Smart Pistol

Characteristics

In Titanfall, the Smart Pistol occupies the player's primary weapon slot despite being a handgun, for balance. It locks onto targets automatically when aimed, requiring little careful aiming, but fires much more slowly than other weapons. In Titanfall 2, the Smart Pistol MK6 was changed from a primary weapon into a limited boost item after negative feedback. It appears in one later campaign mission, mowing down hordes of enemies as a superweapon.

Development

According to Titanfall's game director Steve Fukuda, the Smart Pistol originated from a complaint by Respawn co-founder Jason West, who said there were 'no shooters for old men.' West expressed frustration at being unable to sneak up on enemies without dying, so the studio added the Smart Pistol as a bridge weapon for newcomers. It was also intended to help players quickly eliminate AI-controlled grunts and spectres. A modified Smart Pistol later appeared in Apex Legends as part of the 'Whistler' tactical ability for the character Ballistic.

Reception and legacy

Christian Donlan of Eurogamer praised the Smart Pistol's concept, saying he had never seen a gun like it and that it got to the heart of why the game was fun. He noted that as a poor online shooter player, the auto-aim taught him what getting high on a headshot feels like. He called the multiple lock-on feature a lovely concept for fast-paced stealth, especially when cloaked, and highlighted the curving red fishing line of light on the HUD and the muted power-stapler sound.

He argued the gun allowed weaker players to feel like assassins and was not unbalancing. Kyle Orland of Ars Technica also praised it, stating that his lack of fine aiming control usually prevented him from sneaking up on players, but the Smart Pistol let him achieve three locks and kill instantly with a homing headshot. He countered claims that it dumbed down the experience, saying it required stealth and planning and made Titanfall more accessible by valuing skills other than twitch reflexes.

Dean Takahashi of VentureBeat said the Smart Pistol was great for shooter fans without the reflexes of youth. Chris Kohler of Wired called it a gun for people who never got good at aiming, adding that in Titanfall even he could kill someone being dumb enough. Andrew Webster of The Verge stated the weapon gave an easy way to have fun without feeling overpowering.