Whisper it but dishing out damage and violence in video games is really fun. Perhaps it's because we're given the opportunity to let out our inner-psychos but there's something amazingly satisfying about playing as a character with an awesome weapon. We're not talking about your sub-standard Shotgun or Assault Rifle; the kind of weapons that are featured in just about every FPS game ever. The more interesting weapons are the unique ones, found in one game or series that come to define the entire experience. Half-Life is a great example. The Crowbar in Half-Life is a standard melee weapon but it's quickly come to represent the series. Why? Because the game makes the weapon feel unique and useful; there are situations where you're forced to defend yourself with the Crowbar alone. That automatically makes it seem like a powerful tool of destruction in the eyes of gamers; it's a clever trick that game developers should use more often, rather than handing us a multitude of weapons and expecting us to find our favourite. It's great when a game realises just how important a weapon is and makes it a key feature. Like in the movies, weapons can quickly become as iconic as the hero wielding them; after all, what would Indiana Jones be without his whip or The Man With No Name without a revolver? It just wouldn't be the same and that applies to some video game heroes too. The weapons featured in this article have come to define certain games, series or even genres. Removing them would dramatically alter the experience or even ruin it; these weapons are icons in their own right and should be celebrated as such. Of course, it's not a complete list, so if you have any other examples that you feel are missing, please add them in the comments below.