Weapons/Abilities In Games You Never Used

[Llil]

If a game has powerful but rare consumable items, I usually end up not using them at all. I'll just "save them for later when I really need them", and that later never comes. This has happened so many times that now I usually sell all items like that and use the money to buy things I know I'll use.

In the Zone from Xcom EU/EW is one example. See, if you take it, you are counting on the enemy not being in cover when you open fire in order to capitalize on the benefits. However, they are likely going to run to cover by the time you see them, thereby negating the usefulness on the ability. So what about you guys?

In the Zone is actually really powerful when combined with Snapshot. Especially in EW where the Snapshot aim penalty is lower and Squadsight lost the ability to get critical hits, making the choice between the two less obvious. You can run behind a group of enemies and flank them all, which means they don't count as having cover, and still shoot thanks to Snapshot. Or alternatively, you can blow up the cover with grenades or a rocket, weakening the enemies at the same time, and then the sniper can kill them all in one turn.

It is a bit tricky to use compared to Double Tap, and for a Squad Sight sniper Double tap is more useful anyway. But ITZ can be effective if it's used well.

 

[Schadrach]

For me it's usually the "super weapons" in shooters. Stuff like the BFG from Doom.

Usually their ammunition is pretty limited, so I always find myself in the mindset that I'll save them for when the situation is dire. The problem though is that I always end up in the mindset that things could possibly get worse later on, so I just keep saving the ammo for those hypothetical worse situations. Before I know it I've defeated the end boss with a full stockpile of ammo for a heavy weapon I never once fired.

Even in games like Call of Duty I find myself trying to conserve grenades and rockets, which makes even less sense since I'll probably die and respawn with refilled grenades and rockets momentarily.

I was like that with every weapon in The Last of Us, except shivs. To the point that I had a whole backpack full of fully loaded weapons for the last section, and still didn't use them.

 

[moosemaimer]

For me it's usually the "super weapons" in shooters. Stuff like the BFG from Doom.

Usually their ammunition is pretty limited, so I always find myself in the mindset that I'll save them for when the situation is dire. The problem though is that I always end up in the mindset that things could possibly get worse later on, so I just keep saving the ammo for those hypothetical worse situations. Before I know it I've defeated the end boss with a full stockpile of ammo for a heavy weapon I never once fired.

I just recently finished Rage, and right near the end you get a huge plasma rifle with a secondary "BFG" mode. I bought a few rounds for it and headed out to the final mission just waiting for some huge thing I could vaporize.

Never happened. The final area consists of troopers you've already seen and some amped-up mutants that went down to shotgun grenades. Toughest thing in the whole level were some armored guys that made me finally break out the rocket launcher I got half the game ago.

 

[Canadamus Prime]

I'd say most of the skills/abilities in Diablo III. Once I found a skill set that worked for me I never used anything else so all the other ones just went to waste. As the mage once I got the my laser beam face melty death I just spammed that all over the place. It was esp. awesome when I got the rune that allowed my to fire two of 'em.

 

[moosemaimer]

I had the same issue with Dues Ex: HR, you have all these fun abilities and weapons but I see the game as more of a stealth game so never use them.

New Game + from the special edition is great for that; instead of constantly thinking of how to maximize your XP, you have the freedom to do things any way that seems right; I found so much stuff I'd never seen before because I wasn't constantly trying to stick to the stealth route. Entire quests can play out differently if you kick in the back door instead of sneaking in through a window.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

I almost never use Magnums in Resident Evil games because they come late in the game and I save the ammo for something or other.
Also Summons in Kingdom Hearts games. Who the fuck needs them. I only found them of any use against Kurt Ziza in a second playthrough.
And the counter move in the Cowboy Bebop game. Forgot it existed until I absolutely had to use it against the 2nd to last boss, which was a pain in the ass.

 

[Flatfrog]

Worms Armageddon - I almost never use the Bazooka, which is the default weapon, because it's just too difficult to aim. It's wind-dependent so the maths is pretty much impossible. The AI opponents are incredibly accurate with it. They can also aim grenades accurately enough to ensure they detonate mid-air next to you, in a way no sensible human can do. I do most of my playing tactically, using ropes, burrowing etc to get to better ground where I can do a well-placed shotgun blast.

Another one is games like Uncharted where I find myself ignoring the guns altogether and using hand-to-hand combat instead. When I come to sections where that isn't possible I come completely unstuck because I have no practice.

 

[GundamSentinel]

I recently downloaded dark souls at a bargin price on Xbox 360 and if you haven't played the game, well you are basically undead....or something. I'm not sure myself exactly but I'm enjoying the game anyways.
So, when you start/get killed you become undead and look zombified. However you can collect 'humanity' which makes you look human instead of undead. I am probably missing something but apart from changing your appearance it doesn't seem to do much so I don't bother with it.

Kindling bonfires was sometimes useful, but other than that I never saw the point in using humanity either. In Demon's Souls, not being alive cut your HP bar in half. Now that was a good reason to stay alive.

Others:
Lethal weapons in games where you can do a no-kill stealth run like MGS, Dishonored and Deus Ex: HR. I would always do (or try to do) such a run, never bothering with guns.

Magic in many games. It's often so much easier to just hit something with your sword rather than charging up spells and waiting for your mana to recover.

For me it's usually the "super weapons" in shooters. Stuff like the BFG from Doom.

Usually their ammunition is pretty limited, so I always find myself in the mindset that I'll save them for when the situation is dire. The problem though is that I always end up in the mindset that things could possibly get worse later on, so I just keep saving the ammo for those hypothetical worse situations. Before I know it I've defeated the end boss with a full stockpile of ammo for a heavy weapon I never once fired.

Even in games like Call of Duty I find myself trying to conserve grenades and rockets, which makes even less sense since I'll probably die and respawn with refilled grenades and rockets momentarily.

Yep, guilty as charged. I almost always do that. Only in subsequent playthroughs where I know what's coming will I sometimes use them. And even then rarely. But lately I've been trying to cultivate a mindset that's the complete reverse of that: always using the heaviest weapons at my disposal in any situation. It has already led to some silly situations. Eat Mini Nuke, Radroach!

 

[Shoggoth2588]

Most recently, I don't use Mega Evolutions in Pokemon Y. I went through the tutorial thing but I just don't want to go out of my way to get the required ore for the party members I have that could Mega-Evolve...can't really remember who's in my party since it's been a while since I've played the game honestly. Remember how Mega-Charizard and, Mega Blaziken were really marketed though? Neither are in my party...nor is the free Lucario in my party. I'm just not interested in Mega Evolutions; it minimizes final-form Pokemon in my opinion for an arguably negligible power-up. Before I'm quoted, I don't play competitively so I do realize I'm probably missing something by strictly playing single player

Any restorative or damage item that ever existed in most RPG games.

What's that? I have 99 Full Elixirs and I'm in the final dungeon?


... better save them, just in case...

This too. I'll use a Pheonix Down early on but once I know the equivalent magic I just sell off the items for quick Buckazoids.

 

[Kotaro]

The StreetPass feature in Shin Megami Tensei IV. To get the most out of the thing, you have to attach one of your demons to your card, and you can't summon it while it's attached. Given that you can only keep a limited number of demons at a time, I found it more trouble than it was worth.

 

[WolfThomas]

In Deus Ex: Human Revolution there is an upgrade that fires explosive balls from his arms, never purchased this upgrade and let all the ammo I found collect dust.

That game.

I think I finished it with sitting in my inventory unused:
~10 Typhoon
~12 EMP grenades
-Fully upgraded silenced Armor piercing Pistol with 200 rounds
-Fully upgraded explosive revolver with 100 rounds
-Plasma rifle with ~100 ammo

Just because I was saving it for when I needed it and using the stun gun and takedowns instead.

 

[King Aragorn]

In stealth games I just sort of forget gadgets sometimes, this is especially apparent with the Metal Gear Solid series in which most of the time I just go in as if i'v got nothing.
Off topic but god damn, been a while since i'v posted anything.

 

[Coakle]

Dark Souls: Magic

I got more enjoyment from sword fighting. I ended up never experimenting with it.

 

[EscapeGoat_v1legacy]

Though I picked Vanguard as my class in Mass Effect I never used any of the biotic abilities I had. Considering I could power my way through all the enemy encounters with my shotgun and pistol (especially after they were upgraded with the anti-recoil upgrades and the poison rounds that vaporized enemies) I never really needed them and by the end I'd forgotten I had them. To be fair, in Mass Effect 2 I've found the powers, especially Shockwave, Pull and Charge, actually rather useful and they've come in handy in the fights, but in the first game I never needed to use them.

 

[Atmos Duality]

Half the beam combo items in Metroid Prime 1 & 2.
Well, not technically "never". I tried Flamethrower a couple of times before realizing it's total ass.
(Wavebuster is cheaper, auto-homes, and looks fucking awesome)

Same with Ice Spreader and Sonic Boom, though I've heard some folks who swear by them.
I never saw the point when I had Lightburst's incredible AoE with burn effect or Darkburst's long ass stun effect.
(that, and the Annihilator was a total letdown; ammo was a terrible idea in that game.)

 

[Malevolentcafe]

I've never used the healing miracles in dark souls. Are they any replacement for the estus flask? Probably not.

 

[FPLOON]

Uh... Those "gem thingies" in Sonic 06?

Oh... I NEVER use any standalone status and/or area effect moves in any of the Pokemon games I've played... especially if all it did was "waste" a turn not "directly" hurting my opponent's Pokemon with my Pokemon... (I always stayed on the offensive side of combat, anyway...)

And, speaking of Sonic, I never used any of the sword-like weapons in Shadow the Hedgehog... "Guns or nothing" is what made me kept playing the game as well as me hating the game for not allowing me to trick-play it 5 times instead of legit-playing it 10 times just to get the "true ending"...

 

[twistedmic]

I almost never use the block button in games, unless I'm playing and Assassin's Creed game and plan on chain-killing the next five or six guards.
And I hardly used V.A.T.S. in New Vegas, I strongly preferred using the iron sights.

And I never even touched the bionics in Mass Effect 1 and 2.

 

[MHR]

I'm trying real hard to think of something I never use, but I'm drawing a blank. I try to use as many things as possible in combination to get the best results.

But Twistedmic mentioned V.A.T.S. I never use it in Fallout 3 or NV and in Mass Effect I've never played any other class other than the engineer. The engineer is just too much damn fun. Rushing the enemy like an unstoppable soldier or blasting them with superpowers just sounds bland by comparison.