Resident Evil 5/Items and weapons

Throughout Resident Evil 5, you can upgrade or replace your weapons either by finding them in attache cases, or buying them between levels. Almost all weapons in Resident Evil 5 can be found in-game for free.

Unless otherwise stated, the infinite ammo bonus feature for each gun is unlocked for purchase by fully upgrading the weapon. Some of the weapon categories also have a superior weapon to be unlocked by fully upgrading a certain weapon in the same category, it can then be purchased.

Guns can be upgraded in three universal aspects, which are firepower, reloading speed, and capacity. Most guns (but not all) also have a special ability upgrade which makes them unique from others.

Handguns
Handguns are your basic small arms, that while aren't necessarily useful power-wise, you should always have one at all times. Handgun ammo is almost always plentiful. Use the handgun to shoot enemies in the head, legs, or knees, setting them up for a good melee attack. You will also use the handgun to dislodge some treasures from walls. The handgun will be your last-ditch weapon in the case of not having any magnum or shotgun ammo.

M92F
A basic pistol that you receive in the beginning of the game, it will definitely be the one that you'll use most. This isn't because of any tremendous power or special ability, but simply because of the fact that you have it from the beginning. As handguns aren't used for their power, replacing the M92F isn't necessary.

It is recommended that you upgrade the M92F whenever you have some spare cash, because doing so will unlock the best handgun in the game, the M93R.

Special Increase chance of critical shots

H&K P8
Hardly an improvement on the standard M92F, this pistol is has a smaller capacity and less firepower. It makes up for this by having the fastest reloading speed of all the pistols, which can help in tight situations. However, this is really not worth its cost of ₦4000. Buy it if you want.

Special Increase chance of critical shots

SIG P226
The most powerful weapon of the bunch, the P226 sacrifices clip size for sheer power. It deals 20% more damage than the M92F. Once again, however, the handgun is not for power, so this gun is not required. There is no special ability.

M93R (Unlock)
Unlocked by fully upgrading the M92F, the M93R can then be purchased for ₦30,000. This is quite an average pistol, until you upgrade the special ability, which gives the handgun a three-round burst fire. Combined with some capacity upgrades, this handgun is more devastating than a handgun should be.

Special Three-round burst fire

Shotguns
Along with the magnums, you will be using shotguns for their sheer power. Ammo for the shotgun isn't come across a lot, so use your shotgun wisely. Shotguns also have spread, which allows them to knock back multiple enemies at once even if you don't aim very precisely.

Don't use your shotgun over-enthusiastically, as you will regret it when the time comes that you really need it.

Ithaca M37
The most basic shotgun available, the Ithaca M37 can be found in a locked building in Chapter 1-2, or bought for ₦2000. You'll be using it for a while, as other shotguns don't show up until much later in the game. Therefore, spend any spare cash you have upgrading this boomstick and you'll have a well-rounded weapon.

The Ithaca M37 has no special ability.

Jail Breaker
A mediocre improvement (actually not an improvement at all) from the Ithaca M37, this isn't such a great shotgun because by the time you find it in-game, your M37 should be upgraded better than it, and you'll probably even have the M3, which is more powerful. It's still worth picking up if you want the Stockpile achievement, though.

Special Increase chance of critical shots

M3
The Benelli M3 is the strongest shotgun in Resident Evil 5 by a large margin. If you have enough money to upgrade it, make sure to replace your Ithaca M37 with this beast.

Sadly, it has no special upgrade.

Hydra (Unlock)
Unlocked by fully upgrading the Ithaca M37 shotgun. The Hydra can then be purchased for ₦30,000. While it is not as powerful as the M3 and has a slower reloading speed, the Hydra is marked for its special ability upgrade. It also fires three shells at once, so it often does more damage than a fully upgraded M3. To top it off, the weapon has a huge spread so you can relax and win even if you fail at aiming.

Special Gives the Hydra full power even at range

Machine Guns
These are weapons that shoot bullets that are pretty weak per shot, but at such a high rate that they add up for some good damage. Machine guns aren't the most useful weapon in Resident Evil 5, but they sure are fun to upgrade for the infinite ammo feature. One machine gun bullet is worth even less to you than one handgun bullet, so you might use the machine gun to set enemies up for melee punishment, dislodge treasures, etc. Machine gun ammo is encountered occasionally.

VZ61
The first machine gun you will find in the game, it is definitely the most lacking machine gun. Having power three times weaker than even the weakest handgun, the VZ61 should be replaced with a better machine gun as soon as you find one. On the other hand, you still have to upgrade this gun completely if you want to unlock the boss of the machine gun category.

Special Increase chance of critical shots

H&K MP5
A machine gun that hardly deals more damage than the VZ61, the MP5 isn't a great weapon either. But this is disregarding its special capability, which causes the bullets to pierce through enemy shields and armor. This definitely helps with the tribal Majini and the base Majini that are smart enough to defend themselves.

Special Bullets pierce through armor and shields

AK-74
The strongest out of the four regular machine guns. Although it comes with a smaller capacity, the damage dealt out to enemies per time is finally significantly greater than with a handgun with the AK-74. If you are going to use a machine gun often, this is the one to use. It has no special ability.

SIG 556
This is a wannabe AK-74. Although it has a slightly higher capacity and a faster reload, it deals just a bit less damage than the AK-74. The SIG 556 has no special ability.

Rifles
These sniper rifles are good for taking out enemies that are far away, and they are also good for medium range due to the high power. Rifles have a scope that can be zoomed in or zoomed out to suit your distance of aiming.

You won't be needing a rifle for most of the time, so give it to your partner for storage. Or, you can have your partner keep the rifle for the entire time. They have perfect aim and often take out long-range enemies for you that you don't even see.

Dragunov SVD
The first rifle you find in the game, it isn't great, but you are forced to do fine with it because other rifles don't come until later. Unfortunately, the SVD doesn't have semi-automatic capabilities until after the special upgrade. Also, out of all the rifles the SVD is the most unstable. This means that your aim will sway a lot when trying to use the scope.

Special The gun becomes semi-automatic, allowing you to stay scoped in after each shot

S75
This is the strongest rifle damage-wise by a good margin, at the cost no possible semi-automatic capabilities. You will be zoomed out and have to zoom back in after each shot. But considering that most normal enemies will die in very very few shots of this (especially if you upgrade it), it should not be a problem.

H&K PSG-1
The opposite of the S75, the PSG-1 is a weak rifle. It does even less damage than the starting SVD, but has semi-automatic capabilities upon purchase. Your aiming reticle is much more stable with this gun also. Combined with a unique special upgrade, this can be a very good rifle to use.

Special Increase the maximum zoom of the scope

S&W M500
Unlocked by fully upgrading the S&W M29 magnum, the S&W M500 can then be purchased for ₦30,000.

Grenades

 * Hand Grenade - Explodes a few seconds after being thrown, damaging all enemies nearby.
 * Incendiary Grenade - Explodes on impact, releasing a short burst of flames that will set nearby enemies on fire.
 * Flash Grenade - Explodes on impact, creating a bright flash that stuns enemies and kills certain parasites instantly.

Proximity Bomb
An explosive device that is planted in the ground and explodes when an enemy gets nearby. It takes a few seconds for the bomb to arm after it's planted, so you can get away before it goes off.

Grenade Launcher
The grenade launcher can fire six different types of ammunition: explosive, acidic, nitrogen, flame, flash and electric.

This is the only gun in the game that doesn't have an infinite ammo unlockable, but grenade rounds of all types can be bought between chapters for varying amounts.

Rocket Launcher
To unlock infinite ammo for the rocket launcher, complete the story on any difficulty in under five hours. Your best times for each chapter are combined, so you don't have to play through the whole game in a single attempt.

Knife
Available when the third checkpoint in Chapter 1-1 is reached, the combat knife is your backup weapon. It's really only useful for very close-range encounters, and for breaking open jars, boxes and barrels. It can also help you conserve ammo - shoot majini in the legs to make them fall, and then hit them with the knife to finish them off.
 * Price: free.

Stun Rod
A close-range weapon similar to your combat knife, the stun rod will electrocute any enemies you hit with it, temporarily stunning them.
 * Price: ₦3,000.
 * Number of upgrades: none.

Gatling Gun

 * Unlocked by: fully upgrade the VZ61 machine gun.
 * Price: ₦50,000.
 * Can be used by: Chris.
 * Number of upgrades: none.

Chris' exclusive weapon, the Gatling Gun, has unlimited ammo. If it is in his inventory, Chris carries around a bulky backpack (like the Gatling Gun enemies) that affects visibility (it takes up about 20-50% of the screen at all times). It is a short to medium distance weapon, because it sprays bullets with a random vector within a cone. At long distances, bullets often fly to the sides of the target. The kick on this gun causes it to shift its aim, and must be adjusted as firing continues. Damage is not given, but could be between 100 and 500 per bullet.

Long Bow

 * Unlocked by: fully upgrading the S75 rifle.
 * Price: ₦??.
 * Can be used by: Sheva.

Sheva's exclusive weapon, the Long Bow, has infinite ammo by default and will kill most enemies with one shot. It has no laser sight.

Healing Items
Healing items will only affect the character who uses it if your partner is too far away, but if you're together then it will heal both of you.

For unlimited healing items, go into your inventory in a co-op game (on or offline) and have one character give all his items to the other. Both players should quit, with the one who received the items saving his game and the other one not saving. When both players reload their games, they will both have those items. Repeat as many times as necessary to stock up or sell items for quick cash.

Herbs

 * Green - Heals about 1/4 of your health.
 * Green + Green - Heals about 2/3 of your health.
 * Green + Red - Completely heals you.

First Aid Spray
A can of first aid spray will completely heal both characters.

Eggs
Eggs are dropped by chickens when you chase them, or snakes if you kill one. In order to get the achievement, you have to have all four types of egg in your inventory at once.

The White, Brown and Golden eggs are healing items, but unlike herbs and the first aid spray only heal the person who uses them and not their partner.


 * White Egg - Heals the same as one green herb.
 * Brown Egg - Heals the same as two combined green herbs.
 * Golden Egg - Heals the same as a red and green herb combination.

The fourth egg is the rotten egg. This egg is different from the other three in that it is not a healing item. This egg functions like a grenade and is designed to be thrown at enemies. It drops randomly from enemies starting at chapter 4.