Final Fantasy VII Remake is easily one of the biggest surprises in the modern gaming landscape. From the delayed launch of this game to the questions fans asked about the decision to keep the game grounded in Midgar, there were a ton of ways in which the Final Fantasy VII Remake could go south as a title. Thankfully, the release of this title squashed all the complaints that people had about it, with the remake cementing itself as one of the greatest modern JRPGs of all time.
It's not just the nostalgia at play here — although it's definitely an integral part of the experience for most fans — but the fact that the game is solid enough when viewed as a standalone title. The combat is especially notable, with all four party members equipping a bevy of weapons that can provide some solid abilities of their own, as well.
Barret is one such character who absolutely shines in this regard, with his weapons offering the following abilities that have been ranked in terms of overall usefulness.
6 Steel Pincers — Charging Uppercut
The Steel Pincers are generally not considered to be a great weapon, in no small part due to the fact that it completely negates the advantages that Barret can enjoy through his ranged combat and forces him to get up close and personal with enemies while swinging slowly and wildly. So, it's only fitting that this mediocre weapon also offers up a weapon ability that isn't really all that great either.
The Charging Uppercut can definitely be a great way to show enemies who's boss as Barret pierces and then flings them in the air... but the lack of range, damage output that's somewhat woeful, and a wealth of better — not to mention more damaging — attacks to choose from renders the Charging Uppercut obsolete in the grand scheme of things.
5 Light Machine Gun — Lifesaver
It's pretty clear that Barret is meant to be the tank of the party, given that — aside from the fact that he has the highest health of all party members — he has a default ability to increase his defenses in the form of Steelskin, along with another weapon ability from the first weapon he can obtain aside from the Gatling Gun that pretty much bestows what is the equivalent of the Cover materia's effect onto him.
The name Lifesaver should make it pretty clear as to what this ability does — it redirects all the damage dealt on the entire party to Barret instead, allowing the other two fighting members to give it their all without worrying while Barret ends up shouldering the brunt of the damage. For people who might be worried about Barret getting KOed while using this ability, rest assured that no redirected damage will bring his HP below 1.
4 Wrecking Ball — Smackdown
Another melee weapon that isn't really the greatest fit for Barret, the Wrecking Ball at least has the physical advantage over the Steel Pincers... along with an excellent area-of-effect move that can clear out enemies around Barret and potentially save the party in a pinch as well.
Smackdown is a weapon ability that sends any enemy around Barret flying in the air once the big brute decides to slam his fist to the ground. While this move is great in close quarters, the problem mainly stems from its wind-up time — a problem shared with Barret's other melee ability, Charging Uppercut — which is ridiculously long and provides enemies with ample time to dodge the blow.
3 Gatling Gun — Focused Shot
The first weapon ability that Barret can learn is an extremely useful technique that players should constantly use all the time to dish out substantial damage while simultaneously increasing an enemy's stagger bar as well.
The Focused Shot is one of the most reliable abilities in the entire game and something that players can easily fall back on, especially if they have 2 or more ATB charges that can help increase its damage even further.
However, if the only thing that the player cares about while controlling Barret is to deal as much raw damage as possible, then perhaps the next move will be right up their alley...
2 Big Bertha — Maximum Fury
While it's great and all to unleash moves that increase an enemy's stagger bar, there's a point where all the player would want to do to an enemy is dish out the highest amount of damage possible to ensure a quick victory... especially if said encounter features a large group of enemies as well. In this regard, Maximum Fury is nothing short of an absolute godsend.
Just like Focused Shot, Maximum Fury uses the entire ATB gauge, with 2 or more charges leading to extra damage. Unlike the Focused Shot, Maximum Fury allows Barret to shoot constantly at the enemy until the ATB gauge is empty, with the tank switching targets after finishing off an enemy — provided said targets are right in front of him, that is. It's an excellent ability with the sole aim of dealing as much damage as possible, making it a great move for crowd control in particular.
1 EKG Cannon — Point Blank
While Maximum Fury is the most damaging ability that's mainly suited for mobs, there's another weapon ability for Barret that will help him chip away at the health bar of strong enemies — such as bosses, special enemies, and the like. This ability is obtained from the EKG Cannon — the sixth and last weapon that Barret can obtain for his arsenal — and is called Point Blank.
As depicted in the name itself, Point Blank is a powerful close-range attack that lands a rather suspicious-looking punch at an enemy that deals low damage... before a massive blast ends up taking a chunk of their hit points away. It's easily the strongest attack that Barret can use against a single enemy, although the lack of range for his attack means that Barret needs to be really up close and personal for this to work.