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Real-Life Equivalents of Video Game Weapons

antdude writes "This GamesRadar article compares a bunch of fantastic video game weapons and their real-life equivalents: 'There are certain things we just accept in video games. An overweight pipe technician can jump five times his own height. A first aid kit will instantly heal bullet wounds and replace lost blood. And any theoretical physics model can be cleanly packaged into a lightweight, handheld weapon with a minimum of fuss. But in certain cases, that last one isn't too far off the truth. As guano loopy as most game weaponry is, some of it definitely isn't implausible. In fact, some of it exists already. Kind of.'"

103 of 137 comments (clear)

  1. holy shit by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    i want a portal gun

    1. Re:holy shit by vuffi_raa · · Score: 1
  2. I'll just wait for Real-Life BFG9000 ... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    ... till then its too boring to even bother looking at them.

    1. Re:I'll just wait for Real-Life BFG9000 ... by purpledinoz · · Score: 1

      I wonder if it would be ever as good as it is in Doom, where you can shoot the wall directly in front of you, and all the enemies in your field of view immediately dies.

    2. Re:I'll just wait for Real-Life BFG9000 ... by DeanLearner · · Score: 1

      When the day comes I for one welcome our Chameleon overlords.

    3. Re:I'll just wait for Real-Life BFG9000 ... by buruonbrails · · Score: 1

      As for me, I'm still waiting for real-life Gauss rifle (along with Advanced Power Armor).

    4. Re:I'll just wait for Real-Life BFG9000 ... by KlaymenDK · · Score: 1

      Wasn't it, "and all the enemies that have that wall in their field of view immediately dies"?

      I seem to recall surviving that weapon by quickly turning away and back again at strategic moments. But of course, that was a long time ago and my mind has begun to fade...

    5. Re:I'll just wait for Real-Life BFG9000 ... by Ant+P. · · Score: 2, Informative

      Actually it's more like "all the enemies in the direction you were facing when you fired it from the position you're standing when it hits".

      The trick there is you can fire it down a long corridor in one direction, run off the opposite way so someone gives chase, and when it hits the wall the guy behind you gets blown to bits. Similarly you can survive it completely unhurt by getting on the opposite side of whoever fired it - as long as you know which way they fired.

      Not really something you can build in real life.

    6. Re:I'll just wait for Real-Life BFG9000 ... by The+Archon+V2.0 · · Score: 1

      Actually it's more like "all the enemies in the direction you were facing when you fired it from the position you're standing when it hits".

      Yep. A picture for illustrative purposes. (From the BFG FAQ.)

      Not really something you can build in real life.

      Alas, life does not let us shortcut the laws of physics with a code patch.:)

    7. Re:I'll just wait for Real-Life BFG9000 ... by purpledinoz · · Score: 1

      LOL, I'll remember this the next time I play multiplayer DOOM.

  3. Crowbar by lul_wat · · Score: 5, Funny

    What's the real-life equivalent of the Crowbar from halflife? I always wanted one

    --
    Divide a cake by zero. Is it still a cake?
    1. Re:Crowbar by nitroyogi · · Score: 1

      And I always wanted the Quake gauntlet!

    2. Re:Crowbar by noidentity · · Score: 2, Informative

      What's the real-life equivalent of the Crowbar from halflife? I always wanted one

      A Wiimote maybe?

    3. Re:Crowbar by Market+Actual · · Score: 1

      What's the real-life equivalent of the Crowbar from halflife? I always wanted one

      thank you

    4. Re:Crowbar by Inda · · Score: 1

      Would you really want a crowbar? Without a rubber handle, it would hurt your hands like hell when smashing someone's head in.

      Maybe a claw hammer would be better? You'd have a two-part choice on damage too.

      Me? I just prefer running people over in my car. And why is it called 'running over'? Most of the time they bounce off the bonnet.

      --
      This post contains benzene, nitrosamines, formaldehyde and hydrogen cyanide.
    5. Re:Crowbar by Jarik+C-Bol · · Score: 1

      Quake Gauntlet is a circular saw with a lot of extension cords, and the guard removed. (or one of those battery powered ones, but they don't last long enough to win a deathmatch with)

      --
      I've decided to Diversify my Holdings. I've divided my cash between my left and right pockets, instead of all in one.
    6. Re:Crowbar by Jarik+C-Bol · · Score: 1
      --
      I've decided to Diversify my Holdings. I've divided my cash between my left and right pockets, instead of all in one.
    7. Re:Crowbar by tehcyder · · Score: 2, Funny

      What's the real-life equivalent of the Crowbar from halflife?

      A crowbar.

      --
      To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
    8. Re:Crowbar by The+Archon+V2.0 · · Score: 1

      Quake Gauntlet is a circular saw with a lot of extension cords, and the guard removed. (or one of those battery powered ones, but they don't last long enough to win a deathmatch with)

      ... you've tried it?

    9. Re:Crowbar by The+Archon+V2.0 · · Score: 2, Informative

      Who uses a crowbar? Real men use chainsaws.....

      And real ninjas use chainsaw nunchucks.

    10. Re:Crowbar by jmcvetta · · Score: 1

      That's a pretty cool hammer. What's its model?

    11. Re:Crowbar by GameboyRMH · · Score: 2, Informative

      If you are a geek you should have really appreciated that fulcrum puzzle. You know why? Even if that puzzle was simple, it wasn't scripted. It was all handled by the same physics engine that controls everything in the game, you just manipulated the objects. You made a virtual see-saw with virtual objects by exploiting virtual gravity, which would be a first for you if you never played Trespasser (and even though I have, I still thought it was cool).

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
    12. Re:Crowbar by Jarik+C-Bol · · Score: 1

      its an estwing 16 inch 21 ounce mill hammer

      --
      I've decided to Diversify my Holdings. I've divided my cash between my left and right pockets, instead of all in one.
  4. Wishlist: by dushkin · · Score: 1

    * Frostmourn, hoooo!
    * BFG!
    * FatBoy from Fallout 3 :D
    * The slime shooter from unreal. It's just cool.

    --
    o hai
    1. Re:Wishlist: by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      Well, if we're wandering into fantasy... the sword to have is Greyswandir — if you can get your hands on the jewel of judgement, you can scribe a whole new reality. And it sheds all types of sorcery like water.
      I think it's pretty clear that one of the most badass sci-fi weapons is Reason... but it needs some fancier heat-dissipation technology.
      Finally, the Puppeteer laser weapons (ala Ringworld) are way up there. All they need is a tunable laser to be the shiznit.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    2. Re:Wishlist: by Trent+Hawkins · · Score: 1

      Well, Fat Boy is more or less real. The nuke exists and it's about the size as in the game, though the bang is bigger. However in reality they figured that the dangers of launching a nuke point blank would exceed the benefits and decided to make it artillery launched.

  5. Raccoon Suit by DavidD_CA · · Score: 4, Funny

    I'm waiting for the US military to develop a Raccoon Suit (from Mario) for our solders.

    But I bet those Canadians will beat us to it.

    --
    -David
  6. Lasers by TandooriC · · Score: 4, Funny

    If they can't even make sharks with lasers how can they even hope for rail guns, tesla coils and plasma rifles?

    1. Re:Lasers by asmith.atx · · Score: 1

      Guns don't kill people, lazers do

    2. Re:Lasers by BlackSnake112 · · Score: 1

      http://www.military.com/features/0,15240,160195,00.html

      Rail gun are here. They are just big.

  7. Portal gun by V2Blast · · Score: 1

    Where's my portal gun? I thought we were supposed to be living in the future.

    --
    "A single death is a tragedy; a million deaths is a statistic." --Joseph Stalin
    1. Re:Portal gun by The+Archon+V2.0 · · Score: 1

      Where's my portal gun? I thought we were supposed to be living in the future.

      Sorry, you'll have to get in line behind Avery Brooks, who's STILL waiting for his flying car.

  8. You can reload an M1 Garand mid-clip by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Without having RTFA, I want to take this opportunity to point out that an M1 Garand (the semi-automatic infantry rifle of the U.S. military during World War II) can, in real life, be reloaded before the clip is empty. Many idiots who replicate the rifle in video games infer that, just because the clip automatically ejects when it is empty, it can only be ejected this way—that is, if you have one or two rounds left, you have to shoot them before you can take a chance to load a fresh clip. I don't know who got this wrong first, but it has turned into a pernicious meme that has reared its ugly head in every World War II shooter I have ever played.

    Proof: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrXLtkY4wOw

    Game designers, please do more research than playing some other WW2 game for a few hours. Diligent fans, this is an issue worth making patches for. Besides being just plain wrong, this is a substantial and unwarranted disadvantage for what is supposed to be "the greatest implement of battle ever devised." And that's according to General Patton, who (speaking of memes) knows a little more about fighting than you do, pal, because he invented it!

    1. Re:You can reload an M1 Garand mid-clip by Calinous · · Score: 1

      The M1 Garand could be reloaded before its clip was empty - but I think shooting the rest of the bullets and putting a new clip was faster.

    2. Re:You can reload an M1 Garand mid-clip by lyinhart · · Score: 2, Insightful

      The article doesn't features game with actual weapons like Call of Duty, it instead features weapons that don't actually exist yet as they are portrayed in games. I hope someone else does a comparison with how weapons work in Modern Warfare 2 with their real-life counterparts, kind of like how Top Gear did comparisons with Gran Turismo and real life cars.

      --
      Freedom is drinking a beer in the park when you're supposed to be at work.
    3. Re:You can reload an M1 Garand mid-clip by Sycraft-fu · · Score: 4, Insightful

      This list was about sci-fi/non-real weapons that in fact DO have at least a somewhat functioning real counterpart. It wasn't about real weapons that are in games. However in general, whining about real weapons not being real enough in games is silly. Games are, well, games. They aren't meant to be real. Things are done in the interest of fun. One thing you see extremely commonly is that magazines are magical. That is to say if you do a tactical reload, you keep all the ammunition that was in that mag, yet every one you insert in to the weapon is full. Of course the real world doesn't work that way, but pissing around with loading magazines is boring in a game. It is done for fun and gameplay, not for realism.

      However, I will give you your point on the M1 clip issue precisely because being able to do tactical reloads makes a game more fun. In general, I like games where you can reload your weapon as often as you like. Fire one bullet and take a guy down? Reload. The point of limited magazines/clips in a game is so that you can't just hose down enemies continuously, not to be perfectly real. So yes, it makes sense to allow you to swap out the clip in an M1 when you like.

    4. Re:You can reload an M1 Garand mid-clip by Moraelin · · Score: 1

      Clips are different from box magazines. I don't think that extracting the left-over rounds from a Garand clip would be that unrealistic a fuss.

      --
      A polar bear is a cartesian bear after a coordinate transform.
    5. Re:You can reload an M1 Garand mid-clip by Hurricane78 · · Score: 1

      Well, except for simulations! Like Operation Flashpoint and ArmA.

      --
      Any sufficiently advanced intelligence is indistinguishable from stupidity.
    6. Re:You can reload an M1 Garand mid-clip by tzhuge · · Score: 1

      I think it's like that in games because it was regular practice to just empty the clip. I'm under the impression that during WW2, it was a regular practice to empty the clip instead of reloading. quoting from wikipedia... " In battle, the manual of arms called for the rifle to be fired until empty, and then recharged quickly. "

    7. Re:You can reload an M1 Garand mid-clip by crashandburn66 · · Score: 1

      I've noticed the same thing and I find it just as annoying, especially when you've used up half of the rounds and have to blast the remaining ammo into the ground to get a full clip. However, I was recently pleased to notice that Treyarch managed to get the M1's reloading right in Call of Duty: World at War. So far that's the only game I've played that lets you reload the Garand. Does anybody know of any other games that don't fail in this regard?

    8. Re:You can reload an M1 Garand mid-clip by Ifandbut · · Score: 1

      In Call of Duty: World at War you can reload the M1 mid-clip.

  9. A railgun will certainly get the job done... by Genda · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Railguns are amazing things... You just have to be careful not to vaporize your projectile. It was calculated that if they could get a one ounce steel ball bearing up to a speed of 20 miles per second, it would cause a fusion reaction on impact with relatively stationery object. I was working in a large industrial machine in late the 70s, I was down in the power section of a massive ring roller. The thing occupied four stories, one above ground and three stories underground, at the very bottom floor was the power system. There were three huge copper bus bars that fed into a massive 2000 amp, 1760 volt three phase breaker switch. We were working electronic and hydraulic systems, and had the false floor pulled up, and some hydraulic mechanic dropped an 8 inch adjustable wrench across the bus bars. There was a mind numbing BOOM, accompanied by a blue green flash you could almost see through the back of your head, and when the dust and debris settled, there was a quarter inch of roasted wrench sticking out of the concrete ceiling. This place was noted for really exciting industrial accidents.

    1. Re:A railgun will certainly get the job done... by dintech · · Score: 2, Informative

      It's fascinating to hear these kinds of war story. Thanks very much.

    2. Re:A railgun will certainly get the job done... by DNS-and-BIND · · Score: 1

      Your search - "really exciting industrial accidents" - did not match any documents.

      Damn! I thought I was really on to something there. Boo...

      --
      Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
    3. Re:A railgun will certainly get the job done... by stewhites · · Score: 1

      If you click on the above link, one of the search results is this very page! Bizarre portal action? I almost feel if i looked at my puter, i could see the back of my own head!

    4. Re:A railgun will certainly get the job done... by Genda · · Score: 5, Interesting

      You know I've heard this from people before, and it always amazes me that they don't get it. All you had to do, is do a Google search on "railguns and fussion", there are plenty of articles about the experimentation using railguns as a viable means of ignition. Of course if you need a citation, see below. As for bits of space debris, hitting the atmosphere at speeds of up to 60 miles per second (see persied or leonid meteor showers), they ablate, slow down, vaporize. They absolutely do become plasma and some of the larger pieces (bolides) explode with kiloton force. Read about the early nuclear test ban problems involving accidental false positives, caused by small nuclear sized explosions coming from meteorites with sufficient mass and momentum to cause fusion explosions. That and a quick look at the fireballs created by Shoemaker-Levy on Jupiter should put to rest and idea that meteors or comet can't cause a fusion reaction. The issue is simply one of velocity and momentum. A steel ball going 20 miles per second has both. Please be so good as the do the physics before making a knee-jerk assumption. Using E=1/2MV^2, I come up with a net kinetic energy of 14 million joules focused on a circular region less than an inch across. The entire collision takes place in less than a microsecond, and in that time the entire mass of the ball bearing is rendered into ionized plasma, as is a significant amount of the surface material of the target. The reason for raising incredible rare gases to hundreds of millions of degrees is to create an atomic velocity high enough to ensure that a signification number of collisions will occur in that rarefied gas to sustain a fusion reaction, fusion can occur at a much lower temperature. The incredibly hot dense soup of metal ions at the point of this impact are moving with incredible momentum, the material at the point of impact is hotter than the surface of the sun, hotter than lightening, fusion will certainly occur. Maybe not a huge amount, but some, and it will certainly make a very big mess of the target.

      H. Kolm, Electromagnetic Accelerator Concepts, DOE Impact Fusion Workshop, Los Alamos , N.M. (Jul. 10-12, 1979), Available from NTIS, Springfield, Va. pp. 206-217 (1979)

    5. Re:A railgun will certainly get the job done... by jgtg32a · · Score: 1

      Wasn't there one over Siberia?

    6. Re:A railgun will certainly get the job done... by westcoast+philly · · Score: 5, Funny

      HEY!! Citing your source, complete with publication date and page numbers is not allowed! This is Slashdot, you're supposed to just spew rhetoric and car analogies.

      Please rephrase in the form of a car analogy, or state number of Libraries of Congress per second.... or it didn't happen.

    7. Re:A railgun will certainly get the job done... by Rich0 · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Yup - at significant speeds impacts are quite impressive.

      That's why I was scratching my head at the Day the Earth Stood Still remake. In the beginning there is a ship detected flying towards earth. Somewhere in the dialog or on a display or something it was indicated that it was moving at some significant fraction of c - maybe 10-20% or something. Then they start talking about where it will land with the goal of sending in a science team to be there when it arrives. The science team is surprised that it apparently decelerated before landing so there was no big crater or anything.

      Now, if I were in a science team and I found out that an object of significant size (in this case significant means bigger than a grain of sand) was flying towards the Earth at 20% of c, the last place I'd want to be is within 1000 miles of the impact point, and for that matter within 1000 miles of the point on the Earth opposite the impact point. To be honest, I'd probably prefer just to not be on the Earth at all. However, if I did decide to be at the spot where it would "land" then I wouldn't be shocked to find out it had decelerated - the fact that I was still alive would already confirm this.

    8. Re:A railgun will certainly get the job done... by lul_wat · · Score: 4, Funny

      You know I've heard this from people before, and it always amazes me that they don't get it. All you had to do, is do a Google search on "car analogies", there are plenty of articles about the experimentation using cars as a viable means of analogy. Of course if you need a citation, get bent. As for bits of car debris, hitting the motorway at speeds of up to 60 miles per second (see youtube), they ablate, slow down, vaporize. They absolutely do become plasma and some of the larger pieces (doors) explode with kiloton force. Read about the early nuclear test ban problems involving accidental false positives, caused by small nuclear sized explosions coming from cars with sufficient mass and momentum to cause fusion explosions. That and a quick look at the fireballs created by Russian cars should put to rest and idea that cars or trucks can't cause a fusion reaction. The issue is simply one of velocity and momentum. A steel car going 20 miles per second has both. Please be so good as the do the physics before making a knee-jerk assumption. Using E=1/2MV^2, I come up with a net kinetic energy of 14 million joules focused on a circular region less than an Library of Congress across. The entire collision takes place in less than a microsecond, and in that time the entire mass of the car is rendered into ionized plasma, as is a significant amount of the surface material of the target. The reason for raising incredible rare gases to hundreds of millions of degrees is to create an atomic velocity high enough to ensure that a signification number of collisions will occur in that rarefied motoway to sustain a car analogy, analogies can occur at a much lower temperature. The incredibly hot dense soup of cars on the motorway are moving with incredible momentum, the material at the point of impact is hotter than the surface of the sun, hotter than lightening, analogies will certainly occur. Maybe not a huge amount, but some, and it will certainly make a very big mess of the slashdot.

      --
      Divide a cake by zero. Is it still a cake?
    9. Re:A railgun will certainly get the job done... by Spazztastic · · Score: 1

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event

      Well, that is the event you referenced. We may never know what officially caused it, but that's a theory.

      --
      Posts not to be taken literally. Almost everything is sarcasm.
    10. Re:A railgun will certainly get the job done... by Ihmhi · · Score: 1

      I was looking around online and I happened to stumble upon a picture of that very facility!

  10. Screw guns from video games by antifoidulus · · Score: 4, Funny

    I want a bowel disrupter!

    1. Re:Screw guns from video games by DNS-and-BIND · · Score: 4, Funny

      You know, I've often thought that the coolest thing in the world would be an orgasm gun. Aim, pull trigger, and the target has an orgasm. Would be fun to use against politicians making speeches, pompous university presidents, and so on.

      --
      Shutting down free speech with violence isn't fighting fascism. It IS fascism!
    2. Re:Screw guns from video games by dintech · · Score: 1

      Hey, what you do on your own time...

    3. Re:Screw guns from video games by GigaplexNZ · · Score: 4, Informative

      You mean like the Orgasmo Ray from the movie Orgasmo?

    4. Re:Screw guns from video games by sukotto · · Score: 2, Interesting

      I want a Portal device

      --
      Come play free flash games on Kongregate!
    5. Re:Screw guns from video games by dunkelfalke · · Score: 1

      That will cause a sharp rise of suicides.

      --
      "It's such a fine line between stupid and clever" -- David St. Hubbins, Spinal Tap
    6. Re:Screw guns from video games by Junior+J.+Junior+III · · Score: 1

      I want a bowel disrupter!

      Taco Bell has them for $1.29.

      --
      You see? You see? Your stupid minds! Stupid! Stupid!
    7. Re:Screw guns from video games by Silmandil+Quirpon · · Score: 1

      That will cause a sharp rise of suicides.

      Sure people will shoot themselves, but they won't die, just experience la petite mort.

      (Well, except for the people that rig it up to auto-fire.)

    8. Re:Screw guns from video games by idontgno · · Score: 1

      This

      Niven is usually classified as a Hard SF author, but he does love investigating the social aspects of his future tech. In this case, an interesting piece of triva is that in the Known Space continuity, pranking someone by hitting them with a tasp is colloquially known as "making someone's day".

      Also in the milieu is the very real prospect of stimulation addiction, even with the "hardwired version" of the tasp.

      --
      Welcome to the Panopticon. Used to be a prison, now it's your home.
    9. Re:Screw guns from video games by Cabriel · · Score: 1

      Never assume he's being malicious. In his one sentence, he gives you the weapon name and the place to find it. That's the very definition of informative.

    10. Re:Screw guns from video games by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      Allow me to paraphrase DNS-and-BIND’s comment.

      “Never heard of that movie (because you spelled it wrong)... Please don’t assume everyone on the planet watches the same media that you do (because if they don’t already know what you were referring to, they may want to look it up, and they’ll find the wrong movie since it’s spelled wrong).”

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    11. Re:Screw guns from video games by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      So... more like literal “screw” guns, then.

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    12. Re:Screw guns from video games by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      I want a bowel disrupter!

      Screw guns can do that too.

      ...er, what did you mean by “disruptor”?

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    13. Re:Screw guns from video games by Toonol · · Score: 1

      http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/1321746/A-female-orgasm-at-the-touch-of-a-button.html

      The procedure involved planting electrodes in the spine and using electrical pulses to modify pain signals passing along the nerves; the patient was conscious to help the surgeon find the best position for the electrodes. Dr Meloy said: "I was placing the electrodes and suddenly the woman started exclaiming emphatically. I asked her what was up and she said, 'You're going to have to teach my husband to do that'."

    14. Re:Screw guns from video games by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      It has a remote control... just think of the hacking possibilities!!

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
    15. Re:Screw guns from video games by GigaplexNZ · · Score: 1

      My bad. Being a Kiwi I tend to use British English style spelling by default and didn't realise Orgazmo used a Z. To be fair, the Youtube clips that I watched to remind myself used the same incorrect spelling.

    16. Re:Screw guns from video games by clone53421 · · Score: 1

      Yeah... typically it wouldn’t be that big of a deal, but in this case they’d actually find a completely different movie with the exact title they were looking for. Although, the Wiki for Orgasmo does helpfully offer “Not to be confused with Orgazmo.”

      --
      Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
  11. I know it's old news, but... by interactive_civilian · · Score: 2, Interesting

    ...those Japanese robotic/cyborg exoskeletons are AWESOME! And, they are only going to get more awesome from here on out! Mjolnir armor, here we come!

    Even without the super-soldier aspect, the super-rescue-worker aspect is mind-boggling, not to mention the super-dock-worker. Alien queens better look out!

    --
    "Empathise with stupidity, and you're halfway to thinking like an idiot." - Iain M. Banks
    1. Re:I know it's old news, but... by drinkypoo · · Score: 1

      I hadn't bothered to watch the video for the powered armor before, but WOW. We have man-wearable armor today which can stop a .50 caliber round... not a .50 AP round to be fair, but hey, that's a matter of time. The problem is that it makes you about as agile as a one-legged bear. Make it support itself and maybe just double the strength of the wearer, and it will have some actual utility. Helicopters have been relegated to support roles (remember the canning of the Comanche project?) because a man with a rocket launcher can blow one up. Powered armor would enable a much more powerful version of a man with a rocket launcher. Perhaps as power sources continue to shrink, maybe even a man with a lightning gun.

      --
      "You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
    2. Re:I know it's old news, but... by pckl300 · · Score: 1

      Can the exoskeletons be used on Ninja Warrior to make for a super-gas-station-clerk?

      --
      In the beginning, there was null.
    3. Re:I know it's old news, but... by GooberToo · · Score: 1

      Helicopters have been relegated to support roles (remember the canning of the Comanche project?) because a man with a rocket launcher can blow one up.

      Nothing could be farther from the truth. Its true many helicopters function in a support role, but this has always been true. However, if you look at recent major engagements, helicopters have served on the front lines, often during initial insertions, engagements, or major offensives, whereby they absolutely were not serving support roles. For example, Apaches took out many SAM and radar sites before stealth bombers and fighters began their assaults. So to say, "helicopters have been relegated to support roles", is completely false. Apaches frequently fire the first rounds in new conflicts; and not as a support role.

      And FYI, the Comanche program was canceled because it was way over budget, was not delivering its project goals, and it was believed the Apache platform could be retrofitted to address the lion share of the Comanche program objectives. Furthermore, with the fall of the Soviet Union, the need for the Comanche has been significantly questioned.

      Furthermore, Apaches are relatively hard to shoot down, having taken direct hits from RPGs and flown home, and in general helicopters are hard targets when they are properly flown. The problem with most well known shoot downs are that idiot higher ups decided that helicopters should be flown low, slow, and forced to become highly visible targets such that they can be an ideal, easy target rather than the hard target they generally are. What you're describing is largely an idiocy problem which is pervasive within the military rather than an equipment issue. My understanding is some demotions have taken place and flight profiles have significantly changed.

      The latest Apaches are capable of both radar and heat seeker missile counter measures. Extremely few are willing to engage any troops when Apaches are visible or even if they have been recently observed within an area. Areas where Apaches commonly patrol have some of the lowest IED rates in country. In Iraq and Afghanistan, Apaches have monikers such as "Demon Night Sharks" and everyone is scared shit-less of them. They can engage targets with their 30mm cannon well beyond the range at which they can be heard or observed. And its cannon is the least lethal weapon it carries. As scary as the Apache is, some of the technology it carries is basically 20 years old - even in the most common Longbow variant. As is, the Apache has few rivals on the battlefield and even tank crews, operating modern tanks with the latest armor, will openly tell you they're scared shit-less of them and their kind - even when they don't have missiles and/or rockets.

      We have man-wearable armor today which can stop a .50 caliber round... not a .50 AP round to be fair,

      I'm actually not aware of any such armors, but ignoring that, any body armor capable of stopping a NATO .50 BMG round is still going to kill the wearer in a single shot. The blunt force trauma which would be transferred from these projectiles is huge. To prevent that transfer of force requires some type of rigid frame which does not come in contact with its wearer - which means you're no longer talking about body armor. Right now, about the most effective body armor available is Dragon Skin and a ball .50 BMG will cut through it like butter. Being hit by a .50 BMG round normally results in body parts explosively flying in various directions. It has a lots and lots of energy. And Dragon Skin is way more effective than what is actually issued to troops right now. In fact, many actually spend their own money to obtain it despite the fact the military has effectively banned the armor because of political back door money deals. Simply put, no body armor is even c

    4. Re:I know it's old news, but... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

      Great post... right up to the part about "bodies exploding" from being hit by .50 BMG. This fantasy used to focus on .223 (hit in the hand and the whole arm blew off; hit in the hand and the bullet ricocheted up the arm and pierced the heart, etc. ad nauseum).

      Don't get me wrong, the .50 BMG has *far* more kinetic energy than .223, .308, etc. But apply a bit of logic to what you wrote. "By the time you reach the .50 BMG, the round won't even know the body armor was there." True, it has extreme penetration. Think about that for a minute. However much armor it can penetrate, it can penetrate far more tissue or even bone. Still continuing the thought experiment note that it is not depositing much of its energy to do so. If it did, it would not continue to penetrate.

      Or, do a simple calculation for a perfectly elastic collision with a 75kg target and see how little it actually moves the target. Hollywood notwithstanding firearms don't knock people around and wouldn't even if they transferred all energy.

      I don't have citations handy, but in the 80s or early 90s one of the gun magazines ran a series on ballistics in tissue with *real* data, not pulling shit out of the ass. The *real* data doesn't support some common beliefs, such as the *real* effect of .45 ACP (which basically penetrates well with a shallow wound cavity around the wound channel). 7.62mm short has some interesting ballistics (double tumble, penetration path in tissue is not straight) that wouldn't normally come into play (it goes through too fast). I've got the magazines, just don't remember the name.

    5. Re:I know it's old news, but... by GooberToo · · Score: 1

      Great post... right up to the part about "bodies exploding"

      That's a statement made by many a sniper and I've seen video supporting such statements. This is not to say, "exploding" like a grenade or explosive round. Just the same, if you've ever shot a melon or a jug of water, its accurate to say they, "explode."

      Its common for people shot by .50 BMG to be dismembered, decapitated, bisected, etc. And the tissue immediately surround such wounds do more or less "explode".

    6. Re:I know it's old news, but... by toolie · · Score: 1

      One of the best uses aside from utter destruction (ever seen what a November does to anybody unlucky enough to be in the house it hits?) is deterrent. Bad guys don't want to go out when Apaches are in the air. There is a reason that Apaches have been in the air around Baghdad 24/7 for several years.

      --
      -- toolie
    7. Re:I know it's old news, but... by Wyatt+Earp · · Score: 1

      Helicopters relegated to support roles?

      MANPADS and unguided weapons can shoot down helicopters, but the incidence of those kills in comparison to how many sorties are flown don't make the attack helicopter obsolete. The US Army is still buying new scout and utility copters (scout copters get into the fight), the USMC is upgrading the Cobra while other countries buy new attack helicopters.

      Some models that are still in production

      TAI/AgustaWestland T-129
      AH-1Z Viper
      Eurocopter Tiger
      Kamov Ka-50
      Mil Mi-28N
      AH-64 Apache

    8. Re:I know it's old news, but... by mjwx · · Score: 1

      Even without the super-soldier aspect, the super-rescue-worker aspect is mind-boggling, not to mention the super-dock-worker. Alien queens better look out!

      Non human cross-dressers have problems with power armoured construction workers. Sigh, I used to look foward to the future now it seems the more things change...

      --
      Calling someone a "hater" only means you can not rationally rebut their argument.
    9. Re:I know it's old news, but... by LandGator · · Score: 1

      I would be grateful if you would e-mail when you find the magazine and year to yeltrab{daht]nhoj{ayt]gmail{daht]com Thank you kindly.

      --
      There is nothing wrong with yr Internet. Do not attempt to adjust the picture. We are controlling the transmission - NSA
  12. And The Weapons Are: by Entropy98 · · Score: 2, Informative

    1: Railgun
    2: Laser guns
    3: Plasma rifles
    4: Lightning guns
    5: Mechs
    6: Power-armour

  13. I own a Saiga-12... by spywhere · · Score: 1

    ...so I'm really getting a kick out of these comments.
    Saiga-12

  14. what's with by AlgorithMan · · Score: 1

    what's with real-life shrink-ray, freeze-gun and devastator? or at least jetpack or holoduke!? what are they waiting for to develop these? christmas?

    --
    The MAFIAA is a bunch of mindless jerks who will be the first up against the wall when the revolution comes
    1. Re:what's with by Ihmhi · · Score: 1

      Freeze gun: tank, host, liquid nitrogen. Damn near freezes on contact.

      Jetpacks have been done. they're just loud and inefficient.

      And if the Devastator you're talking about is the mini nuke, then let me introduce you to the Davy Crockett.

    2. Re:what's with by The+Archon+V2.0 · · Score: 1

      what's with real-life shrink-ray, freeze-gun and devastator?

      I know you didn't mean the thing that the Constructicons combine into, but I want one of those. Only with less evil-robot and more I-ride-around-with-my-purple-and-yellow-awesomeness.

  15. Re:In other words... by selven · · Score: 1

    I disagree, this stuff is actually interesting. The power suit alone would make a good article, we also get plasma cutters, lasers and all sorts of interesting tech being developed. I thought this stuff is what Slashdot was supposed to be all about?

  16. FGMP15 FTW by mjwalshe · · Score: 2, Interesting

    and the concept of a Jump Commado from traveller still the most OTT unit ever put on paper.

  17. um... by spywhere · · Score: 1

    ...it's a weapon in six different video games? Does that help?

  18. Don't need BFG, just want Quake Grenade Launcher by aunchaki · · Score: 1

    Plasma guns, railguns, lighning guns, supersuits. Meh...

    I want a grenade launcher that'll let me bounce grenades around corners and off floors. My all-time favorite FPS weapon.

  19. Medipack by gmuslera · · Score: 4, Insightful

    One thing that share futuristic video games with not so futuristic (i.e. from WWII and other wars) are "magical" medipacks,you get them and no matter what hits you (knives, grenades, a lot of bullets,some maybe in the head) you end with full health. Of all video games "weapons", that should be the one that would make a big difference for all.

    1. Re:Medipack by Tibia1 · · Score: 1

      Want to know why medpacks are the same in every game? Because man is more creative when it comes to destruction. Or at least men who play video games are.

    2. Re:Medipack by Mashdar · · Score: 3, Funny

      We tested the wait-a-week-to-heal-one-hit-point model, but it did not score well with 18-24 males.

    3. Re:Medipack by NewKidInTown · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I disagree. In the original Rainbow 6 games (even leading up to the most recent ones in Vegas) the characters in your squad could take at most a glancing shot and be harmed. Their effectiveness dropped remarkably. If they got hit again, or were unlucky enough to be hit critically, they were dead. Not revived-at-the-end-of-the-mission knocked out, but dead. Your explosives expert takes a sniper shot the the head in the first mission? You better learn how to dismantle bombs, because he's gone. The characters that only got scratched during the mission took a few "weeks" to heal ,meaning they were ineffective in the following missions. It made for a more tactics-based game, instead of "I'm gonna run into that room and spray bullets at anything the moves" type game.

    4. Re:Medipack by GameboyRMH · · Score: 1

      One of the things I liked from Stalker was the powered exosuits. They seemed like plausible near-future sci-fi items. Of course in the game, you stop lusting over them once you get 2 Moonlight artifacts.

      I saw someone mention a Gauss gun, they can't be talking about the one from Stalker. It's just an overpowered sniper rifle with ultra-rare ammo and an even more pathetic firing rate.

      My favorite weapon in that game was a fast-shooting AK (you need the repair mod to keep it) with a scope and grenade launcher attached. It just did everything. Worked well as an assault rifle, ammo was easy to find, could shoot accurately enough to kill with a couple bursts of fire at up to about 700ft, and had a freaking grenade launcher, which was absolutely essential for those humanoid psychic creatures (forget what they're called) and great for clearing out groupings of bad guys.

      --
      "When information is power, privacy is freedom" - Jah-Wren Ryel
  20. What about Borderlands? by protodevilin · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Say what you will about its Fallout-esque gameplay, Borderlands was the first FPS in a long time that constantly had me saying, "God I love this gun." A sniper rifle that fires explosive incindiary bullets? An SMG that shoots corrosive acid rounds? Grenades that teleport directly to their targets and burst into an electric lightning storm? Sign me up.

    1. Re:What about Borderlands? by nelsonal · · Score: 1

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raufoss_Mk_211 The first are pretty easy to make today.

      --
      Degaussing scares the bad magnetism out of the monitor and fills it with good karma.
  21. So I'm glad I got burned by myocardialinfarction · · Score: 1

    Think of all the things we learned for the people who are still alive

  22. Wrecking Bar by jgtg32a · · Score: 1

    The real-life equivalent of the HL crowbar is a wrecking-bar

  23. Ratchet and Clank by boaworm · · Score: 1
    --
    Probable impossibilities are to be preferred to improbable possibilities.
    Aristotele
  24. What the military actually has is more impressive by Animats · · Score: 4, Informative

    The U.S. military has some weapons which are much better than many video game weapons. Video games need "balance", so players aren't given weapons that are too "powerful". DoD doesn't have that limitation.

    • The Grid Square Removal Service. When a Multiple Launch Rocket System unit is loaded up with rockets with submunitions, it fires 12 rockets, each of which carries 518 submunitions, each of which explodes into a rain of fragments. This kills anything unarmored in a 1km grid square. In the U.S. Army inventory for years. Some Iraqi army units were wiped out with those things.
    • The FireFinder radar. Shoot at a U.S. Army unit with an indirect fire weapon, and one of these will see the incoming projectiles, calculate the location of the gun, and pass that information to the U.S. Army guns, which will duly plaster the shooter. Within one minute. Standard equipment for Army and USMC artillery units. The technology dates from the 1970s, but in newer versions, it's been shrunk down to a size a HUMMV can carry.
    • The XM-25 "smart" grenade launcher. Useful when someone is shooting at you from behind cover or from a window. Just point at the side of the window, and click a button to get the range with the laser rangefinder. Then fire a round though the window. The round goes through the window, and, with its timer set automatically, explodes 1-2 meters just inside, in the right place for killing the sniper. Finally, a practical weapon that shoots around corners.
    • The Combat Engineer Vehicle, another reason the "Dune" approach to desert warfare won't work. These are tank chassis, with the armor, equipped with a bulldozer blade. They're used for removing obstacles. In the first Gulf War, they were used in Kuwait against dug-in Iraqi troops. They didn't bother shooting at them. They just bulldozed sand over their fighting holes, burying them alive.

    "If you can see it, you can hit it. If you can hit it, you can kill it." As insurgent groups have figured out, the only way to succeed against a modern military force is to have a population in which to hide, one which the US isn't willing to exterminate.

  25. Re:That man, like others, stole ideas from the Bib by clone53421 · · Score: 1

    Bullshit. There is no such thing in Genesis.

    --
    Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.
  26. Re:That man, like others, stole ideas from the Bib by idontgno · · Score: 1

    As far as you can trust Wikipedia, the idea of Lilith being Adam's first wife is essentially an early Medieval Jewish folk tale. Apparently, earlier consideration of Lilith was as the ancient Sumerian idea of a female demon lilitu. This is described as comparable to "modern" succubi.

    "Sci-Fi" movies of today were taken right out of Science-Factions of Aliens and Predators that actually exist here and now. It realy pisses me off when all the mythology and fables of today are nothing more than disguises of real SHTF

    I don't know if I'm entirely following you, but culturally we've been repeating mythotypes for centuries. The whole "making money off of recycled myths" really just boils down to "making money off of a predictable human activity". And that boils down to "making money".

    True creativity is rare and tends to fail commercially because it's novel and threatening. That's just the way it is.

    --
    Welcome to the Panopticon. Used to be a prison, now it's your home.
  27. Re:That man, like others, stole ideas from the Bib by clone53421 · · Score: 1

    Ah, well, that explains it somewhat. It’s nowhere to be found in Genesis, I’m quite certain.

    The narrative in that Wikipedia article is nothing resembling the one in Genesis, either... as Adam is supposedly perfect until he recognizes “either his sin or Cain’s homicide” (presumably the tale varies at this point) and leaves his wife Eve, who is still said to be “holy”. This is in direct contradiction to the narrative in Genesis, where Eve was the first to violate God’s command and led Adam to do the same, all of which occurred before the birth of Cain or Abel.

    --
    Alexander Peter Kristopeit bought his basement from his mommy for one dollar.