Highlights
- Chainsaws have been transformed from useful tools to iconic weapons in horror movies and video games, adding excitement and intensity to the storyline.
- In gaming, chainsaws have been featured in various genres, including horror and fighting games, and used by cool and powerful characters such as Chain Reaction, Caroline and Justine, and Isaac Clarke.
- Chainsaw-wielding characters like Arashi, Marcus Fenix, and Bayonetta have become fan favorites in games like Scarlet Nexus, Gears of War, and Bayonetta 2, showcasing their unique abilities and adding a thrilling element to gameplay.
Chainsaws are a useful tool in society as they can solve a lot of problems. They’re a good tool to cut down trees, for example. The horror genre morphed these dangerous and yet innocent tools into weapons of murder like in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre series. There’s nothing like the roar of a chainsaw engine to get the blood pumping.
Video games have used chainsaws and chainsaw-like weapons, sometimes in horror games like Resident Evil 4 and sometimes in fighting games like Tekken 6. Of the many characters that use chainsaws in gaming, who are the coolest? Some of these choices will be obvious while others will stretch the definition of what a chainsaw can be.
8 Chain Reaction – Skylanders Imaginators
Chain Reaction first appeared as a character and figure from Skylanders Imaginators in 2016. He wields two giant chainsaw swords, making him slow, but extremely powerful.
He’s not just a cool character that uses two chainsaw-like weapons... he is a chainsaw. His beard is made out of chainsaw chains and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Did Chain Reaction somehow inspire Tatsuki Fujimoto to create Chainsaw Man in 2018? That's a fun thought to ponder for anime fans.
7 Caroline And Justine – Persona 5
Caroline and Justine are the two metaphysical jailers that follow Igor’s orders in Persona 5. They offer many services to the player in the game, but their biggest contribution is demonic fusion, which is a feature in most Persona games.
Most of the time they will use a magic guillotine to fuse two demons. Sometimes they need something heavier though, which is why they bring out the chainsaw for a more brutal fusion. Without them and their chainsaw, the player’s arena of demons wouldn’t be as strong.
6 Isaac Clarke – Dead Space
Isaac Clarke is the main character of the Dead Space series. This engineer finds himself in a nightmare upon discovering monsters aboard an infected spaceship. These monsters, Necromorphs, die the fastest through the destruction of limbs.
Players will get an assortment of traditional guns and mining tools to aid in this dismemberment process. The Ripper uses saw-like blades to either strike enemies up close or from a distance if players launch these blades. It’s not a traditional chainsaw but it is close enough to feel spiritually connected, especially since it is a horror game.
5 Arashi – Scarlet Nexus
Arashi is one of the party members in Scarlet Nexus. This action RPG was developed by the same team within Bandai Namco that handles the Talesof series. This game is split between two campaigns with players either taking control of Yuito or Kasane.
They are the only playable characters, but companions, like Arashi, can fight alongside them. They can even link with the main characters to provide special abilities. Arashi, besides mowing down characters effortlessly with her chainsaw, can also help slow down time.
4 Marcus Fenix – Gears Of War
Marcus Fenix is the lead character from the original Gears of War trilogy. Most of the soldiers wield rifles with chainsaws attached to them called Lancers. Players could mow down the enemy units, Locusts, with a barrage of bullets and then absolutely destroy them with a buzzed cut down their torso.
It was a satisfying mechanic that helped make this cover-based shooter a hit on the Xbox 360. Another great mechanic was the active reload that introduced a time-based button prompt to reload guns faster and cleaner.
3 Bayonetta – Bayonetta 2
Bayonetta’s main source of weaponry, besides her hair, is her four guns. She wields two in her hand and two on her feet to create a foursome hail of bullets. Throughout each game, she will gain new guns and other weapons to attach to her body.
In Bayonetta 2, she gained the Salamandra, which was a set of chainsaws. Players could attach them to either her hands or feet to slice and dice enemies to pieces. They were slower than other weapons but their power more than made up for their lack in agility.
2 Edgar Roni Figaro – Final Fantasy 6
Edgar Roni Figaro is one of the two princes of Figaro in Final Fantasy 6. Every character in this game has a special menu option. Locke can steal items, Terra is the first character with magic, and Edgar can use tools.
One of these tools is a chainsaw that can deal a set amount of damage to an enemy. There is also a chance that this chainsaw can instantly kill an enemy. Other chainsaw-wielding characters in this series worth mentioning include Barret and Vincent from Final Fantasy 7.
1 Juliet Starling – Lollipop Chainsaw
Juliet Starling is the main character from Lollipop Chainsaw and she is likely the most traditional chainsaw user gamers are familiar with. This cheerleader turned into a zombie slayer when her school got invaded. It’s a wild action game that had James Gunn help with the script’s localization.
Juliet and her game are worth bringing up now because it is supposedly getting a remaster for modern consoles. Not much has been shown or detailed yet, but here’s hoping a release will be coming soon.