows the crystals rather than a set of crystals.

[@Ezekiel_Allium]

I assumed it was breaking shards of the Crystals off, and the shards are self propelled, seeing as they're also self guided. Less firing them and more just... releasing them into the world.

[@Hostile_Design]

@@Ezekiel_Allium Haha, that would make the weapon more of a containment device, just keeping the needles in check xD... Also a fun concept.

[@Ezekiel_Allium]

@@Hostile_Design also brings to mind the nightmare of getting shot at while holding one. If the housing bursts open, well, the full length crystals are all pointed rather conveniently at the user.

[@InkyGhoul]

In Halo CE, in the mission Guilty Spark, you can find Needler ammo. There these giant emerald cut purple crystals. I’m assuming they get placed in the Needler which then continously uses it to create needles, until the box shaped gem has been consumed

[@dougalbadger4918]

Perhaps the needles go down and it cuts off a small part of the underneath of the Cristal so it’s actually the same Cristals in the gun it just takes a little bit off the bottom of them to fire.

[@shakie6074]

“like a glue gun, but with sharp shards of death” well said Jonathan 😅

[@icyknightmare4592]

A few more details about Infinite's Banished weapons: Mangler: When you reload the mangler, it accurately remembers how many rounds were fired, and drops the remaining live rounds out with the spent cases if you watch it slowed down. It also appears to be a derivative or further development of the Mauler shotgun pistol from Halo 3. Skewer: The default skewer has a brass band at the tip of the (inert) spike, while the volatile skewer variant has a blue band instead, signifying that it's an explosive projectile. Shock Rifle: This is actually an electro-pulse laser weapon. It uses a laser beam to ionize a corridor of air between the weapon and the target, then blast them with what is essentially several lightning bolts that ride down the same channel. Electrolaser weapons do exist, but I don't think any have ever seen a real military application. If we ever deploy real plasma weapons, they will likely be of this variety.

[@LDSG_A_Team]

Ooh that'd electro laser concept is really sweet! Do you know where I can find more info on that?

[@protogenhorde8515]

The skewer as a whole as for the logic to the reload is due to the size difference between brutes abc humans. As in Spartans and even Master Chief have trouble and just have to manhandle it like a heavy weapon, but for the Brutes, these things are assault rifle sized compared to them. That’s why it’s awkward for any human to use

[@4T3hM4kr0n]

thats pretty much the description of the lightning rifle from Unreal Tournament 2004

[@MajoraZ]

I really think both this and the last video would have benefitted greatly if Jon had somebody from a Halo lore channel with him, who could mention stuff like how Smart Scopes or some of the Covenant/Forerunner weapons are "supposed" to work (like how the H3 spiker seems to heat and melt the projectiles as it fires them) and then Jon could give more interesting insights about how those aspects would or wouldn't work in reality. As is in both the last cideo and here, there's not much for Jon to talk about with the non-UNSC weapons, and even with those there are elements to them of how they're supposed to function it'd be interesting to get his thoughts on that aren't apparent just based on the gun's model/animations in game that somebody like Halo Canon or Hiddenexperia would have been able to bring up.

[@EricHamm]

It takes 343 2 months to fix BTB, you think they have the resources to lend to Game Spot?

[@theanticitizen]

@@EricHamm he’s talking about Lore KZbinrs

[@WhatKindOfNameNow]

@@theanticitizen But if he understood that, he wouldn't have an excuse to bash 343i.

[@theanticitizen]

@@WhatKindOfNameNow oh yeah you’re right. I should have thought of that. My bad lol

[@davidgarcia2016]

Yes this one please, it would be a great addition to this series

[@Hundmathr]

I would imagine burst fire on a plasma rifle would have more to do with managing heat than recoil?

[@DFloyd84]

The plasma is probably a few thousand degrees Celsius. For game balance reasons, plasma weapons do not inflict second-degree burns to everything within several metres of the projectile.

[@MTF-Epsilon-11_]

@@DFloyd84 oh i do love cooking myself by attempting to overcharge a plasma pistol XD

[@joshuahadams]

@@MTF-Epsilon-11_ Federation Starfleet officers do it on occasion with their phasers. Set the battery to overload the capacitors and then *run* before it blows.

[@Wint3riz3d]

The term for what the SPNKR would fire is a RAP or HERA - Rocket Assisted Projectile or High Explosive Rocket Assist. Projectile in a casing similar to a conventional grenade launcher, but a solid rocket motor in the tail end of the projectile itself to give it further speed.

[@jonathanferguson1211]

Yes, I suppose it is. I've only come across those terms in an artillery context, so didn't come to mind with this thing.

[@joshuahadams]

Something kinda like an RPG-7? A sealed chamber fires the rocket so far, then the motor kicks in and carries the rocket to it target, be it in direct fire or to a locked on target.

[@jonathanferguson1211]

@@joshuahadams Similar (in fact I thought I mentioned the RPG-7 by comparison). Technically speaking the RPG-7 is a recoilless weapon with a rocket-assisted munition.

[@davidn4956]

The M41 in lore fires standard rockets. It's really just a double barreled AT-4 mounted on a chassis that rotates it for coolness factor. Same reasoning for the recoil.

[@gohunt001-5]

Is it possible that the reason for having the tubes rotate is that the rockets are _the length of the tube?_

[@deanospimoniful]

Master Chief is a very large man, so that might affect some issues of scale of the firearms he carries.

[@sorrenblitz805]

7'2 in the Mjolnir Armor.

[@connorschimke1383]

I read somewhere that the needler has a crystal on the inside and when you reload the gun precisely cuts the crystal into shards causing the spikes to appear out of the gun

[@bombomos]

In halo ce, level 6 343 guilty spark, you can find a needler on the ground with a bunch of crystals laying around. It's pretty cool

[@Cakesadamant]

@@bombomos the only time you see the ammo

[@solid244]

My thought was that the Hydras "pop-out load thing" serves as some kind of sensor that saves what kind of rocket has been loaded and/or potentially programs it fuse before firing.

[@Blue-Gold_Crusader]

Honestly, a break-action setup or having the cylinder eject to the side like on a conventional revolver would serve the design better, I think; but I believe that you're probably onto something with that. It makes a sort of sense that the pop-out loading dock would scan the loaded munition and/or prime the fuse, as well as feed it into a sort of bolt carrier that rams it into the drum.

[@SirStickBug]

The old plasma rifles used to overheat if you fired them too long (since they were automatic), so a burst fire one could help prevent that.

[@emilkaapola7191]

9:54 Fun fact, not even the Covenant were entirely sure how the Needler works

[@yijieteng6686]

Pretty sure the Covenant wasn't entirely sure how most of their technology worked. They were heavily reliant on the Hugarok for the maintenance and manufacturing of most of their technology, with most technological innovation coming from rote reverse engineering of Forerunner relics rather than proper understanding of the science behind them. Cortana actually comments on this in Halo First Strike, if I recall correctly, when she interfaces with a Covenant AI onboard a captured cruiser and realizes that the Covenant understanding of Slipspace physics and mechanics is actually more primitive than humanity's understanding of it.

[@darthcerebus]

@@yijieteng6686 And fun fact, the Needler is actually one of the only weapons in the entirety of the Covenant arsenal that didn't require Forerunner implementation. It's entirely a Covenant unique build.

[@joaoie]

Not a Halo player but to brainstorm along with Jonathan for the drum fed shotgun, the best thing I could think of is that it's probably a system that replaces a standard magazine tube with a drum, the backwards motion of the pump pushing a shell through to a lifter as normal, and the forwards motion chambering a round while camming the drum manually, avoiding the clockwork issues of something likely the striker. In terms of feeding, internally it could be similar to the jackhammer's drum feed, only that it pushes through the othee direction.

[@CHARLES1500Turner]

Here’s my theory on the shotgun mechanics. First when you do a mag change you can see a red plunger type thing that seems to be in line with the top chamber of the mag and the plane of motion of the pump. So when you articulate the pump the round gets pushed back into the receiver then pushed up and forward into the breach. Idk the practicality of that. If we ever made something like that I’m sure it would be a nightmare to design and maintain. But that might be one possible way for it to work.

[@Nick-ps7br]

That's exactly what I was thinking. Like a bullpup, except the magazine is in front of both the trigger and the fire control group.

[@darthcerebus]

I'm imagining something like a revolver/pump-action hybrid, where, like you said, it pushes the round up into the receiver, but then there's maybe a hammer in the back that sits below the barrel, but when the trigger is pulled, goes up and hits the cap on the back, firing the shell, and then when the action is worked again, it pushes that round out of the side, and with the hammer out of the way, it can clear the ejection port easily while still having full functionality of everything.

[@jimbothegymbro7086]

The first time I saw the shotgun in Infinite I thought unbulpupped the pancor jackhammer

[@bombomos]

Honestly the OG shotgun is way better in design and function. The bulldog is just ..... Overly designed

[@CHARLES1500Turner]

@@darthcerebus hmm that’s an interesting take I like it

[@thederangeddonkey5888]

Would love to see Jonathan do a collaboration with a channel like Installation00 where the inner workings of some of the weapons could be discussed and compared in greater detail

[@LDSG_A_Team]

That would be so sick. We ought to make that suggestion in his discord server. See if he might try to reach out to Jonathan for a collab.

[@ErwinPommel]

Just got Jonathan's book yesterday. Two chapters in so far and loving it.

[@obe1katoby89]

With these sci fi games I struggle to see how he can make connections but he somehow does it, amazing.

[@ganggang2537]

It’s pretty easy since the UNSC is basically a modern military in nature which is apparent in their weapons which all seem relatively contemporary

[@thememan1387]

Meaning the needle crystals grow in the needler itself and then get programed some how to heat seek maybe the needles are heat seeking but to activate it the code runs making them cold or something so they detect and go to heat source's 🤔🤔

[@jonathanferguson1211]

It can be a challenge for sure. There's a lot of rambling to edit down :D

[@elementalist1984]

The extra turret on the one scope reminds me of the scopes with a light up reticle. The one towards the rear of the scope is for adjusting the brightness and or color of the reticle light. Don't know if the scope in the game actually works like that.

[@joaquinvelasquez6252]

Must of missed the Hellion. Its in the thumbnail but I would say that is a more modern FAMAS that would inspire the halo battle rifle.

[@darthcerebus]

Not to mention the Helghast assault rifle in Killzone.

[@BlindPwnz]

The chief doesn't use the scopes on the guns, The visor he wears zooms in and mimics the guns sights. That's why it looks weird/different

[@finn4019]

The burst fire mode on the plasma rifle is likely to solve a unique problem for plasma based weapons: overheating. Using a burst fire mode likely helps reduce heat

[@LDSG_A_Team]

Was gonna say the same thing

[@SolasLupum]

Overheating isn’t unique to plasma/energy weapons, just more omnipresent. It’s why weapons like the mg42 that fire quickly and for sustained periods have quick change barrels because if a barrel heats up too much it negatively affects the weapon’s ballistics

[@BigChump-mj9wt]

Love the videos. Would love to see Jonathan's takes on the WW1 Game Series with Verdun and Tannenberg (perhaps when Isonzo comes out)!

[@thequillster]

I would think the burst fire on the Pulse Carbine is to manage overheating, while maintining an optimal hit probability

[@Rehteal]

And yet other plasma weaponry with a significantly higher output don't share this issue.

[@Risukuyomi]

in fairness to the plasma rifle, it appears to have a gauge that signifies it can overheat which I think could be a solid justification for a burst-fire configuration, requiring multiple trigger pulls is liable to make an accidental overheat less likely.

[@AFlyingSwive]

4:23 if I'm not mistaken, yes it is supposed to be linked to a Spartan's helmet. Same with most sights on halo guns

[@Instantur]

You gotta love how they have a explanation for every gameplay mechanic

[@TBContent24]

if it's linked to his helmet, wouldn't the thing look more like a camera on top of the gun instead of a sight? He wouldn't need to look through a sight picture, he could just hold the weapon angled around a corner and see through it like a camera

[@xdeser2949]

Gotta remember that Brutes are probably the tallest halo species, so vertical bayonets makes sense for them

[@bombomos]

Nah b, Hunters are. They are around 8-9ft when hunched and 12ft when standing

[@rottenspooks3518]

@@bombomos Hunters are multiple creatures crammed into one "body" so they don't really count as being that tall. But if we did count the things Lekgolo make then they'd be the tallest considering they make Scarabs work.

[@SUSsykage]

@@bombomos and 127ft when piloting a Scarab (yes, this monstrous thing is actually an infantry unit)

[@xdeser2949]

@@bombomos okay but hunters only wield cannons

[@Rehteal]

You'd still want ones with outward-facing bayonets, because it would give you extra reach, plus landing a hit with two vertical spikes is liable to get the whole thing stuck in your target. Sure it makes for a good overhand swing if your target is in exactly the right range for it, but that range is very small. And if you were to push the blades outward, you're splitting your pressure between two blades which aren't in proper alignment with your wrist. So, no part of it makes much sense at all besides looking like tusks. Now what type of animal has tusks?

[@domvasta]

The Shock rifle is a really cool one, several companies have looked into them as a long range taser, it's basically a pulsed laser system that heats up the air between the gun and the target to several thousand degrees in a few microseconds, then, a high frequency alternating current is generated within the gun, travelling down one leg of the laser and back up the other. All of the tests done in labs determined that you couldn't make one that wouldn't cause massive burns if the target was too close yet be effective at a longer range, but when you're not worried about a less-lethal requirement and somehow have handheld capacitors than can power a laser that can ionize a line of air stretching hundreds of meters away, then apply a lethal amount of current down the laser beams, then it'd be a pretty cool weapon.

[@fluffymonkeyyy6617]

They should've shown John the UNSC weapons in the armory as well so he can get a full view of them.

[@rememberJAW]

Would of loved to see him react to the Arcane Setinel beam and let him see a razorback full of marines shoot with it

[@earletimothy8107]

I'd love to see one of these on Fatal Bullet. Most of the guns are based closely on real ones, like the SPB Potassium being an FN P90.

[@TheMysticalTank]

I love how each Halo review gets more and more in depth. I’d love to Jonathan sit down with 343 art and lore to go over the weapons and how they might work irl. It would be interesting to see the “hidden” lore functions of game weapons.

[@CyFiWasTaken]

I like how they changed the mangler from the shotgun but worse into it's own weapon, which also makes pretty much all brute made wapons shoot spikes as far as I know

[@Janx14]

the Ravager is pretty clearly a brute weapon and shoots red plasma at a tickling temperature.

[@GuardianM25]

The mangler feels like the mauler and spiker put together

[@StrifeRixa]

@@Janx14 The Ravager is also barely a weapon unless its in the hands of omniscient AI.

[@Davenzoid]

I just realized how similar the shock pistol is to the keltec p50, what with the mag being on top and all.

[@bigfootwithinternetconnect2330]

It's most likely what the weapons based off

[@Davenzoid]

@@bigfootwithinternetconnect2330 the P50 is a pretty recent gun, so i wouldn't count on it

[@jonathanferguson1211]

It's possible. I mentioned the P50 in recording as I had the exact same thought.

[@BrickBuster2552]

The P50 looks like the kind of gun that would appear in Warface and *literally nothing else.*

[@arcelay4764]

Its not possible that the disruptor is based on the keltec p50. When the disruptor was first "announced" the p50 was not a thing anyone apart from the company making it knew about, its just a coincidence like with the assault rifle and the fn2000.

[@imperialbricks1977]

I love how this comes out the day after the Springfield Hellion is announced.

[@j.chillydawson1807]

as a huge halo nerd I can confirm 4:22 that the ZOOM is called "Smart-Link" meaning that the sights are actually connected to the VISR of a Spartan (or ODST) helmet (and also why the NPC Marines have that little eye-piece on their helmets).. so they don't actually have to Aim or look through the sight/scope, it is just the visor zooming in. It works for all weapons with a sight/scope Love the video, sad it took me forever to get around to watching it

[@worsethanyouthink]

Just so you know because alot of the people who actually play the game don't, the disruptor (electric pistol) is fully automatic. Has a decent fire rate which isn't shown in the footage. It also Causes an arcing emp effect if you hit a person or vehicle enough times. (6-11 depending)

[@thcollegestudent]

5:19 so my theory on how the pistol worked while I was playing is that the projectiles are caseless and the spinning coil is a magnet of some kind, the sparks are some static discharge that occurs as the "bullet" is accelerated out of the chamber. Hence why you only replace the top of the gun during reload, that's the "clip."

[@hcctendeep7047]

Mini rail gun with electical properties

[@sorrenblitz805]

Magnetically hyperaccelerated slugs, the bolt moving there is what I think is happening, activating a primer in the round that electrifies it as it is launched.

[@DetectiveAnoose]

Firearms Expert Reacts To is slowly becoming the Top Gear of guns and im all for it. Imagine Johnathan meeting Jeremy Clarkson and both trying to outwit one another

[@soulstalker4624]

So what the shock pistol actually fires are electric charged flechettes that stick to targets to stun/electrocute them over time, it also sticks trough vehicles to deliver an electromagnetic pulse that disables them.

[@user-ir6ll8jf9p]

Love that series Keep on keeping on!

[@Courier-Six]

Next Jonathan ought to do a breakdown of the Terminator Resitance firearms

[@Mr_T_Badger]

Ooh, yes, I totally agree. I really need to finish that game at some point too.

[@candidcam1053]

I love how he was completely unimpressed by the disrupter. We all can relate.

[@jaxl2983]

Awesome video Jonathan I liked the loadout series too keep at it there informative and Awesome series

[@tbeg4mercy]

Jonathan mentioning that the bayonet reminds him of Gears of War makes me hopeful that one day there will be an episode dedicated to that franchise. Specifically for him to breakdown the standard load-out of gnasher, lancer, and snub pistol.

[@scarecrow2272]

Now make him react to Girls Frontline

[@archerbascha8757]

It looks like the shotgun works in very weird way. It is a revolver magazine, but the pump action seems to push the shell out of the drum and into the loading chamber, like a standard pump action would do. With the push forward, the shell is loaded. You have an orange colored rod in the tube where you would expect the shotgun shells to be. That must be the rod that pushes the shells out of the drum. It is one way to make a magazine loaded, pump action shotgun, but with some extra steps.

[@thatnoobnextdoor]

That's also what I assume is going on. Nothing in the actual reload animation seems to line up properly, but that is the most plausible mechanism. The only pump-action shotgun I know of with a rotating magazine is the Liberator12k, although it's more of a conventional zig-zag revolver design, and the shells never exit the cylinder while it's being used.

[@EAGLEBLACKInquisido]

16:43 "So You're never short of spikes in this thing". I loved it.

[@MrRukrio1]

so the neat thing about Zoom and even some of the Lock on functions in Halo these days is that the helmets (at least for spartans) and guns (or at least the UNSC ones) come with Smart Link, basically sci-fi zoom magnification and aim assist rolled into one. not sure how the banished/covenant/forerunner weaponry would work with it, but what i do know is that enough years of human ingenuity while facing the potential extinction of mankind at the hands of 3-4 different alien hostile groups alongside tag-teaming up with some of the exiles of one of them would lead to enough of an understanding to get Smart Link to register what weapon the user is holding and attempt to link with what is known of the gun.

[@Peron1-MC]

18:26 i guess the rangefinder could be automatic. it measures how far away the target is and instantly corrects the sights. countering the drop.

[@darthcerebus]

Considering the Halo lore and universe and all that, it's entirely possible and I would absolutely believe it if it was.

[@matthewblackwood9653]

That's exactly how it works in-lore. It's a smart sight and the gun fires smart saboted projectiles that automatically correct in-flight for windage.

[@ijnyuudachi4917]

The Skewer is actually more or an anti-tank weapon per-say, while the Commando was I *believe* a Insurrection-era (in Halo lore) Assault rifle, that to me, fills a role more to that of a full auto-battle rifle/marksmen rifle even, I'm not sure I gotta look up the lore on it lol

[@TheWaterboy818]

You were actually spot on about the vk-78. Weapons with no/low zoom magnitude are linked to the HUD/Helmet for accurate firing even if it doesnt really have a zoom, though in game we tend to see only few weapons that behave this way (CE Magnum, VK, etc.)

[@ChenAnPin]

I like how at 17:20 Jonathan's very British frame of reference for the diameter of the Spiker projectile is a teacup saucer.

[@sandwichturtle1251]

I'm just waiting for the day Jonathan reacts to Killing Floor 2's weapons, anyways great video as always

[@RaceTheAce77]

Seems like everyone got a VHS-2 this week lol

[@TheAtaraxy]

You and I had the same thought hahaha

[@sartorialdriver6528]

I need a Hellion in my life

[@Wylie77]

Payday 2 would be an interesting game for Jonathan to check out

[@DatDavdus]

Very great video, as always! Would REALLY love to see Jonathan react to the guns and their malfunctions in Receiver 2. It's accuracy to how you have to operate every aspect of the handguns, how you have to alight front with rear sight and the gold Hi-Point would be amazing to let him see. It's a great handgun simulator :D

[@dr.catherineelizabethhalse1820]

The electric weapons are electro lasers as they use laser to create ionic channel through which it releases an electric charge. I think we have something like this in real life to shoot down drones or something.

[@Rehteal]

Uhhh... That's not how lasers work. Lasers blast their target surface with heat, not ionized particles. Plus, ionized particles would need a propellant system.

[@dianabarnett6886]

@@Rehteal Electrolaser. The laser itself isn't the damaging part. It creates a plasma channel through the air in which an electric current can be delivered to a target. Think of it as a wireless taser.

[@joxerd]

@@dianabarnett6886 Something like the tesla coil? But can make some damage?

[@dude11579]

Re "rocket launcher": I took the rotating barrels as being because the projectile has a long-ish loading/priming procedure which takes place in the non-active barrel while the active barrel remains ready to fire until it needs to be cycled out.

[@sorrenblitz805]

I always thought it was being able to fire more rockets without reloading. A Magazine fed rocket launcher is absurd and how would you cycle an action that releases all recoil through backblast. Reconciling that gave me a headache but honestly a double barreled rocket launcher is the only solution I could agree with. The only reason it spins is to give you the same sight picture for aiming.

[@captainzac24]

So one thing that's always got me thinking and I'd love to hear Jonathan's opinion is that the covenant/banished issue the same guns to a wide variety of aliens so like how would the ergonomics change for each species like how do you make a gun that can be held by tiny grunts, wirey jackals and huge brutes. Some covenant weapons(like the pulse rifle and fuel rod gun) look like they have grips that can be held by different aliens using different parts of the grip. Also like how would shooting styles change like the jackals hold the new covenant rifle traditionally but the brutes have a one handed grip

[@swagnut9864]

I can’t wait to see the museum when I fly over to England in May. Hopefully I’ll see Jonathan and maybe get a picture👀

[@taaronhall2074]

Halo CE manual actually explains how the plans rifle and needler are the same weapon. Might be a good look. They have good specs for alien weapons

[@Rehteal]

A lot of details in CE have been retconn'd though.

[@dillonc7955]

RIP classic Halo servers. This was an emotional end to an era to say the least.

[@TempestCrown]

14:15 what makes the Shock Rifle different is that it has a chain-effect which you can see when you zoom in on the round count just before - if you shoot Enemy A. and Enemy B. is close enough, the electric bolt will 'jump' to B. I believe the max chain is 5 targets, which would explain 5 'rounds' per shot

[@jargien240]

Enjoy these videos. I would love to see him do a review of the guns in the game Verdun as I think he would have a field day with all the weapons from WW1 shown there. Keep up the good content!

[@ODST_Buddy]

I always look forward to seeing these videos, I hope that Jonathan likes to do them at least.

[@blumpfreyfranks8863]

I’d love to see Jonathan go over the Warhammer 40K series. I feel like he’s have a field day with the Bolter and Meltagun

[@xxoddball17xx29]

With the Bulldog, there seems to be a pusher rod that pushes the round back into the loading gate that then lifts the cartridge up and into the chamber when you push the pump forward.

[@Gyrfalcon312]

This continues to be the premiere series here on the channel, combining his knowledge of real weapons with his own history as a videogamer to deliver witty, informed reviews of digital death-dealers. Bravo.

[@TizzyLento]

I've commented about it before, and I'm still curious to hear him comment on the service weapon from Control. I'd just like to hear him explain how different types of guns function.

[@bombomos]

What is conrol?

[@TizzyLento]

@@bombomos 😆 Control

[@Debonair02]

Johnathan rockin that Xenomorph shirt!!

[@borismuller86]

I need to get one!

[@tigerseye1202]

A bonus or loadout episode on the differences between, rockets, missiles, grenades, potentially other types of explosives and the weapons which fire them would be greatly appreciated.

[@ando790ify]

Love this lad, rare to see someone who looks like they absolute adore their job, great vid as always.

[@themastermason1]

Seeing Jonathan puzzling over the mechanics of the guns reminds me of why I'm getting a degree in mechanical engineering. I want to replicate as best I can the assault rifle, battle rifle and magnum in real life.

[@Gearshifter09]

Good luck on your degree!

[@AmBush2048]

I wonder what Jonathan would say on the weapons from Half-Life alyx, since the mechanical parts in that game (Especially the upgrades), are really detailed and interesting

[@matthewsmith4032]

It’s such a flex to already have the Springfield hellion

[@vincentrowe4116]

Needler: 'a spiky glue gun off death' ~ Some gun expert 2022 ~

[@MrDirt]

6:02 Reminds me of the Recursion Shotgun from Borderlands 3. Speaking of which, you should do a react on BL3 too some time.

[@jasondahfolf4325]

Jonathan is probably going to be thrown off by some of the reloads

[@SaucyAlfredo]

The magazine size issue isn’t really a problem when you realize that chief’s hands are gigantic compared to an average human. So those guns are huge in a normal person’s hands

[@borismuller86]

Yes but you can see a cartridge in the top and if you multiply that by 36 it’s far longer than that magazine.

[@jonathanferguson1211]

@@borismuller86 ^this :)

[@toastybread0413]

Oh was that clip of marine Skewer squad from Bricky? That's nice

[@brycevo]

This is so interesting to watch Love his takes on it

[@christophermccormick5505]

Wow! He got the real Halo weapons

[@thesean161]

I was looking forward to how he felt about the Skewer. That guns a behemoth.

[@TheLegitAlpha]

I also noticed the Bulldog does not make much sense, as it uses a detachable revolving cylinder, but it does not line up with the barrel whatsoever.

[@captainMony]

my recommendations have solidified Firearms Expert into my middle left spot whether im subbed or not. Ofc subed