History Main / TheStraightAndArrowPath

* ''VideoGame/SevenDaysToDie'' has five archery weapons: the primitive, wooden, and compound bows, and the iron and compound crossbows. All three operate in total silence, not alerting nearby zombies and being hard to hear by players, and do decent-to-devastating damage per shot depending on what ammo you load them with and what mods you've installed on the models that allow them. The primitive bow is the first ranged weapon you're likely to get for yourself (the tutorial missions tell you how to craft it) and it's piss-easy to craft but isn't particularly powerful even with high-tier ammunition.

* ''VideoGame/SevenDaysToDie'' has five archery weapons: the primitive, wooden, and compound bows, and the iron and compound crossbows. All three operate in total silence, not alerting nearby zombies and being hard to hear by players, and do decent-to-devastating damage per shot depending on what ammo you load them with and what mods you've installed on the models that allow them. The primitive bow is the first ranged weapon you're likely to get for yourself (the tutorial missions tell you how to craft it) and it's piss-easy to craft but isn't particularly powerful even with high-tier ammunition.

[[folder:Web Comics]]
* ''WebComic/MagickChicks'': {{Justified}} in the case of Callista Archer, who's the captain of Artemis Academy's Archery Club. As such, she has the distinction of being [[http://www.magickchicks.com/strips-mc/deadeye the best shot at the school]] and [[http://www.magickchicks.com/strips-mc/confusing_my_hormones she has the trophies to prove it]].

[[folder:Web Original]]

* As with their comic counterparts, Green Arrow and Speedy/Red Arrow in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'', ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' (though only for Speedy), and ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice''. ''Young Justice'' also has, as a main character, Artemis Crock, who in the comics usually uses a crossbow, but is an Olympic-level archer. In the series, the longbow is her primary weapon, as Green Arrow's second sidekick.
* As does Hawkeye in ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersUnitedTheyStand'', ''WesternAnimation/TheAvengersEarthsMightiestHeroes'', and ''WesternAnimation/AvengersAssemble'', as well as in ''WesternAnimation/IronManArmoredAdventures'' and ''[[WesternAnimation/UltimateSpiderMan2012 Ultimate Spider-Man]]''. And Francis Barton, his son, in ''WesternAnimation/NextAvengersHeroesOfTomorrow''.

* The advertising campaign for ''VideoGame/{{Crysis}} 3'', a game set in 2047, puts quite a lot of emphasis on the new bow weapon and its arsenal of {{Trick Arrow}}s. Justified, in this case, as it's the one weapon that Prophet can use while cloaked.

** Marvel has ComicBook/{{Hawkeye}}, who trained under fellow trope-qualifier Trickshot and performed in the circus before turning to crime and then heroics. He later took up the identity of Ronin, a close-combat fighter.
*** In a subversion of this trope, the Ultimate version of Hawkeye ditched the bow and arrows for guns and managed to be just as accurate with them.
*** Kate Bishop also currently uses the name Hawkeye. Notably she first took the alias when Clint Barton was dead, but later he gave her permission to use the codename as well.
** Yondu of the ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy uses a high-tech (as in "in the year 3000") bow and arrows. The MCU version doesn't do archery but he still uses an arrow as his signature weapon, the difference being that it's a highly advanced AttackDrone.
** [[ComicBook/TheIncredibleHercules Hercules]] is known to be a master archer, but because the bow serves as a reminder of Nessus' treachery and Deianira's suicide, he rarely uses one.

* Bows have been a staple weapon in the ''{{Franchise/Disgaea}}'' series, being one of two ranged options. Depending on the game, they're mainly useful for inflicting status ailments or dealing strong elemental attacks. ''VideoGame/Disgaea2'' onward allowed Bow-users to potentially make defeated enemies drop Treasure Chests.
* ''VideoGame/FarCry4:'' The Recurve Bow is one of the most powerful weapons in the early game, with better range, damage, and accuracy than most sniper rifles. It can kill most human enemies with one shot anywhere on the body, no headshots required. The only thing that stops it from being completely ridiculous is that you can not attach a telescopic sight, and have to make do with a red dot sight.

* In ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'', Ryu's main ranged weapons are either shurikens or a bow, and yet he can still kill mooks armed with machine guns as well as helicopters, though it's better trying to use your speed to close the distance and attack them in close quarters than it is to try and shoot them with your bow.

Close relative of the ArcherArchetype, sometimes overlapping it, though one can exist without the other. This trope regards situations where someone manages to make a bow and arrows a better choice than other, more modern weapons like guns. Often, a hero (or villain) who follows the Straight and Arrow Path can be pretty dangerous with their fists as well; it's all that muscle to pull the draw string.

*** In a subversion of this trope, the Ultimate version of Hawkeye ditched the bow and arrows for guns and manages to be just as accurate with them.

** Scarlett, the intelligence officer of the Joes, uses a crossbow as her main weapon. She gets by thru not being a primary combatant amongst the team.

* ''Literature/TheCampHalfBloodSeries'': While the series takes place in the 21st century, most of the demigod and demigod-adjacent characters prefer bows or crossbows to firearms. Though there ''have'' been a couple of instances where "modern" weaponry are used, they tend to be limited to mortals without divine heritage.

* Bows in ''TabletopGame/{{Shadowrun}}'' have experienced something of a renaissance, both because many of the native american [[DividedStatesOfAmerica successor states of the US]] have elevated them to the status of a cultural icon and because with trolls, strength-boosting adept magic and cyberware added into the mix, it is possible to use bows that deal damage comparable to modern sniper rifles while also remaining silent and impervious to hacking. Poisoned, explosive and {{Trick Arrow}}s are also popular on the streets.

* Bows and arrows are regularly seen alongside guns and grenades in ''[[VideoGame/NexusWar Nexus Clash]]'', owing to the UrbanFantasy of the setting and the fact that some of the [[AnotherDimension Planes of Existence]] visited in the series aren't part of the modern world. The [[AscendedDemon Redeemed]] in particular has supernaturally good skill with a bow that allow them to match all but the most capable users of firearms.
* In ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'', Ryu's main ranged weapons are either shurikens or a bow and yet he can still kill mooks armed with machine guns as well as helicopters, though it's better trying to use your speed to close the distance and attack them in close quarters than it is to try and shoot them with your bow.

** In ''VideoGame/RiseOfTheTombRaider'', centuries-old ancient bows beat out modern compound bows. While they do the least damage out of the three types of bows available, they also fire the fastest, and since one headshot from any weapon will OneHitKill any human enemy (unless they're wearing a helmet, then it takes one to knock the helmet off and a second one to kill), the damage stat of weapons is largely useless, making the ancient bows the clear winner out of the three (with compund bows being powerful but slow and recurve bows being the JackOfAllStats option). While some guns now have silencers making them suitable for stealth, bows still win out since arrows can be crafted on the fly ([[ViewersAreGoldfish and the game makes damn sure you don't forget how to do it]]), but bullets must be found in ammo boxes or looted from enemies. Lara can also unlock a perk that causes bows to automatically lock on to up to three enemies' heads (again, headshots are always one-hit kills). There's really no reason to use anything but a bow once you get that.

Subtrope of ArchaicWeaponForAnAdvancedAge. Also related to GunsAreWorthless. EnhancedArchaicWeapon can overlap, while AnnoyingArrows often doesn't. Name not to be confused with NoArcInArchery. Likely to evoke a reference to Myth/RobinHood.

* Signum of ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha''. In a world where others use blasters, guns, rifles, and {{Wave Motion Gun}}s, she, as an [[ReallySevenHundredYearsOld old knight]], prefers to use a bow and arrow that packs enough explosive whallop to destroy a HumongousMecha's DeflectorShields when going long-range. Although, it is merely a (rarely used) form of her CoolSword.

* Guts of ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'' is an interesting case, in that he has both a gun and a crossbow. While gunpowder weapons are limited to bombards (that we can see), his artificial arm carries a small cannon inside it, and has an AutomaticCrossbow that can be attached on it.

*** The Amazons are often seen using bows and arrows as long range weaponry and [[RockBeatsLaser they can be as dangerous any modern day firearms]], though in the Golden Age their archery practice was for recreation and as they were much more technologically advanced. Diana has sometimes used a bow and arrow herself.

*** In a subversion of this trope, the Ultimate version of Hawkeye ditched the bow and arrows for guns, and manages to be just as accurate with them.

** Yondu of the ComicBook/GuardiansOfTheGalaxy uses a high-tech (as in "in the year 3000") bow and arrows. The MCU version doesn't does archery but he still uses an arrow as his signature weapon, the difference being that it's a highly advanced AttackDrone.

* [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfComicBooks Golden Age]] hero the Arrow was the first superhero to use archery as his primary gimmick. First appearing in 1938, he was actually one of the first superheroes. Now in the public domain he currently appears in the ''ComicBook/ProjectSuperpowers'' series from Dynamite Entertainment.

* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Wolfwalkers}}'' Robyn and her father use crossbows to hunt, and appear to have much better aim than the Lord Protector's [[ImperialStormtrooperMarksmanshipAcademy musketeers]].

** Justified in ''Film/{{The Avengers|2012}}''. Clint Barton, a.k.a. Hawkeye, uses a bow because his variety of [[TrickArrow arrow heads]] come with secondary functions that a bullet could never have, such as explosive, second stage projectile, and grappling. Barton is also an impeccable shot with his bow, as shown by him casually hitting a moving target [[OffhandBackhand while looking the other way]]. He does use a sidearm in the beginning of the film however, and eventually runs out of arrows during the assault on New York.

* ''Film/AssassinsCreed2016'': Abstergo Rehabilitation Center guards use crossbows against the Assassins during the prison break. Callum uses a bow meanwhile. The in-universe reason is that Callum's training comes from his 15th century ancestor and the bow was much easier to get his hands on than another long-range weapon but doesn't he look heroic with Connor's bow?

* Mack of Louis Lamour's ''Last of the Breed'' very capably uses his bow to defeat any number of armed Russian soldiers. He was a perfectly capable gun user when he got his hands on one. His use of the bow was a combination of its increased stealth, the fact that it could be made on the fly (Mack being on the run from a Russian gulag and crossing Siberia), and that it brought him closer to his [[UsefulNotes/NativeAmericans Native American]] heritage.

-->'''Count of Mountjoy:''' Our national weapon, the longbow, has been out of date for so long that it has become, in many ways, a super weapon. It can kill at a range of five hundred yards. It is completely accurate in skilled hands. It is silent. It requires a low expenditure for ammunition, and lends itself excellently to mass fire.

** The Ptera Arrow is the signature weapon of the Pink Ranger in ''Series/KyoryuSentaiZyuranger''. To a western audience, this is more well known as the Power Bow from ''Series/MightyMorphinPowerRangers''. Quite memorably, the Pink Ranger uses it to single handedly destroy a a MonsterOfTheWeek, a rare instance of a female ranger doing so. This weapon is also notable for firing physical arrows rather than laser beams. This bow can also combine with the weapons of the other four rangers to become a crossbow.

* Several Riders from ''Franchise/KamenRider'' use this trope. Like Super Sentai above, these weapons act more like laserguns looking bows or crossbows.
** In his Pegasus form, ''Series/KamenRiderKuuga'' is able to turn regular guns to the Pegasus Bowgun, which looks like a hybrid between a crossbow and a gun.
** ''Series/KamenRiderBlade'' has two users of this trope: Kamen Rider Chalice and Kamen Rider Larc. Chalice uses a bow that also functions as a double bladed sword, while Larc has a crossbow that fires laser arrows.

** ''Series/KamenRiderZiO'', [[MilestoneCelebration the 20th anniversary series of the Heisei era]], features Kamen Rider Geiz's MixAndMatchWeapon, which has two modes: the Time Severe Axe Zikan Zax, with bow mode being the form it takes when Geiz takes to ranged combat.

* Oliver Queen, TheHero of ''Series/{{Arrow}}''. Because of his signature color and MO, this is combined to make people initially believe he's trying to be a modern-day Robin Hood. He justifies the trope when training fellow vigilante Helena Bertinelli, citing the advantage of precision and self-discipline it requires. Oliver originally learned to use the bow when stranded on the island of Lian Yu, and was encouraged to go back to it by his own mentor, Talia al Ghul.

* ''TabletopGame/WarhammerFantasy'' is a downplayed example. Due to heavy use of DecadeDissonance, different factions will be using bows, 12th century crossbows, 2nd century chinese-style repeater crossbows, 15th century matchlock arquebuses, 16th century wheellock muskets, 19th century cartridge rifles and 21st century gatling guns, all alongside each other and at the same time. Some factions, like the Empire, will even be using multiple ones (Empire state troops can be armed with bows, crossbows or arquebuses). In some cases this is justified (the advanced firearms belong to the Skaven, who do not export them, dwarfs use crossbows and guns at the same time because they're traditionalists and many dwarfs don't trust 'unreliable' technology), in others not so much (the high elves [[{{Conscription}} draft all citizens into militia to fill army ranks]], but can only use the time-intensive bows).

* In the post-apocalyptic zombie survival sim ''VideoGame/{{Cataclysm}}'', the effectiveness of bows varies wildly from update to update. Their main advantage over guns is that ammo is easily crafted, and they don't make noise to attract zombies towards you. However, they are useless against enemies with armor, and the more powerful bows require a high strength stat.

** Mutant brutes carry bows, and are in some ways more dangerous than the captains, who carry rocket launchers. Rockets leave a visible that alerts you to the mutant's presence and lets you dodge, arrows don't.

* ''VideoGame/FarCry4:'' The Recurve Bow is one of the most powerful weapons in the early game, with better range, damage and accuracy than most sniper rifles. It can kill most human enemies with one shot anywhere on the body, no headshots required. The only thing that stops it being completely ridiculous is that you can not attach a telescopic sight, and have to make do with a red dot sight.

* ''VideoGame/Metro2033'' and ''VideoGame/MetroLastLight'' feature the [[Film/VanHelsing Helsing]], a pneumatically-driven revolver arrowgun. It is quiet to HollywoodSilencer levels, powerful in the proper pressure level (one-shots an armored human on a bodyshot) and absurdly so when overpressurized (on harder difficulties it can kill a [[BossInMooksClothing Black Librarian]] in little more than a full reload if it's overpressurized at the start), and the arrows can be retrieved for later use. On the downsides, the pressure gauge is hard to read at a glance, it's very slow to fire, and due to the arrows' lack of fletching, it's inaccurate at longer ranges, so much so that a scope is next-to-useless on it.

* Yukari Takeba from ''VideoGame/Persona3''. All party members are forced to use more 'old school' weapons due to Japanese laws making obtaining a gun to fight with near impossible, and Yukari has chosen bows due to her role on the archery team. This carries into spin offs as well.

*** Ada gets access to a bowgun for herself, operated as slowly you'd expect a normal crossbow. The main advantage of it is that [[TrickArrow the bolts are explosive]], with about the same power as a hand grenade.

*** Sheva can herself get into the archery business with the unlockable Longbow bonus weapon, that behaves just like Krauser's bow except the arrows arc at range and there's no aiming reticle of any kind, so drawing a bead is quite difficult. In Mercenaries mode, if she's in the Tribal costume, she plays a lot like Krauser.

* ''VideoGame/SevenDaysToDie'' has five archery weapons: the primitive, wooden and compound bows, and the iron and compound crossbows. All three operate in total silence, not alerting nearby zombies and being hard to hear by players, and do decent-to-devastating damage per shot depending on what ammo you load them with and what mods you've installed on the models that allow them. The primitive bow is the first ranged weapon you're likely to get for yourself (the tutorial missions tell you how to craft it) and it's piss-easy to craft, but isn't particularly powerful even with high-tier ammunition.

** The Medic can also opt to trade his default Syringe Gun with the Crusader's Crossbow. Unlike the Syringe Gun (which features [[MoreDakka an immense fire rate, huge magazine]], but [[ScratchDamage paltry individual damage]] and features the same parabolic projectile behavior, essentially a glorified [[NailEm nail gun]]), the Crossbow fires a single shot at a time, but has a decent reload speed, deals solid damage to enemies, ''and'' [[HealingShiv heals allies from a distance]], generally considered a more DifficultButAwesome alternative.
* The ArmyScout unit of ''VideoGame/TheyAreBillions'', the {{Ranger}}, uses a bow to attack. It's not very powerful or long-ranged, but it's silent and doesn't aggro zombies at farther than sight range.

** In ''VideoGame/TombRaider2013'', Lara Croft's most iconic weapon in the game is her hunting bow, which begins as a makeshift longbow and ends as a professional sports bow. She has access to a nice assortment of guns as well, but for most of the game the bow is preferable due to its relatively high damage output and the fact that it's completely silent (stealth greatly helps in keeping Lara alive), whereas her other weapons make quite some noise.

* Bows and the crossbow are decent early ranged weapons in ''VideoGame/{{Unturned}}''. They're silent, powerful enough to one-headshot a zombie and unlike all other ranged hardware, their ammo is craftable. However, they take up oodles of space in the GridInventory (the weapon takes 8 slots, and each arrow takes 2), [[BreakableWeapons their durability and that of the arrows is very poor]] (and craftable wooden arrows can't be repaired, although the durability doesn't affect the damage they deal; non-wooden arrows can be repaired with metal scrap), and the compound bow and crossbow (the two most powerful in the group) can't be crafted, only found, and require both a blowtorch and one point in the Engineer skill to fix up.

* An odd variation happens of this trope happens in UsefulNotes/ColecoVision's ''Venture'' and UsefulNotes/{{Intellivision}}'s ''TabletopGame/AdvancedDungeonsAndDragons: Cloudy Mountain''. Both games are set in fantasy worlds where melee is or would be king, the heroes of both these games are only going with a bow and a very limited supply of arrows. This is especially glaring in the ''Intellivision game'' where the bow is difficult to aim and the arrow bounces off of walls and has extremely good chance of hit yourself.

* As with their comic counterparts, Green Arrow and Speedy/Red Arrow in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'', ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' (though only for Speedy), and ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice''. ''Young Justice'' also has, as a main character, Artemis Crock, who in the comics usually uses a crossbow, but is an Olympic level archer. In the series the longbow is her primary weapon, as Green Arrow's second sidekick.

** They're not nearly as loud as most service weapons, and can make for a more-or-less silent kill if need be.

** The ComicBook/{{Huntress}}, whether the Post-Crisis Helena Bertinelli or the Pre-Crisis (and ComicBook/New52) Helena Wayne. The former is a Gotham vigilante and a prominent member of ComicBook/BirdsOfPrey, and the latter is Batman and Catwoman's daughter and a member of the ComicBook/JusticeSocietyOfAmerica.

** ''ComicBook/RobinSeries'': The Rising Sun Archer, Lisa Yurigama, is a young assassin who uses a bow because of its quieter nature as opposed to a firearm since she often works in busy cities and doesn't want to draw attention.

* In ''Series/TheWalkingDead'', resident redneck Daryl is usually seen preferring his crossbow to firearms. This makes sense as ammunition for guns is becoming scarce and the crossbow has less chance of alerting other walkers. That and crossbow bolts can be easily retrieved after being fired.
* [[ComicBook/GreenArrow Oliver Queen]], TheHero of ''Series/{{Arrow}}''. Because of his signature color and MO, this is combined to make people initially believe he's trying to be a modern-day Robin Hood. He justifies the trope when training fellow vigilante [[ComicBook/{{Huntress}} Helena Bertinelli]], citing the advantage of precision and self-discipline it requires. Oliver originally learned to use the bow when stranded on the island of Lian Yu, and was encouraged to go back to it by his own mentor, ComicBook/TaliaAlGhul.

Before the widespread adoption of revolvers and repeating rifles, bows and crossbows really did have some advantages over guns. A skilled archer with a powerful bow could shoot deadly arrows at an impressive rate, while the crossbow sacrificed shooting speed in exchange for a weapon that could be learned more easily, allowed an archer to span a bow he wouldn't be strong enough to draw manually (with the help of a spanning device), and could hold a bolt at full draw without fatiguing the user. The challenges of military archery were raising (or hiring from elsewhere) enough people who had trained since childhood to draw and shoot powerful bows accurately, stockpiling enough arrows for a campaign ('cause arrows weren't cheap!), and importing the materials needed to manufacture bows and arrows if they couldn't be gotten locally.

The appeal of early firearms was that they were more powerful than bows or crossbows, and just about anyone could be taught to use one. They could also pull double-duty as mêlée weapons through [[PistolWhipping swinging the weapon itself]] or [[BayonetYa using a bayonet]]. The arquebus was good enough to replace the crossbow in Western European warfare by the 16th century, since it filled the same role and did it better. However, the bow could still shoot faster than these single-shot muzzle-loaders, and the English didn't give up on keeping archers as well as arquebusiers until it was clear there weren't enough skilled archers left in the country. Warriors in Asia, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe would often use the bow and musket together for their different advantages. Even in the early 19th century, white settlers on the American Great Plains were at a disadvantage against [[HorseArcher mounted, bow-using]] Natives such as the Commanches who could out-pace their single-shot pistols and rifles. Ironically, the fact that Europeans had decided that ArmorIsUseless against massed firearms and therefore gotten rid of it left them more vulnerable to arrows, which would have been stopped by plate armor. Samuel Colt's revolver turned the tide in favor of guns by being the first commercially produced firearm to really challenge the bow's shooting rate, and the subsequent spread of breech-loading and repeating rifles rendered the bow outclassed.

Of course, that applies to mass deployment, where the disadvantages of guns aren't a constantly glaring flaw. Take noise as an example: HollywoodSilencer, put simply, doesn't exist -- ''any'' gun will make a distinct, very audible noise when fired. The only question is how much and whether or not you can pinpoint where the shot came from. Although bows and crossbows aren't actually silent -- and in fact a crossbow's mechanism makes a pretty loud "thwack" when shot -- either of those is still much quieter than a gun. They also don't produce muzzle flash or powder fumes. In a situation where that matters, such as stealthy military operations or just plain old hunting, the "archaic" arrow/bolt-throwers may be preferred.

Usually, the coolness factor will be ramped up by giving them all sorts of [[TrickArrow neat arrows that'll come in handy for any situation]] they might encounter. And of course, their arrows will [[GunsAreWorthless always be more effective than bullets]]. [[BottomlessMagazines Unlimited supply of arrows]] often included, despite the fact that arrows are pretty large ammunition and not many can be carried in an ordinary quiver compared to bullets.

* ''VideoGame/{{Valorant}}'': In a team with superpowered people called Radiants, Sova stands out as a hunter with no superpowers using a bow and TrickArrow alongside firearms.

* ''VideoGame/{{Valorant}}'': Sova uses a bow to fire utility TrickArrows in conjunction with firearms.

%%* ''Every {{VideoGame/Turok}} game ever''.

* In the ''VideoGame/StarOceanTheLastHope'', Reimi uses a bow. Unusually for the trope, the game takes steps to justify[=/=]HandWave it: she took classes in both eastern and western archery as a curiosity [[spoiler: and to distract herself from her DarkAndTroubledPast]], and was initially on the ship as a BridgeBunny, not for her weapon skills. It's only after it's discovered that the alien wildlife is immune to the standard-issue railguns[[note]]They sense the electromagnetic energy of the firing sequence and brace, older weapons have no such systems[[/note]] that she starts backing Edge up in the field.
* ''VideoGame/TeamFortress2''
** One of The Sniper's alternatives for his SniperRifle is The Huntsman, a bow and arrow. The bow has slightly lower maximum damage, but [[ChargedAttack charges to maximum damage]] much faster than the rifle. It fires in an arc and there's a definite delay between the arrow leaving the bow and landing on the target, so using it successfully involves both skill and luck, or lots and lots and lots of corner peeking. The arrows can be also lit on fire by friendly Pyros or by sconces in Medieval Mode.
** The Medic can also opt out trading his default Syringe Gun with the Crusader's Crossbow. Unlike the Syringe Gun (which features [[MoreDakka an immense fire rate, huge magazine]], but [[ScratchDamage paltry individual damage]] and features the same parabolic projectile behavior, essentially a glorified [[NailEm nail gun]]), the Crossbow fires a single shot at a time, but has a decent reload speed, deals solid damage to enemies, ''and'' [[HealingShiv heals allies from a distance]], generally considered a more DifficultButAwesome alternative.
* Connor of ''VideoGame/AssassinsCreedIII'' uses one, though he mainly uses it for hunting. He can use [[HandCannon flintlock pistols]], but they end up damaging his quarry's pelt, reducing the value.
* In ''VideoGame/ChronoTrigger'', Marle uses a crossbow[[note]]mistranslated as a "bow"[[/note]] in combat. It makes sense, as real Japanese princesses were often trained in archery for both self-defense and character-building reasons. She's not afraid of [[PistolWhipping using it as a blunt weapon]] against any enemy that's too close to shoot at.
* In ''VideoGame/NinjaGaiden'', Ryu's main ranged weapons are either shurikens or a bow and yet he can still kill mooks armed with machine guns as well as helicopters, though it's better trying to use your speed to close the distance and attack them in close quarters than it is to try and shoot them with your bow.
* The advertising campaign for ''VideoGame/{{Crysis}} 3'', a game set in 2047, puts quite a lot of emphasis on the new bow weapon and its arsenal of {{Trick Arrow}}s. Justified, in this case, as it's the one weapon that Prophet can use while cloaked.

* ''Franchise/TombRaider''
** In ''VideoGame/TombRaider2013'', Lara Croft's most iconic weapon in the game is her hunting bow, which begins as a makeshift longbow and ends as a professional sports bow. She has access to a nice assortment of guns as well, but for most of the game the bow is preferable due to its relatively high damage output and the fact that it's completely silent (stealth greatly helps in keeping Lara alive), whereas her other weapons make quite some noise.
** In ''VideoGame/RiseOfTheTombRaider'', centuries-old ancient bows beat out modern compound bows. While they do the least damage out of the three types of bows available, they also fire the fastest, and since one headshot from any weapon will OneHitKill any human enemy (unless they're wearing a helmet, then it takes one to knock the helmet off and a second one to kill), the damage stat of weapons is largely useless, making the ancient bows the clear winner out of the three (with compund bows being powerful but slow and recurve bows being the JackOfAllStats option). While some guns now have silencers making them suitable for stealth, bows still win out since arrows can be crafted on the fly ([[ViewersAreGoldfish and the game makes damn sure you don't forget how to do it]]), but bullets must be found in ammo boxes or looted from enemies. Lara can also unlock a perk that causes bows to automatically lock on to up to three enemies' heads (again, headshots are always one-hit kills). There's really no reason to use anything but a bow once you get that.
* ''Videogame/{{Warframe}}''
** The Tenno are avid users of bows, albeit ones often [[EnhancedArchaicWeapon equipped with fancy tech]] to make the arrows deadlier or fly faster than normally possible. Their usage is justified in that the Tenno fought against enemies that could corrupt most high-tech weaponry, which bows and low-tech percussion rifles were immune or highly resistant to. Bows are completely silent, deal monstrous amounts of damage, can use a variety of {{Trick Arrow}}s, and often come with innate [[OneHitPolykill punch-through power]].
** Played even straighter by The Stalker, a special enemy who hunts down players if they kill a lot of bosses. While the Tenno can use any weapon they choose, the Stalker is always armed with a bow and kunai as his ranged weapon. Managing to defeat him will sometimes make him drop a blueprint that lets you ''craft his bow'', and then possibly use it against him should he appear again.

* Simon the Harrowed, a Healing Church hunter in ''VideoGame/{{Bloodborne}}'', [[DoesntLikeGuns is not a fan of guns]], so he had a special bow crafted for him by the Workshop: The Bowblade, which also doubles as a sword. While said weapon's description suggests he was scoffed at by most for trying to fight horrific (and sometimes gigantic) beasts with a bow, the mere fact you can meet him at all suggests he made it work at least as well as the guns he hated. This is reflected in gameplay: it takes considerable stamina to nock and fire the Bowblade's arrows, and each arrow takes one quicksilver bullet to fire like any other ranged weapon, but the arrows are potentially the strongest ranged attack in the whole game, are silent and only attract aggro of the enemy you hit, have the most range of any projectile, and a fully charged arrow from behind will stagger enemies.
* ''VideoGame/{{Contagion}}'' has both a scoped crossbow and a compound bow. Reusable ammo, powerful shots[[note]]zombies take more than 15 bullets to the body to die in higher difficulties; three arrows to the body kill them[[/note]] and almost totally silent operation are ''very'' useful in a ZombieApocalypse, and indeed [[DifficultButAwesome they are excellent weapons once you get past the initial difficulty of aiming compared to guns]]. A skilled user is ''deadly'' against zombie and human opponent alike, able to clear out vast expanses of the map without attracting any attention, and indeed only really has to switch out in the finales of a map when the hordes come, as the slow operation and low ammo capacity of the archery weapons make them impractical and their inherent stealth is worthless because [[TheAllSeeingAI the walkers know exactly where you are at any given moment]].

* Hanzo Shimada in ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' brings a bow to an arena full of modern weapons and futuristic {{Ray Gun}}s. He rounds out the repertoire with {{Trick Arrow}}s, [[ImprobableAimingSkills ricocheting shots]], and occasionally using dragon magic to chase the arrow with a KamehameHadoken.
* Bows and arrows are regularly seen alongside guns and grenades in ''[[VideoGame/NexusWar Nexus Clash]]'', owing to the UrbanFantasy of the setting and the fact that some of the [[AnotherDimension Planes of Existence]] visited in the series aren't part of the modern world. The [[AscendedDemon Redeemed]] in particular has supernaturally good skill with a bow that allow them to match all but the most capable users of firearms.
* ''VideoGame/Metro2033'' and ''VideoGame/MetroLastLight'' feature the [[Film/VanHelsing Helsing]], a pneumatically-driven revolver arrowgun. It is quiet to HollywoodSilencer levels, powerful in the proper pressure level (one-shots an armored human on a bodyshot) and absurdly so when overpressurized (on harder difficulties it can kill a [[BossInMooksClothing Black Librarian]] in little more than a full reload if it's overpressurized at the start), and the arrows can be retrieved for later use. On the downsides, the pressure gauge is hard to read at a glance, it's very slow to fire, and due to the arrows' lack of fletching, it's inaccurate at longer ranges, so much so that a scope is next-to-useless on it.
* ''{{VideoGame/Decision}}'':
** A bow is one of the last unlockable weapons (by which point the player is likely carrying around a rocket launcher, sniper rifle, and minigun). While it has its uses, the most entertaining one is using it to fire shock collars that turn the affected unit to your side.
** Mutant brutes carry bows, and are in some ways more dangerous than the captains, who carry rocket launchers. Rockets leave a visible that alerts you to the mutant's presence and lets you dodge, arrows don't.
* ''VideoGame/FarCry4:'' The Recurve Bow is one of the most powerful weapons in the early game, with better range, damage and accuracy than most sniper rifles. It can kill most human enemies with one shot anywhere on the body, no headshots required. The only thing that stops it being completely ridiculous is that you can not attach a telescopic sight, and have to make do with a red dot sight.
* ''VideoGame/XCOM2'': The ''Alien Hunters'' DLC features among other archaic weapons, a crossbow with swinging, vertical arms called the "Bolt Caster". It can be equipped by anybody that can use an assault rifle, and compared to the latter, it deals increased damage with no range penalties and it can also stun organic targets or shutdown robotic ones. On the other hand, it has to be reloaded after each shot since it only holds one bolt, and it can't take GunAccessories of any sort. Also, if the soldier using it is killed and the body not evac'd, [[NoPlansNoPrototypeNoBackup say goodbye to it]] unless you have {{Game Mod}}s.
* The ArmyScout unit of ''VideoGame/TheyAreBillions'', the {{Ranger}}, uses a bow to attack. It's not very powerful or long-ranged, but it's silent and doesn't aggro zombies at farther than sight range.
* Bows and the crossbow are decent early ranged weapons in ''VideoGame/{{Unturned}}''. They're silent, powerful enough to one-headshot a zombie and unlike all other ranged hardware, their ammo is craftable. However, they take up oodles of space in the GridInventory (the weapon takes 8 slots, and each arrow takes 2), [[BreakableWeapons their durability and that of the arrows is very poor]] (and craftable wooden arrows can't be repaired, although the durability doesn't affect the damage they deal; non-wooden arrows can be repaired with metal scrap), and the compound bow and crossbow (the two most powerful in the group) can't be crafted, only found, and require both a blowtorch and one point in the Engineer skill to fix up.

* Bows have been a staple weapon in the ''{{Franchise/Disgaea}}'' series, being one of two ranged options. Depending on the game, they're mainly useful for inflicting status ailments or dealing strong elemental attacks. ''VideoGame/Disgaea2'' onward allowed Bow-users to potentially make defeated enemies drop Treasure Chests.
* The Mini-crossbow in ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' is obtained very early on, ammo is cheap and abundant if you know where to look, it's classified as silent by default, and it's the only weapon in the game that can deliver a NonLethalKO at a distance, thanks to the tranquilizer darts.
* ''VideoGame/KillerInstinct'' has Black Eagle, the brother of Chief Thunder, who fights with a bow and arrow.
* ''Franchise/MortalKombat'' has a modern-day setting, with U.S. Special Forces being a major faction in the story. Despite this, some characters still wield a bow and arrow:
** [[MagicalNativeAmerican Nightwolf]], introduced in ''VideoGame/MortalKombat3'', can manifest a bow of green spirit energy.
** ''VideoGame/MortalKombatX'' introduces Kung Jin, who fights with a [[MixAndMatchWeapon bow that doubles as a staff and flamethrower]].
* ''VideoGame/BloonsTowerDefense'' has Quincy as one of the {{Hero Unit}}s introduced in the sixth game. Despite more advanced ranged weapons such as sniper rifles and laser guns being used by other units, Quincy favors his trusty bow and arrow, which includes exploding arrows.

* ''VideoGame/{{Paladins}}'' takes place in a fantasy world, but still has some modern-looking guns available. This doesn't stop some people from using more archaic ranged weapons. {{Justified}} by the Magistrate having strict control over crystals, which are used to power guns in the setting. Unless a character has ties to the Magistrate (current or former) or the criminal underworld, it would be hard for them to obtain firearms.
** Cassie uses a crossbow with [[TrickArrow special bolts]] that can explode or [[BlownAcrossTheRoom launch hit enemies backwards]]. The crossbow also has a mechanism to automatically load another bolt after firing. [[EarlyInstalmentWeirdness In older versions, she used a bow]].
** Sha Lin wields a normal bow whose shots can be [[ChargedAttack charged up]] by drawing the bowstring for longer. He also has special [[TrickArrow Crippling Arrows]] that can prevent enemies from using movement abilities (or ''any'' abilities with the right Talent).
** The lunar goddess Io uses a magical bow that [[EnergyBow launches arrows made of moonlight]]. Unlike Sha Lin, there's no actual bowstring, so she cannot charge up her shots.
* In the post-apocalyptic zombie survival sim ''VideoGame/{{Cataclysm}}'', the effectiveness of bows varies wildly from update to update. Their main advantage over guns is that ammo is easily crafted, and they don't make noise to attract zombies towards you. However, they are useless against enemies with armor, and the more powerful bows require a high strength stat.
* Yukari Takeba from ''VideoGame/Persona3''. All party members are forced to use more 'old school' weapons due to Japanese laws making obtaining a gun to fight with near impossible, and Yukari has chosen bows due to her role on the archery team. This carries into spin offs as well.

* The Mini-crossbow in ''VideoGame/DeusEx'' is obtained very early on, ammo is cheap and abindant if you know where to look, it's classified as silent by default, and it's the only weapon in the game that can deliver a NonLethalKO at a distance, thanks to the tranquilizer darts.

*** In Mercenaries mode, you can play as Krauser. His only ranged weapon is a compound bow as powerful as a SniperRifle.

** ''VideoGame/ResidentEvil6'': Ada has a crossbow as a starting weapon.
* Simon the Harrowed, a Healing Church hunter in ''VideoGame/{{Bloodborne}}'', DoesntLikeGuns, so he had a special bow crafted for him by the workshop which also doubles as a sword. While said weapon's description suggests he was scoffed at by most for trying to fight horrific (and sometimes gigantic) beasts with a bow, the mere fact you can meet him at all suggests he made it work at least as well as the guns he hated. This is reflected in gameplay: the Bowblade's arrows are potentially the strongest ranged attack in the whole game, are silent and only attract aggro of the enemy you hit, have the most range of any projectile, and a fully charged arrow from behind will stagger enemies, but it takes considerable stamina to nock and fire the arrows, and each arrow takes one quicksilver bullet to fire.

* ''VideoGame/Metro2033'' and ''VideoGame/MetroLastLight'' feature the [[Film/VanHelsing Helsing]], a pneumatically-driven revolver arrowgun. It is quiet to HollywoodSilencer levels, powerful in the proper pressure level (one-shots an armored human on a bodyshot) and absurdly so when overpressurized (on harder difficulties it can kill a [[BossInMooksClothing Black Librarian]] in little more than a full reload if it's overpressurized at the start), and the arrows can be retrieved for later use. The downsides are that its pressure gauge is hard to read at a glance, it's very slow to fire, and unlike most of the trope's examples, it's pretty inaccurate at longer ranges, so much so that a scope is next-to-useless on it.

* ''VideoGame/{{Metro 2033}}'' and ''VideoGame/MetroLastLight'' feature the [[Film/VanHelsing Helsing]], a pneumatically-driven revolver arrowgun. It is quiet to HollywoodSilencer levels, powerful in the proper pressure level (one-shots an armored human on a bodyshot) and absurdly so when overpressurized (on harder difficulties it can kill a [[BossInMooksClothing Black Librarian]] in little more than a full reload if it's overpressurized at the start), and the arrows can be retrieved for later use. The downsides are that its pressure gauge is hard to read at a glance, it's very slow to fire, and unlike most of the trope's examples, it's pretty inaccurate at longer ranges, so much so that a scope is next-to-useless on it.

* Yukari Takeba from ''VideoGame/{{Persona3}}''. All party members are forced to use more 'old school' weapons due to Japanese laws making obtaining a gun to fight with near impossible, and Yukari has chosen bows due to her role on the archery team. This carries into spin offs as well.

Close relative of the ArcherArchetype, sometimes overlapping it, though one can exist without the other. This trope regards situations where someone manages to make a bow and arrows a better choice than other, more modern weapons like guns. Often, a hero (or villain) who follows the Straight and Arrow Path can be pretty dangerous with his fists as well; it's all that muscle to pull the draw string.

* ''Literature/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians'':
** The children of Apollo and Artemis's hunters will both use bows and arrows with far more efficiency than guns.
** Frank Zhang, to characterize him as a more cerebral child of Mars rather than a brutish child of Ares, is not only talented at archery but also strong enough to use {{Trick Arrow}}s.

* ''VideoGame/TombRaider''

* ''ComicBook/{{Commando}}''. In "Legend of the Longbow", a British fighter pilot who's crashlanded in France teaches LaResistance--who don't have any weapons--how to use the longbow to shoot German soldier and get their weapons. Even then they continue using the bow because it's now become part of their reputation.

** One of The Sniper's alternatives for hs SniperRifle is The Huntsman, a bow and arrow. The bow has slightly lower maximum damage, but [[ChargedAttack charges to maximum damage]] much faster than the rifle. It fires in an arc and there's a definite delay between the arrow leaving the bow and landing on the target, so using it successfully involves both skill and luck, or lots and lots and lots of corner peeking.

* The hunter Simon in ''VideoGame/{{Bloodborne}}'' DoesntLikeGuns, so he had a special bow crafted for him by the workshop which also doubles as a sword. While said weapon's description suggests he was scoffed at by most for trying to fight horrific (and sometimes gigantic) beasts with a bow, the mere fact you can meet him at all suggests he made it work at least as well as the guns he hated.