Best Weapons in the Halo 5 Beta

The Halo 5: Guardians Beta is upon us, and owners of The Master Chief Collection have been flocking to the game to get as much time in as possible before the beta ends next week. One of the most talked about features of the Halo 5 Beta are the weapons. Some of the weapons are new, while others have been adjusted from their previous incarnations. It’s likely many of these weapons will see some adjustment before Halo 5 hits store shelves later this year, but for now, let’s take a look at some of the best weapons in the Halo 5: Guardians Beta.

Assault Rifle

The Assault Rifle has been slightly upgraded since we last saw it in a Halo game. This time around the Assault Rifle is more powerful, able to bring down a fully shielded target with only half a magazine. It’s always been one of the go-to weapons of the Halo series, but with the increased power in Halo 5 it almost feels overpowered in comparison. It can go head-to-head with the DMR in terms of damage, but doesn’t quite have the same range. Still, in a short-range firefight, the Assault Rifle is one of the best weapons you can get.

DMR

The DMR is one of the best weapons in Halo 5: Guardians. It offers solid accuracy from moderate range, but also works well from a distance. You need to be a good shot with this gun, but if you’ve got the skill, this weapon can take down a fully shielded target in four shots or less. This isn’t a spray and pray weapon, so it may not appeal to the average FPS player, but the high-level players should find this to be one of the best weapons to engaging and quickly finishing off a target.

Hydra

The Hydra is basically the rocket launcher of the Halo 5 Beta. You can lock-on to a target using ADS (aim down sight), which also fires a spread of rockets at your target. While it’s still possible to avoid the spread, it’s not easy. The blast radius will almost always impact the target’s shield, making them relatively easy to finish off. Even with a full shield, it generally only takes two shots to kill with the Hydra.

If you see an opposing player with the Hydra, you need to take cover quickly or run. It’s a decent strategy to watch the Hydra spawn points and pick off any opposing players going for the weapon once it spawns. The game gives you plenty of warning when weapons are about to spawn, so you don’t even need to camp long to catch someone going for the Hydra.

Magnum (Pistol)

The Magnum is similar to the pistol from the first Halo game. It’s quick and easy to use at close range, but also works well from a distance. With decent aim you can take down a target with a few head shots, but it seems to be mainly used as a defensive weapon. If someone gets the jump on you, quickly switch to the Magnum to get in a few quick headshots and bring them down before they can finish you off. We may see the damage on the Magnum toned down slightly before Halo 5 releases, but it’s not terribly overpowered at the moment.

Prophets Bane (Energy Sword)

Think of the Prophets Bane as an upgraded version of the Energy Sword from previous Halo games. It’s been upgraded to allow players to run faster while holding the weapon, similar to Counter-Strike where holding the knife increased your speed. It’s not used quite in the same manner as CS because it’s extremely bright and essentially paints a target on your face, but the increased speed can result in an easy triple kill if your opponents are grouped together.

The Prophets Bane is basically a one-attack kill. Even if your target has a full shield, you can still take them out with a single, well-placed sword attack. To balance this, the Prophets Bane has less range than the Energy Swords of the past. You can get more range if you use ADS, but this weapon is still limited to close-range encounters, as you’d expect.

Sniper Rifle

Just about every FPS has a solid Sniper Rifle, and Halo 5: Guardians is no exception. There isn’t much to say about the Sniper Rifle because it doesn’t differ that much from Sniper Rifles in other shooters or even previous Halo games. You can score one-shot kills from quite a distance, but you need good aim to make sure every shot counts. If you’re skilled with the Sniper Rifle, you can dismantle an opposing team in no time.

Keep an eye on Prima Games as we offer more coverage of the Halo 5: Guardians Beta all this month!