For a game about shooting the majority of things that move, Rage 2 is surprisingly light on guns. There are only nine in Bethesda’s newest shooter, and one of those is exclusive to special editions of the game. This makes it fairly simple to collect ‘em all—in concept, at least. Some guns are easier to get than others. Hell, three of them are basically just given to you. The rest can be found inside arks, which are found throughout the open world and contain various power-ups and ammo and whatnot. Kill the bad guys, find the ark, and get a new gun: it’s a reductive formula, but it repeats itself through Rage 2 a half-dozen or so times.
Here’s a quick guide to where to find all these guns, listed in alphabetic order.
BFG 9000
Yep, an old friend from Doom makes a surprise appearance in another shooter from Bethesda. It’s not in every version of the game, though. You have to pick up one of Rage 2’s special editions in order to find this one. You’ll need that Collector’s Edition or that Deluxe Edition, and you’ll also have to be linked to an active Bethesda account to make this work. Once that’s taken care of, you can find the gun above the Vineland at the crash site of a meteorite. Look for it right next to an intersection with three roads, and then get ready to brutalize these post-apocalyptic yahoos with a gun that’s very sizable indeed.
Charged Pulse Cannon
This requires a bit of work. The gun itself is in the Shrouded Vault Ark in the Dune Sea, but one does not just walk into the Shrouded Vault Ark. You have to take out a couple of reactors at Shrouded Sub Stations to unlock the Vault itself, and then fight through a fairly large and definitely crowded vault before finding the ark. At least the gun inside is one of the more useful ones in the game.
Combat Shotgun
Keep an eye out for this one while helping Marshall on the Blackout mission. It’s inside the Gun Barrel Ark that you can find while scouring the sewers on Marshall’s behalf. Because it’s in an ark, you’ll have to wipe out all the bad guys in the area before you can open it. As you’d probably expect from a shotgun, it’s pretty good at blasting any enemies who creep up closely on you.
Firestorm Revolver
Here’s a good gimmick: this pistol’s bullets can burst into flames whenever you want them to. A simple button press after firing will light ‘em up, with all the potential consequences you expect from fire in a shooter with tons of enemies and explosive barrels. It’s inside the Dank Catacomb Ark in the Sekreto Wastelands.
Grav-Dart Launcher
This one can be a bit of a challenge, as it’s guarded by some pretty tough hombres. It’s also a big old wacky goofball gun that’s more of a physics-breaking bit of fun than a real deadly weapon. As the name implies, these darts counteract the basic tenets of gravity, letting you easily toss those bad guys all over the place. It can be found in the Wilds, within the Needle Falls Ark.
Hyper-Cannon
This one’s tough to get, but the powerful railgun’s worth it. It’s better protected than basically every other gun in the game, with a tough boss who has a bunch of almost-as-tough lackeys to get through. This all takes place in the Wilds, near the very top of the map, outside Greenhaven Ark. Wipe out the competition and the gun is yours.
Ranger Assault Rifle
Here’s your main gun, the one you’ll probably return to most often throughout the game. Although you don’t start with it, you’ll pick it up pretty quickly. In the very first mission you’ll see a ranger get massacred right in front of you. Grab his stuff to get your real start in the game, including this gun.
Sidewinder Pistol
This one’s easy: you start with the damn thing. Would it be a first-person shooter without a standard, basic sidearm in your holster?
Smart Rocket Launcher
Here’s the big ol’ boy you need, the boss-buster, the boom box for blasting the biggest bad guys in the game. Make sure you find the Strongbox Ark when you’re hanging out on the Torn Plains—it’s got this little number inside of it, and you’ll definitely need this one at some point in your perilous travels.