In the post-apocalyptic classic Fallout, you can pick up a range of laser rifles, from homemade junk to military grade...
...and the Chinese military is now equipped with the first phase of these weapons with the PY132A, WJG-202 and BBQ-905.
Their current purpose is to knock out thermal imaging in tanks and to blind Unmanned Ariel Vehicles to stop targeting.
International agreements limit the development of laser weapons to blind human soldiers, but not weapons designed to kill.
Although the latest laser rifle technologies remain classified, backpack lasers, such as this gun developed by TWI...
...have already been demonstrated as powerful industrial tools designed to decommission nuclear plants.
In first person shooter Titanfall, players pilot a large mech, like those in Pacific Rim, and can access a plasma railgun.
A railgun uses electromagnetism, rather than explosives, to propel its projectiles, in this case balls of hot plasma.
Made by the US Army, MARAUDER stands for Magnetically Accelerated Ring to Achieve Ultra-high Directed Energy and Radiation...
...and able to produce donut shaped plasma projectiles, as seen in this video from the Navy and University of Missouri.
The gun was classified after its early success in 1993, so its destructive power may have since increased substantially...
Classic run-and-gun arcade game Contra was released in 1987 and included the Spread Gun, which fired multiple projectiles.
While the Spread Gun could fire 5 shots simultaneously, R&D company Metal Storm created the gun demonstrated here...
...capable of a maximum fire rate of 1.62 million rounds per minute, leaving just 0.1 millimetres between projectiles.
The gun is able to do this by stacking the bullets without casings and controlling firing by electrical impulse.
It’s believed that Metal Storm is working with US robotics firm irobot to produce a similar stacked grenade launcher.
The Lightning Gun in Unreal Tournament was a high powered sniper rifle that struck down opponents with a visible bolt.
For many years, reports of the Phoenix Project have circulated about a powerful electrolaser developed by the US Navy...
...which could use enormous voltages to take out missiles and aircraft and was said to be field tested as early as 1985.
In 2006, American arms manufacturer Applied Energetics, also made a field-ready weapon called the Joint IED Neutralizer...
...a direct energy weapon used for bomb disposal but with the aim of becoming used hand-held by the infantry soldiers.
Players of Command and Conquer will remember the power of the sonic emitter, both as a cannon and on the “Shatterers”...
...and the military has had a long standing interesting in using audible, subsonic and ultrasonic sound against ground troops.
The Israeli defence force has used a Long Range Acoustic Device that fires a 150-decibel alarm for crowd control...
...which reporters say makes knees buckle, brains ache, and stomachs turn until nobody feels like protesting anymore.
Ultrasound weapons can damage human organs and the central nervous system, while subsonics can affect brain tissue.