History GameBreaker / FirstPersonShooter

** Corner camping/closet camping, which has the survivors all huddled up against a wall corner or in a tiny closet. This forces the infected to rush at the survivors from one or two directions, allowing the survivors to easily dispatch them. This made it very frustrating for the zombie players in VS since Hunters and Smokers that would rush in to attack could easily be shoved and Boomers were useless since being vomited on was just a time waster due to the camping. Valve addressed this issue in ''VideoGame/Left4Dead2'' by allowing zombies to come in from more directions so that camping is not desirable and introducing new special infected to further discourage camping such as the Spitter (which spits damaging acid over an area to force groups to get out of an area) and Charger (which can bowl over an entire team if they're bunched up). Most panic events now force players to keep moving and reach a specified area instead of staying in one spot waiting for zombies to stop spawning on their own.
** There was also a patch to address the problem of melee spamming in the first game. Players as survivors could keep shoving zombies away from them, which made it very hard for Smokers and Hunters to land a hit. Valve then put in a melee fatigue system where shoving too much too quickly will force a cool down, preventing you from shoving until the cool down has passed. This mechanic was applied in the sequel to all modes. The remedy had worked a bit too well and created another problem, which is rushing. Since most of the crescendo events force players to run ahead to stop the event and the new special infected discourage camping, survivor players in VS would just rush the level and rarely stop, making it extremely difficult for infected players to spawn in time and set up; by the time you get into position, the survivors are already a mile ahead of you. What makes it worse is if a survivor has a Bile Bomb, they can toss it to distract the common infected and run.

** The Tank is supposed to be a terrifying infected that has the potential to wipe the entire team. This was the case in the first game, but in the sequel, people discovered using melee weapons against the Tank killed it a lot faster than shooting it or setting it on fire. Every melee weapon hit deals percentage based damage (except the chainsaw, which does 100-damage hits 10 times per second), in this case 10% of the Tank's health, so it's fairly easy to bludgeon him to death. This became a huge problem in VS mode where Tank players had to deal with survivor players that would smack them, then quickly back away before they could be punched. The damage percentage was reduced to 5% later on, making run and gun tactics more favorable. Of course, people will still try to smash Tanks with Frying Pans and such if given the chance, since 5% damage in one hit is still a considerable amount.

* ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime3Corruption'' had one with its [[SuperMode Hyper Mode]]. Going into such a state makes Samus invincible for several seconds. However, being in this state for too long makes her corrupt and unable to exit Hyper Mode manually and letting the meter rise will cause terminal corruption. Shooting your weapons during this dangerous state lowers the meter, so one could just play a game of balance the meter and never be harmed by enemy attacks for 30 seconds (at which point the mode ends). Sure, it costs a whole energy tank in the process, but since energy is easy to find, it can make even hyper difficulty pretty easy.

** There are a few balances for Hypermode in the game. It's timed, especially when you get into corrupted hypermode where you need to discharge very fast or lose the game. That's the obvious one. Also, it's not truly invincibility as damage you take can contribute to your corruption (Especially on the last planet of the game.), it's also basically an ammo system even for things you'd normally get unlimited in normal mode. It also costs health to fire your weapons in Hypermode, which you'll find you have to do at many points in the game. The leviathan seed bosses REQUIRE liberal use of Hypermode weaponry to damage them, but also a LOT of pre-seed objectives require liberal usage of the same Hypermode tactics to succeed: On Bryyo you have to enter hypermode to keep respawning flying enemies at bay while you pull switches to allow you to take out anti-aircraft weapons blocking your ship from shooting out shield generators. On Elysia, you have a fullscale escort mission of abomb where you have to take out pirate transports quickly lest the pod you're on gets destroyed. On the Pirate Homeworld you have to protect Marines from Berserker Knights and other heavily armed and armored space pirates. Oh, and those marines you have to protect have weak weaponry and often get KILLED in one hit. One could abuse hypermode to get through sticky situations without taking too much damage, but Hypermode has too many disadvantages. Also, you'll find yourself on the receiving end of hypermode from a lot of enemies, including the three bounty hunters, the seed guardians are effectively in constant hypermode while you fight them, and a lot of mooks, especially in the Pirate Homeworld, are able to engage Hypermode as well.
* ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime'' (the first one) has the Plasma Beam: high power (so powerful that a charged shot will vaporize all but maybe one or two non-boss enemies in the entire game that aren't immune to the Plasma Beam), high speed, and fire elemental. Its only weakness is its low range--which doesn't mean much because the game is a ''shooter'' to begin with so InstantDeathRadius is a minor problem at most and might only be an issue in the final boss battle. Its [[ElementalRockPaperScissors fire elemental]] nature ''would'' have been a weakness if not for the fact that it was so powerful it could kill enemies in [[LethalLavaLand Magmoor Caverns]] faster than the Ice Beam ''anyway''. Of course, it is available for only the last eighth of the game (short of SequenceBreaking), so at least only that is broken apart.

** The Railgun is ''Quake II'''s version of a sniper rifle. Its base damage is 150, enough to kill most enemies in one shot. It's also deliciously imbalanced in multiplayer, as 150 damage is enough to kill any player who hasn't found a megahealth or a suit of armor. In any map that has a railgun and a player proficient in its use, boosting one's health is an absolute necessity after you spawn - just getting in random fights as you'd do otherwise is guaranteed to get you pureed as soon as the railgunner spots you.
** The Nailgun in Quake 3/Q3 Team Arena. It fires 9-inch spikes in a shotgun-like formation. Anyone that's not holding a Guard powerup is going to die in one shot if a decent amount of the nails land. Even if it does survive, it gets pushed back with an even stronger push than the ''Railgun'', and in Space Levels, it is almost a guaranteed Insta-Kill. If they don't die from the nails, they'll get pushed into the Void and die anyways.

** The Buzzer melee weapon will amost always stun any enemy (even [[DemonicSpider Cloakers]] - hell, even ''Bulldozers'', though only for half as long) for about four seconds with a single hit. In addition to this, it has a full 30 concealment, making it a good choice even with crit dodge builds.

** For all it's good, the Ballistics Tracker is infamously known for being extremely overpowered back when it first came out. It consists of an [[WordOfGod iPhone 7]] attached to the side of the weapon, that (somehow) marks every enemy in sight automatically with a bright yellow diamond. If that wasn't powerful enough, the diamond compensated for range, which meant that shooting the diamond granted a headshot, and for a sniper, an instant kill. Eventually it was nerfed so that it only spotted while aiming, but due to a loophole, players began to simply spam right click to achieve its previous effect. It was finally nerfed to only take effect when the target is close to the crosshair, finally putting its place. It didn't help that it was very commonly paired by new players with the BFG 50, a [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin BFG]] that at the time was the only sniper that instantly killed on the chest at all ranges.

* ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime3'' had one with its [[SuperMode Hyper Mode]]. Going into such a state makes Samus invincible for several seconds. However, being in this state for too long makes her corrupt and unable to exit Hyper Mode manually and letting the meter rise will cause terminal corruption. Shooting your weapons during this dangerous state lowers the meter, so one could just play a game of balance the meter and never be harmed by enemy attacks for 30 seconds (at which point the mode ends). Sure, it costs a whole energy tank in the process, but since energy is easy to find, it can make even hyper difficulty pretty easy.

** The Parasonic D3 Scrambler, it's a silenced pistol that instant kills every non-heavy enemy without giving your position away regardless of where you actually hit them, meaning it's great for stealth as long as you don't miss.

* VideoGame/{{PAYDAY 2}}:

* ''Phantom Forces'':

*** An even funnier way to kill the "Bouncer" type Big Daddy that use their drill arms to charge at you is to use the crossbow with trap bolts to place four or five electrified tripwires between him and you, then shoot him once and stand perfectly still. The Big Daddy will charge straight at you and get his shit completely ruined by the tripwires, sliding face-first to a [[JustForPun dead stop]] at your feet.

*** The stupid thing was that the Wraith was designed to be a low damage, high health tank in comparison to the Scorpion. They also tilted Scorpion stats the other way... to the point where the Scorpion's powerful attack negates the Wraith's higher health and kills it in one hit anyway, while the Wraith's damage is ''so'' low by comparison that the Scorpion, even with its low health, can still just [[IncrediblyLamePun tank the hit]] and kill the Wraith before it can get another shot. Of course, the Wraith's projectile doesn't travel nearly as fast, so even that first hit isn't certain.

** The Tank is supposed to be a terrifying infected that has the potential to wipe the entire team. This was the case in the first game, but in the sequel, people discovered using melee weapons against the Tank killed it a lot faster than shooting it or setting it on fire. Every melee weapon hit (except the chainsaw) inflicted 10% damage to the Tank, which lead to the Tank being killed in literally 10 hits. If all four survivors start whacking the Tank with melee weapons, then the fight became anti climatic since the tank would be dead in two seconds. This became a huge problem in VS mode where Tank players had to deal with survivor players that would smack them, then quickly back away before they could be punched. The damage to Tanks with melee weapons got nerfed in an update where now melee weapons only do 5% damage, or dies in 20 hits, making run and gun tactics more favorable. Of course, people will still try to smash Tanks with Frying Pans and such if given the chance, since 5% damage in one hit is still a considerable amount.

** It was originally possible to attack a Witch as an Infected and lead her to the survivors. Given that there is no NPC-on-player friendly fire, this meant the Witch could not wound the attacker, and would automatically switch focus to a survivor once one is in sight. This was later patched; now the Witch will not attack other Infected at all, even if they damage her enough to kill her.

** When the pistol was [[{{Nerf}} weakened]] in ''VideoGame/{{Halo 2}}'', ''Machinima/RedVsBlue'' correctly predicted the fan outcry with the following exchange:

* A rare ''single player'' game breaker in the first level of ''VideoGame/TheWorldIsNotEnough''. Go to the safety deposit room and hit the alarm, which fails the mission. Grab the stuff in the box and run for the door. Mission complete in 15-20 seconds.

** And let's not forget the infamous ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield}} Vietnam'' M60 / LAW kit, which turned US players into Rambo clones with a sniper-accurate machine gun and a portable anti-tank missile. It was soon patched so the machine guns were less accurate and the M60 and LAW belonged to different kits.

** The air vehicles are near-invincible. Helicopters can take a direct hit from a tank shell, and [[StartXToStopX the only thing that can take down a jet with a semi-competent pilot in it is another jet]]. The only 2 ground-based AA units are stationary Stinger Sites and AA vehicles. Only a small number of maps have AA vehicles in the first place, they require high skill to use effectively and once sighted, they're viciously targeted until destroyed. Stinger Sites are a joke in general, as their range is short, and while you're in 'em, you're a stationary target for bombers and snipers. And if the jet is damaged/needs reloading, it can simply ''fly over the runway''. It never has any downtime or need to land. Thus it's no surprise that many high-ranking players get their ranks simply because they fly jets constantly, untouchable by most players on the ground. Sadly nothing was done to adjust this.
** Jets demolish the maps. Tanks are slow and have no defense against them, barring an extremely lucky hit from the main cannon, so it's all too common to be driving along, and being hit with bombs (one salvo is a kill) before you even heard the jet over your tank's engine. [=APCs=] suffer the same problem, but without the one-hit-kill-if-lucky possibility. Mobile AA can kill a jet fast but only if the jet is distracted because they'll be targeted easily. Jeeps and FAV (Fast attack vehicles) can almost outrun a jet...if you're lucky. And if you're in a fully loaded transport copter, that's six easy kills for a pilot, because those are flying tanks without the armour. Basically, jets are way too overpowered, because they can blow away any vehicle in a single bomb salvo, and any copter, transport or attack, can easily be cut down.

** In the original release, Blackhawks were overpowered for a number of reasons: First, the minigun was absurdly accurate and could destroy anything that wasn't a tank; second, the passengers inside the Blackhawk had access to their tools, so they could repair the Blackhawk ''while still inside it''; third, combined with the above, the Blackhawk had space for ''three'' passengers; and finally, extra people contribute to capturing flags, so a fully loaded chopper could fly in, clear a place out, and capture it within the space of several seconds. The only thing that could really stop so-called "blackhawk squads" was a jet, and you had to get it on the first pass, otherwise, the engineers on board would just repair all damage; this also meant that the imbalance was most apparent on maps without jets. They were eventually, however, nerfed into uselessness and obscurity. For the curious, the reason it was impossible to do this for the MEC or Chinese helos was that they were much slower, less armoured, bigger targets, and their guns were crappy machine guns that could barely hurt an infantryman. The map Mashturr City in high end play revolved entirely around the Blackhawk, with the game coming down to if the MEC side could C4 kamikaze the Blackhawk to prevent it from capping out the map in 2 minutes.

** The Sniper class gets Claymores. They're basically anti-infantry landmines that have a sizable 180-degree blast radius. They're for covering your backside while you snipe. In theory. In reality, most Snipers just spawn with them, toss then in a well-traveled area, and proceed to run off and spam grenades. Couple in the fact that the ''only'' way to get rid of claymores is to set them off, and you can see why more snipers get their kills from Claymores and Hand Grenades than from legitimate sniping.

* ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield 3}}'' has the [=M16A3=]/[=M16A4=] ([=M16A3=] being the starting American assault rifle and the last normal Russian assault rifle unlock, the [=M16A4=] is a three-round burst version available to both teams at the same time), which... it's one thing for them to be the best AR in reload speed, it's another thing when they're basically ''second best at '''everything else''' as well''.

* ''VideoGame/BattlefieldPlay4Free'' had the [[DemonicSpiders scout helicopter]] in Dragon Valley. In theory, its purpose was to harass infantry and quickly deliver small fireteams. Instead, the team who captured B first ended up with a second attack helicopter. Scout helis are the fastest and most maneuverable aircraft in the game, and pack ''twin miniguns''. This allowed them to fly over to a firezone and utterly destroy any infantry that were caught in its crosshairs, all while moving so fast that it was damn near impossible to tag it, let alone shoot it down. After the infantry are wiped out, it takes but a few seconds of concentrated fire to eliminate light vehicles, and if you're in a tank the only way to survive is to not be noticed, because there is no way in hell that your sluggish crosshairs are catching it while it whittles away at your health.

** ''Battlefield 2'', as mentioned above, is one of the more egregious examples of this. Not only does the hitbox instantly change you to "Prone" while you're in midair, but it also INSTANTLY changes your accuracy to "Prone" while you're in midair. If you were in a dead run and hit the prone key, your accuracy immediately becomes the same as if you'd been prone and aiming for several seconds. Add in the fact that the Support weapons, heavy machine guns that are only accurate from a prone position, are hugely damaging from even long ranges, and you have a serious problem. Users of the PKM, the most powerful and accurate Support weapon, can simply run along until they see an enemy, then immediately tap the prone key and blast away. They're almost more effective than snipers!
*** Before the game launched there was a demo released on a small version of Gulf Of Oman. Players quickly combined dolphin diving with long distance throwing of C4, which would kill enemies from long distance but not kill the dolphin diving thrower of the C4, which was vastly overpowered compared to all the infantry guns. In Australia one of the major game server companies hosted a money tournament using the demo, leading to the absurd spectacle of a final where each team was made up of a tank driver & engineer and a mass of c4 throwing dolphin diving infantry.

** The Insect Swarm plasmid has all the strengths of other projectile-based Plasmids and none of their weaknesses. It disorientates enemies longer than Electro Bolt and Incinerate!, and also does continuous damage over time like Incinerate! but can also be used with Winter Blast. When upgraded, the insect swarms can attack ''multiple enemies'' at once, and when fully upgraded enemies killed by bees become large bee-proximity mines that when approached by enemies will cause bees to come out of the body and attack them, kill them, then infest their corpse and repeat the process over. ''On top'' of all that individual swarms last over a minute, there also doesn't appear to be any limit on the amount you can spawn, and the icing on the cake is that bees are not bound by physics and can easily fly through walls. This leads to ENTIRE ADJACENT ROOMS being completely cleared of enemies before you even walk though the door. And the bees actually have very tiny hit boxes, meaning they will always stop large fireball style attacks making Houdini splicers and Big Sisters a complete joke as long as they aren't close enough for them to punch you.