History Main / PlasmaCannon

* ''TabletopGame/SkyrealmsOfJorune'': Blasters are the MagneticWeapon variety of Plasma Cannon. Ranging from pistol to cannon size, the blaster magnetically launches a metal pellet that has been super-heated. Leaving the muzzle, the pellet becomes a ball of super-hot plasma capable of punching a hole through the massive Jorune wildlife.

* ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'':

* ''TabletopGame/BattleTech'': Plasma cannons and rifles (notably not simply the same thing on different scales -- there are plasma rifles for conventional infantry and battle armor troops, but also a HumongousMecha-scale plasma "rifle" that weighs six tons and is considered one of the better "modern" weapons introduced to the game) are among the few energy weapons that actually use ammunition: they flash-superheat a special plastic foam into plasma, then fire that at the target. (Technically, the classic 'Mech flamer is another example, as it directly channels and vents fresh fusion-hot plasma from the 'Mech's engine itself; it's better known, however, for embodying [[VideoGameFlamethrowersSuck another trope]].) The Particle Projector Cannon alternates between a plasma cannon and a LightningGun depending on the artist and adaptation, but it is always a massive, highly accurate energy cannon that is so bright it can cause permanent eye damage. The [[{{BFG}} massive]] Naval Autocannons mounted on [[CoolStarship WarShips]] are also stated to use controlled plasma explosions to launch the projectiles instead of gunpowder, making them a partial example.

* In ''Macaque Attack'', the final story of Gareth Powell's ''Ack-Ack Macaque'' trilogy, the trader starship ''Ameline'' is armed with the Dho weapon, an add-on piece of OrganicTechnology. The Dho weapon opens a portal to the nearest star's core to capture its plasma ventings. The plasma is then directed by a gunner who's directly hooked into the link pod of the Dho weapon. Interestingly the Dho weapon is an aversion to WaveMotionGun depiction of most plasma cannons. Despite its raw power, the Dho weapon fires this star plasma in a [[LaserCutter pencil-thin beam]]. This makes the weapon more a surgical tool then a weapon of mass destruction and the Dho weapon had to fire in wide sweeping arcs to destroy a giant asteroid that was on its way to Earth.

** ''VideoGame/Fallout4'' removes the Plasma Casters, but allows for more customization of the weapon, like transforming a plasma rifle into a pistol (and vice versa), into a shotgun or flamethrower-type weapon, or make it fully automatic. They also consume their own unique ammunition instead of using the same ammo as laser rifles[[labelnote:note]]Previous games described the plasma as being made on-demand by weapons just out of electricity (and presumably air), though oddly plasma ''grenades'' always had some sort of specialized material released on use.[[/labelnote]]. ''VideoGame/Fallout76'' adds the Gatling plasma as a new heavy weapon, which compared to the Plasma Caster is shorter, more stout, and has a lot more coils around it. It also has ''another'', unique ammo type called as "plasma core".

* ''VideoGame/{{Starsiege}}'' and its direct predecessor ''Earthsiege 2'' both have the plasma cannon as a heavy weapon loadout for the [[AMechByAnyOtherName HERCs]]. It has decent range, limited tracking ability, and can one-shot a majority of enemy units. Despite this it is inadvisable to use early on as the cannon is not only an energy hog but also [[DisadvantageousDisintegration destroys any potential salvage]] from the enemy, which is the currency for repairs, upgrades, and new units.

* In ''Literature/StarshipOperators'', the Amaterasu's main weapon is a plasma cannon.

* ''Literature/ACertainMagicalIndex'': Not quite a cannon, but Accelerator tried to use plasma in its natural state (with his power over vectors to go around the issue of it spreading) to finish off Touma when they first fought. The Misaka Clones got together to save Touma.
* ''Manga/FireForce'': Arthur Boyle can use his weapon, Excalibur, in conjunction with his [[PlayingWithFire pyrokinetic abilities]], to create a LaserBlade out of flames superheated to the point of becoming plasma.

* ''Franchise/MarvelUniverse'': In their early appearances, a plasma pistol was a standard additional sidearm (they also carried a .45 as well) for agents of ComicBook/{{SHIELD}}. Plasma weapons soon became prevalent for almost all people in PoweredArmor, including some of the ComicBook/IronMan armors.

[[folder:Film]]
* ''Franchise/{{Alien}}'': In the expanded ''Alien'' universe (starting with a mention the novelization/Special Edition of ''Film/{{Aliens}}'' and elaborated in the Colonial Marines background manual), WeWillUseLasersInTheFuture is starting to appear with humanity using electron lasers, particle-beam and plasma weaponry for vehicles. Plasma is the most powerful of the 3 and is unique in not being restricted to a vehicle turret. The "man-portable" M78 Phased-Plasma Infantry Gun or ''PIG'' is a bulky, heavy weapon to carry but for a lone Colonial Marine, nothing snuffs out tanks like the ''PIG''.

** Sources vary on whether the blasters are plasma guns, particle beams, or just inaccurately portrayed lasers.
*** Blasters canonically function by firing plasma formed by energizing Tibanna Gas. Particle beams and laser weapons do exist in the setting, but are seemingly less efficient as infantry weapons, with a notable example of the former being the side mounted bubble turrets on the Republic Gunship, and for the latter, the Death Star.
** Believe it or not, the ''Lightsaber'' is actually a form of plasma gun... only not a gun, as it contains superheated plasma in an adjustable magnetic field.

** ''Film/TheTerminator'': The Terminator requests a handheld plasma weapon at a gun shop, which the salesman brushes off as a joke. He then proceeds to rob the gun store of a number of conventional modern weapons. Being from the future, he probably wasn't making it up. The energy weapons seen in the future segments may or may not be examples; it isn't specifically stated.
** ''Film/Terminator3RiseOfTheMachines'': The T-X's primary ArmCannon weapon is said to be a plasma weapon. Being a SwissArmyWeapon, she has several alternates built in, including a flamethrower.
* In the ''Franchise/{{Predator}}'' series, the Predators are armed with shoulder mounted plasma casters with distinctive triplicate laser sights.
* ''Film/StarshipTroopers'': The Bugs combine this with their HiveCasteSystem. The towering bugs that the Mobile Infantry first encounters during their initial ground invasion of Klendathu are so-called "Plasma Bugs". They shoot huge bursts of plasma from their backs to target the human space vessels in orbit around the planet. Two of them are blown up onscreen, but the rest of them end up destroying most of the Federation's Fleet.
* ''Film/PacificRim'': Gipsy Danger is armed with a Plasma Caster. So is Crimson Typhoon, with an updated version of Gipsy's, at the cost of charging time.
* ''Film/Kin2018'': The gun Elijah finds fires some kind of plasma discharge or similar that can blow up fairly large object in one blast, plus vaporize a human.
* ''Film/IndependenceDay'': While it's never definitively stated what they are, the [[WaveMotionGun Wave-Motion Guns]] that the aliens' city-destroyer ships use function very similarly to these, using a laser to guide a comparatively slow-moving pulse of energy to its target after taking about ten seconds to charge up. Given that said ships are called city-destroyers, you can guess how destructive they are.

* In the Creator/RobertAHeinlein ''Literature/StarshipTroopers'' novel, Bug Warriors are armed with advanced plasma weapons that are implied to be purely technological in origin.
* ''Literature/ArtemisFowl'' Koboi Labs and Police Plaza have plasma cannons that can be set to "stun" or "kill". They are also powered by a tube of plasma that acts like a gel when unpowered and is safe to swim in.

* The ''Literature/{{Bolo}}'' stories are centered on the Bolo autonomous tanks, whose usual main armaments are Hellbore cannon, extremely powerful plasma cannon normally found on space battleships.
* In the ''Literature/{{RCN}}'' universe, ship point defense mounts use plasma cannons, whose lightspeed bolts don't really work beyond relatively short ranges but are quite destructive within those ranges. Instead of destroying incoming missiles, they use ablation to try to drive anti-ship missiles off-course enough to miss.[[note]]RCN universe missiles rely solely on kinetic warheads to cause the damage, so as long as they don't connect with the target they're unable to cause damage.[[/note]] As a secondary use, they can strip the delicate sails used by ships to maneuver in hyperspace, to prevent a HyperspeedEscape.
* The ''Literature/TakeshiKovacs'' novels by Creator/RichardKMorgan have "Sunjet" particle blasters. They're most commonly used to vaporize heads, and the [[BodyBackupDrive cortical stacks]] implanted within, thus making it one of the simplest ways to inflict [[DeaderThanDead Real Death]] on people without remote backups. The client in the first book died that way, but had a 48-hour backup enabling him to hire Kovacs to figure out who did it.
* In the ''Literature/GreatShip'', a plasma cannon is one of the very few man-portable devices capable of genuinely ''killing'' humanity's TransHuman descendants, as the temperatures destroy the brain, whereas blunt trauma (i.e. from some flavor of {{BFG}}) won't even scratch the brain, and the body damage [[HealingFactor can be healed]].
* In ''Literature/TheNamelessWar'', plasma cannons are the standard anti-ship weapon system. Man-portable plasma weapons are technically possible but work poorly in atmosphere, as the bolt quickly loses coherency, meaning such weapons are generally out ranged by projectile weapons.

* Every personal weapon that isn't a knife for shanking mercs, is a pulse gun in Kieran Shea's ''Koko'' (a.k.a [=EBK=] book series). The raw firepower of the plasma firing pulse weapons and with them being capable of pistol or assault rifle size (there are vehicle-mounted pulse cannons), humanity had no reason to make a new line of more conventional guns.
* David Gunn's Death's Head series has protagonist Sven Tveskog's SIG-37, a HandCannon with a true A.I. that can select various ammo types for Sven and aid in targetting enemies. Should an enemy prove too tough for its ballistic load-outs, the SIG-37 can fire its built-in Plasma Cannon at them. This plasma bolt can OneHitKill an armoured gunship.
* In ''VideoGame/LineOfDelirium'', plasma weapons are one of the two common types of energy weapons (the other one being lasers). Plasma weapons have crazy knockback, even able to blast a soldier in PoweredArmor across the room. If a plasma shot manages to get through one of the slits between armor plates, then the person wearing it is cooked from the inside, as the armor is instantly turned into an oven. Some plasma weapons are also called fusion weapons. A plasma blast at close range can put a fist-sized hole in someone's chest.
* In ''Literature/ArrivalsFromTheDark'', primitive plasma cannons were already in use by pre-FTL humans, mainly used to destroy asteroids that may potentially threaten Earth or any Solar System outpost, although they were secondary to nuclear missiles. After reverse-engineering Faata tech, humans gained access to advanced tech. Better plasma weapons became standard ship weapons, although frigates and cruisers were also equipped with [[WaveMotionGun annihilators]], extremely powerful antimatter weapons. Races that don't have annihilators (e.g. Dromi) tend to use plasma as their primary space-based weapons.
* In Gareth Powell's ''Ack-Ack Macaque'' trilogy, the final story is ''Macaque Attack''. The trader starship ''Ameline'' is armed with the add-on mighty piece of OrganicTechnology, the Dho weapon. The Dho weapon opens a portal to the nearest star's core to capture its plasma ventings. The plasma is then directed by a gunner who's directly hooked into the link pod of the Dho weapon. Interestingly the Dho weapon is an aversion to WaveMotionGun depiction of most plasma cannons. Despite its raw power, the Dho weapon fires this star plasma in a [[LaserCutter pencil-thin beam]]. This makes the weapon more a surgical tool then a weapon of mass destruction and the Dho weapon had to fire in wide sweeping arcs to destroy a giant asteroid that was on its way to Earth.
* An interesting take in Adam Christopher's ''Spider Wars'' novels, 30th century humanity has plasma rifles and plasma pistols which are... not that much different from contemporary firearms. They're just somewhat more advanced versions of our assault rifles and sidearms, the devastating plasma is from the clips of plasma-infused bullets that are issued when fighting [[MechanicalAbomination Spiders]]. When fighting fellow humans on a space station, the plasma rounds are swapped out for ceramic bullets. These will easily shred the human body but won't damage a station's hull like plasma fire would.
* From Osprey Adventures, Mark Latham's ''Bug Hunts'' - humanity is an massive war against 3 different species of insectoid aliens. Most of humanity's guns are actually smaller than what's used in the 20th and 21st century, but the guns use [[AbnormalAmmo high-energy plasma shells]] and carries a lot of ammo. One particular insectoid species, the Araknyd (expies of the [[TabletopGame/Warhammer40000 Tyranids]]) uses {{Biotech}} plasma weaponry which humans are trying to reverse-engineer (humans invented and can make ammunition that explodes in a plasma explosion, but not guns that shoot plasma bolts or beams like the Araknyd can).
* In ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'' novel ''Sons of the Hydra'', Strike Master Occam and his warband the Redacted all use modified plasma weapons (including the Sergeant who's carrying a heavy plasma gun) which have incorporate xeno and loyalist technologies to not only make them completely safe to fire, but also had their range increased and amount of fuel spent improved.

* ''Series/StarTrekEnterprise'': Before Phase Cannons were installed, plasma weapons were used regularly by the NX-01 ''Enterprise''.
** The time-traveling Nah'kul also had these weapons, having provided them to the Nazis in an alternate timeline. The German military mounted these weapons on their fighter planes.
** Plasma weapons haven't been used since the pilot episode, probably because of their extreme inaccuracy. The ''Enterprise'' is shown not to be able to hit anything with them. In another episode (pre-phase cannons), they're testing spatial torpedoes. When those fail, the crew acts as if the ship is defenseless, forgetting about plasma cannons. In fact, the only time a plasma weapon is successful is when a farmer shoots a pissed-off Klingon with a plasma rifle.
** Inverse to the trope plasma cannons are deemed an obsolete weapon by 22nd century standards, Particle beam weapons are superior technology.

* ''Series/StarTrekTheOriginalSeries'': The original Romulan Bird-of-Prey encountered in the episode "Balance of Terror" had a high-powered, faster-than-light plasma-based weapon that was very destructive, but had limited range, and due to power constraints, could not be fired while the ship was cloaked.
** Plasma torpedoes are also mentioned in passing as armament used by the Cardassians and the Kazon in successor Star Trek series.
* ''Series/{{Farscape}}'': Sheyangs made prominent use of Plasma Weapons on their ships; several other species did as well, and handheld plasma weapons were mentioned on occasion.

* ''TabletopGame/BattleTech'': Plasma cannons and rifles (notably not simply the same thing on different scales -- there are plasma rifles for conventional infantry and battle armor troops, but also a HumongousMecha-scale plasma "rifle" that weighs six tons and is considered one of the better "modern" weapons introduced to the game) are among the few energy weapons that actually use ammunition: they flash-superheat a special plastic foam into plasma, then fire that at the target. (Technically the classic 'Mech flamer is another example, as it directly channels and vents fresh fusion-hot plasma from the 'Mech's engine itself; it's better known, however, for embodying [[VideoGameFlamethrowersSuck another trope]].) The Particle Projector Cannon alternates between a plasma cannon and a LightningGun depending on the artist and adaptation, but it is always a massive, highly accurate energy cannon that is so bright it can cause permanent eye damage. The [[{{BFG}} massive]] Naval Autocannons mounted on [[CoolStarship WarShips]] are also stated to use controlled plasma explosions to launch the projectiles instead of gunpowder, making them a partial example.

* ''TabletopGame/MarvelSuperHeroesAdventureGame'' Adventure 3 ''ComicBook/FantasticFour: Fantastic Voyages'': In the adventure "Crash Test", the Skrull scout ship the ''Kell'rr Anelle'' has four plasma cannons.

* ''TabletopGame/SkyrealmsOfJorune'': Blasters are the MagneticWeapon variety of Plasma Cannon. Ranging from pistol to cannon size, the blaster magnetically launches a metal pellet that has been super-heated. Leaving the muzzle, the pellet becomes a ball of super-hot plasma capable of punching a hole through the massive Jorune wildlife.

** The [[TheFederation Tau]] have safe and stable ion weapons that fire a stream of ions that turn the target ''into plasma''. Unusually for Tau equipment, ion weapons can disable their power-limiters to fire an explosive over-charge shot, at the cost of making them unstable. Plasma weaponry doesn't see a lot of use in their arsenal, however -- their main sidearms, pulse weapons, are essentially particle accelerators that fire charged particles, and they favor railguns for the really big hitters.

** Some large Tyranids (read:bugs the size of houses, or multi-kilometer bio-ships) are also capable of generating plasma within their own bodies, although it's more of a mix of unstable chemicals that ignite when spat out and leaves the bug's mouth or other organ that projects them. That being said, the Tyranids are so evolved that this chemical cocktail used by their bio-forms burns hot enough that it makes plasma, hence "bio-plasma".
** [[DeathRay "Melta" weapons]] are considered to be, by [[ViewersAreGeniuses certain segments of the fandom]], to behave the way that realistic plasma weapons should, although plasma is never referred to when describing them. They fire a beam of immense heat that disperses rapidly, so they can one-shot a vehicle or a building up close, kill most things in one shot just outside of a few yards (or a guaranteed-wounding on things that are just too big to die outright), but are practically harmless at stand-off range and long range. Their portrayal differs a bit between different media, with tabletop and lore having them as an instantaneous shot, while video games tend to use a continuous beam. That said, fan opinion is typically more leaning towards the idea that they fire microwave beams.

* ''Agent Intercept'' has the Gemini Cannons. While they may appear to be bullet weapons, they work by trapping microparticles in a high-energy state and releasing them at velocity. The projectiles' fast degradation of energy makes the cannons an efficient and safe close-range weapon, which Torpere stresses the importance of due to "certain Agents."

* ''Franchise/{{Metroid}}'':
** The Plasma Beam is a weapon upgrade which powers up Samus's attacks and grants them the ability to pass through multiple enemies (and in ''VideoGame/MetroidDread'', to damage robotic enemies with all beam attacks instead of only charged shots). It's usually the strongest beam weapon that Samus can get in each game, depicted as capable of incinerating lesser foes in a single shot, and burning those who survive.
** In ''VideoGame/MetroidPrime'', where Samus [[RealTimeWeaponChange switches between beam weapons on the fly]] rather than stacking their effects, the Plasma Beam functions like a ShortRangeShotgun - having high power but a slow firing and charging speed compared to her other weapons, as well as a limited range when not charged - making it somewhat more realistic than most examples.
** ''VideoGame/MetroidPrimeHunters'' has the Judicator, which actually uses super-''cooled'' plasma, which is capable of freezing people if used. Sounds like bad science, but [[RealityIsUnrealistic it actually is indeed possible to supercool plasma to freezing degrees with a laser]].
** ''VideoGame/MetroidOtherM'' has Anthony's plasma cannon, which is noticeably more primitive in that it "takes forever to charge".

* ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim'' uses a plasma gun as his primary weapon, although in practice it functions more like a rapid-fire HitScan RayGun and the single-use stronger shots he can collect function closer to actual plasma projectiles.
* Energy weapons in ''VideoGame/{{Fallout}}'' include plasma pistols, rifles, and grenades. Plasma weapons do more damage than lasers but tend to hold less ammo, have a lower rate of fire and the projectiles are slower (the last is only relevant from ''Fallout 3'' on). They also have the ability to reduce the enemy to a pile of goo with a lethal critical hit.
** ''Fallout 3'' introduces a more compact version of the plasma rifle, eliminating the "bulky" aspect of it (it isn't significantly heavier than other rifle-sized weapons). ''VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas'' expands on the difference in plasma rifles by retconning it to be the "Q-series" (and showing the series' SuperPrototype, the Q-35 Matter Modulator, as a unique weapon), as opposed to the classic Fallout "P-series" (like the Winchester P-94), which are now called "Plasma Casters".
** ''VideoGame/Fallout4'' removes the Plasma Casters, but allows for more customization of the weapon, like transforming a plasma rifle into a pistol (and vice versa), into a shotgun or flamethrower-type weapon, or make it fully automatic. They also consume their own unique ammunition instead of using the same ammo as laser rifles[[labelnote:note]]Previous games described the plasma as being made on-demand by weapons just out of electricity (and presumably air), though oddly plasma ''grenades'' always had some sort of specialized material released on use.[[/labelnote]]. ''VideoGame/Fallout76'' adds the Gatling plasma as a new heavy weapon, which compared to the Plasma Caster is shorter, more stout, and has a lot more coils around it. It also has ''another'', unique ammo type called as "plasma core".
* ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'':
** The plasma rifle (''VideoGame/{{Doom 3}}''[='s=] in particular) does more damage per projectile than the go-to machine gun, and with higher accuracy, but it suffers from slower projectiles, more scarce ammo, and in the classic games an arbitrary one-second delay after releasing the trigger. It does, however, buck the trend of "slow-to-fire" into orbit with its rate of fire: the classic one fires at 700 rounds per minute [[BottomlessMagazines cyclic]], while ''3'''s iteration goes up to a more modest but still considerably high 480.

** The ''Videogame/ProjectBrutality'' mod for ''Doom 2'' has the plasma rifle with a charged shotgun blast as its secondary fire, the heavy plasma rifle that shoots slower but with more force and can be used as a plasma thrower, the [=BFG10k=], the big brother to [=BFG9000=] with its main shot, a focused laser, and [[DeflectorShields energy shield]], and the [=BFG11k=] a rapid fire plasma [[GatlingGood gatling gun]] that can fire a powerful plasma beam.
-->"'''Ooh''', I like it! The sugar-sweet taste of heavy ordinance!"
* The Plasma Cannon in all three games in the ''VideoGame/{{Descent}}'' series fires massive green blobs that travel faster than the game's SlowLasers, making them harder to dodge. They also have a high rate of fire, meaning they drain your energy faster than the lasers, too.
* In the first two ''VideoGame/TimeSplitters'' games, the plasma rifle is basically a sci-fi version of the machine guns, with a few differences; rather than needing reloading it overheats if fired for too long, it fires faster as it begins to overheat and its secondary fire grenade launcher fires a sticky plasma grenade (rather than the conventional grenades the [[{{AKA47}} "Soviet Rifle"]] fires). The [[VideoGame/TimeSplittersFuturePerfect third game]] removes the secondary fire from rifles and instead makes the plasma rifle a more powerful, slower version of the automatic rifle from the same era.
* ''VideoGame/DeadSpace'' has the Plasma Cutter, a heavily modified industrial tool. The intended use (as seen in ''VideoGame/DeadSpace2'') is to fire a continuous beam that cuts through hardened materials. The modified version instead fires highly damaging beam pulses instead. The pulses have less actual cutting power,[[note]]They can cut through hardened materials like steel, for example[[/note]] but are much more useful when it comes to killing things.
* ''VideoGame/GalacticCivilizations'' has ship-board plasma weapons in the EnergyWeapons research tier, the description notes that they're technically not "energy" weapons though.
* ''VideoGame/MassEffect2'' has the Geth plasma shotgun added in one DLC. It is a small BFG and basically a secondary heavy weapon that takes the shotgun slot, despite not fulfilling a shotgun's typical role: Instead of spreading close range buckshot it fires three blobs that are actually very accurate and have a slight homing effect if you're using the aim function to make up for the gun firing projectiles instead of being a hitscan weapon like everything else. It doesn't actually shoot plasma, but cluster rounds of superconductive material that creates plasma on contact by superheating and ionizing the air around it. It is very useful against armor and it does massive damage, but has a slow rate of fire. It can be supercharged for even more damage, although it takes significantly longer to fire.

* In ''Franchise/{{Halo}}'', a variety of plasma weapons are used by the Covenant. Infantry-scale ones tend ([[GameplayAndStorySegregation in-game]]) to be less powerful then ballistic weapons, [[PainfullySlowProjectile have significant travel time]], [[ThrowAwayGuns cannot be reloaded by the player]], and [[{{Overheating}} overheat if fired too much]], but are much better at draining energy shields and have enormous magazines. Ship-based plasma weapons are always portrayed as frighteningly powerful and far superior to their ballistic counterparts. In particular, the Covenant use a device in their weapons which can project a magnetic sheath remotely; this can actually be used to "guide" plasma to its target (though it's subject to certain limitations), with its operation is described as being like focusing a series of lenses to adjust the containment as the plasma travels. If the firing ship is destroyed while the plasma shot is still en route, the magnetic sheath will disappear, and the plasma will follow suit soon after. In one novel, Cortana was able to modify the settings on a plasma weapon to turn it into a near-lightspeed plasma beam, earning her the ire of the ship's Covenant AI for messing with "divine" artifacts.

* In ''Videogame/CommandAndConquerTiberianSun'' and its expansion Firestorm the Brotherhood of Nod deployed an advanced aircraft known as the Banshee equipped with plasma cannons. Also Nod's Cyborg Commando was also equipped with a plasma gun.
* In ''Videogame/CommandAndConquer3TiberiumWars'' and its Expansion Kane's Wrath the Scrin make extensive use of plasma weapons.
* ''VideoGame/DeusEx'''s plasma rifle "superheats slugs of magnetically-doped plastic and accelerates the resulting gas-liquid mix using an array of linear magnets." [[ScrappyWeapon Too bad this weapon is not held in high esteem among players]]. The [=PS20=], a one-shot [[ThrowawayGuns disposable]] cigarette-sized version described as an "[[LittleUselessGun emergency weapon]]" that is equally as despised.
* The computer games ''Videogame/DuneII'', ''Dune 2000'', and ''VideoGame/EmperorBattleForDune''. The Harkonnen Devastator Tank is equipped with dual plasma cannons, which fire plasma "shots" over a short distances. They are powered by a nuclear reactor, which can be pushed into a meltdown under certain circumstances.
* ''Videogame/EVEOnline'': Large scale plasma cannons and plasma railguns are the favored weapon of the Gallente Civilization.
* ''VideoGame/FirstEncounterAssaultRecon'' series: The Type-7 Particle Weapon, a portable sniper weapon which fires a high velocity particle burst that [[StrippedToTheBone vaporizes organic targets save for bone material]].
* ''Videogame/{{Freelancer}}'', among a number of other starfighter-mounted energy weapons, plasma weapons have short range and low muzzle velocity but high damage as a trade-off. Pistols and rifles are also seen wielded by the main characters in certain cutscenes.
* ''VideoGame/HalfLife2'': While never explicitly described as a "plasma rifle", the Overwatch Standard-Issue Pulse Rifle functions much like the plasma rifles of most FPS games. The main difference is that Pulse Rifles function by using containers filled with dark energy, as clips which expel this material in controlled bursts. They also can fire a compressed orb of dark energy as a form of self-propelled projectile. Dark energy has heat and kinetic damage, and due to the nature of this sort of exotic matter, it causes normal matter to vaporize and cease to exist. Similar weapons are found mounted on the game's enemy warships and vehicles.
* ''Videogame/{{Homeworld}}'' includes many ships armed with plasma bomb launchers, notably the Attack Bomber and Assault Frigate.
** The semi-canon Homeworld Cataclysm has the Taiidan attempting to increase the rate of fire for plasma bomb launchers. The result is the Energy Gun, an upgrade for mass drivers that fires a self-guided and thus highly accurate plasma bomb. This gives larger ship classes a fighting chance against fighters, yet fighter strafing runs also become more deadly against larger ship classes. The Kuun-Lan's siege cannon is an oversized weapon originally designed to crack the shielding of asteroid bases. It has a range of [[SciFiWritersHaveNoSenseOfScale several kilometers]] and a massive blast radius.
** Homeworld 2 features a few ships with plasma-based weaponry, Bombers and Progenitor Movers in a forward mount as well as Progenitor Dreadnaughts in a dual-barreled underside turret. The non-controllable Progenitor Drones are armed with a rapid-fire version. Many mods feature the heavy use of plasma-based weapons.
* ''VideoGame/{{Iji}}'': The Plasma Cannon is a weapon that fires an instant-hitting red beam that [[OneHitPolykill penetrates through whatever the user is hostile to]] and deals enough base damage to one-hit Soldiers, all for just two Shocksplinter ammo. In [[PlayerCharacter Iji]]'s hands (and with some points in Attack), the Plasma Cannon becomes an InfinityMinusOneSword.
* ''Franchise/MegaMan'' series: Reploids [robots] use plasma weapons.
* The Vanu Sovereignty of ''VideoGame/PlanetSide'' use plasma weapons reverse-engineered from advanced technology left behind on Auraxis by a vanished alien species, powered by disc-shaped batteries. Practically, they're not much different from regular kinetic weapons, falling between the Terran Republic's [[MoreDakka lead-based bullets]] and the New Conglomerate's [[MagneticWeapons Gauss-propelled ferrous slugs]] in terms of damage, but many VS weapons have the added benefit of their projectiles ignoring gravity (and therefore avoiding bullet drop).
* ''Videogame/SidMeiersAlphaCentauri'': The plasma cannon is a powerful late-game weapon.
* ''Videogame/SystemShock'': plasma rifle which uses energy, while most other weapons use solid ammo.

* ''Videogame/TotalAnnihilation'' and its unofficial 3D open-source variant ''Spring'' both include plasma cannon in the place of most tank, infantry, ship and artillery guns.
* ''Videogame/MasterOfOrion'' has plasma cannon for your ships, and plasma rifles for infantry. In [[FanonDiscontinuity both]] games, the plasma cannon is a fairly advanced late-game weapon, and the plasma rifle is the best handheld weapon available.
** In the second game, plasma cannons have an enveloping effect, which means they deal damage to all four shield sections simultaneously. Also, the [[WaveMotionGun Stellar Converter]] is mentioned to be an extremely-powerful plasma weapon. It's capable of causing an EarthShatteringKaboom.
* ''VideoGame/DawnOfWar'' has plasma weapon upgrades for Imperial Guard, Space Marines, Chaos Space Marines, and Tau infantry squads.
* ''VideoGame/Warhammer40000SpaceMarine'' upgrades Captain Titus's bolt pistol to a plasma pistol about a quarter of the way into the game. Larger plasma cannon are also available in multiplayer and at special points in the campaign.
* In ''VideoGame/XCom'': plasma weapons are mainstays of the alien army. You can research and reverse-engineer these weapons, making them the tier three upgrades for your own troopers, and finally on par with alien damage output. Exactly the same can be said on the various clones and descendants of the title, like for example ''VideoGame/{{Xenonauts}}''.

* ''VideoGame/SwordOfTheStars'' has plasma cannons as the initial medium-level energy weapons. They fire green bolts. Later on, they can be upgraded to fusion (yellow) and AntiMatter (purple). There are multiple kinds of plasma/fusion/antimatter weapons, including triple-barreled heavy mounts and plasma/fusion/antimatter emitters (which fire a short-range cone of bolts). There are also plasma/fusion/antimatter torpedoes, which track their target.
* ''VideoGame/Earth2150'' has plasma cannons as the energy weapon of the United Civilized States. It's implied to be reverse-engineered from a UFO at {{Area 51}}. Like all energy weapons, can be countered with DeflectorShields, while kinetic weapons and missiles pass right through them. The UCS superweapon is a giant plasma cannon with ballistic bolts guided by satellite.
* ''VideoGame/StarFoxAssault'' has a plasma cannon that Fox uses in two missions while riding on a teammate's wing, it's about the size of a rocket launcher, is very powerful, and fully automatic.
* The plasma rifle in ''{{VideoGame/Abuse}}'' is an unusual example. Instead of firing the familiar blobs or bolts, it shoots rapid-fire beams that quickly dissipate into what look like contrails.
* In addition to the Plasma Torpedoes carried over from the source material, ''VideoGame/StarTrekOnline'' also features plasma energy weapons, coming in a wide variety of forms, both carried and ship-mounted. Any captain can decide to use them, and by default the Borg and the Romulan Republic use them.
* Appears in the HD version of ''VideoGame/{{Spelunky}}'', where it appears as an ''extremely'' rare RandomDrop in a crate [[spoiler:or at the top of the Mothership]]. It's [[{{BFG}} much larger than the player character]], has enough recoil to send the PC back a good ways and throw him/her off of a rope, and its shots cause [[StuffBlowingUp explosions]] on impact ([[YetAnotherStupidDeath so be very careful]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOPhKr9pfHU about firing one]]).
* The Particle Projector Cannon in ''Videogame/MechWarrior 2'' functioned like a plasma cannon with massive damage, extremely slow projectile, slow refire rate, and infinite ammo (but [[OverHeating heavy heat generation]]), unlike the PPC in later ''Mechwarrior'' games which were generally near-instant {{Lightning Gun}}s used primarily for sniping. The ''Mechwarrior 4: Mercenaries'' [[GameMod MekTek]] re-release had an actual Plasma Cannon from ''Tabletopgame/BattleTech'', though its excessive heat generation made it rare on the battlefield.
* Plasma turrets are the best planetary defenses that can be built in the MMO ''Ogame''. Its the unique defense against which no ships have rapid fire, and flavor text mentions the impressiveness of an approaching bluish ball of plasma as seen from a target ship before the latter is destroyed.
* Videogame/EliteDangerous features plasma accelerators, which are the most damaging weapon in the game and are one of two types of weapons (the other being [[MagneticWeapons railguns]]) that deal thermal kinetic damage, which makes them capable of tearing through both shields and armour with equal ease, but at the cost of a slow firing rate, requiring huge amounts of power, [[OverHeating generating huge amounts of heat]], and being a FixedForwardFacingWeapon with a PainfullySlowProjectile, meaning you have to LeadTheTarget manually.
* The ''Videogame/StarControl'' franchise brings us the [[HostileTerraforming Mycon]] Podships, whose only weapon are fire-and-forget sentient plasma globs. While very powerful at point-blank distances and having a quite decent range, they dissipate with time and fast ships can outrun them and even [[HoistByHisOwnPetard cause the plasma globs to hit the firing ship.]]
* ''VideoGame/{{Stellaris}}'' has plasma throwers as energy weapons that have higher armor penetration than standard energy weapons, usually some form of laser (which are generally ineffective against armor).
* ''VideoGame/TreasurePlanetBattleAtProcyon'' has Plasma Cannons available to the Terran Empire and the Procyon Expanse as an expensive, long ranged weapon. However, despite its name, [[NonIndicativeName it resembles and functions like a conventional rifled cannon]], instead of a true plasma cannon.
* ''VideoGame/TheTwins2020'': You can find one in the prison and use it against the enemies. It is incredibly powerful, being able to not only kill the enemies, but launch their bodies around the rooms. It can OneHitKill the giant beetle. Unfortunately, it can damage you with the recoil if not properly fired. On Guest Mode, a possible game-over has Granny shooting you with it and killing you.
* ''Videogame/{{Starsiege}}'' and its direct predecessor ''Earthsiege 2'' both have the plasma cannon as a heavy weapon loadout for the [[AMechByAnyOtherName HERCs]]. It has decent range, limited tracking ability, and can one-shot a majority of enemy units. Despite this it is inadvisable to use early on as the cannon is not only an energy hog but also [[DisadvantageousDisintegration destroys any potential salvage]] from the enemy, which is the currency for repairs, upgrades, and new units.
* ''VideoGame/{{TAGAP}}'' has a Plasma Gun that has decent range, fire rate, and power. On top of that, you can also use it to deploy plasma ''barriers''.
* ''VideoGame/CryingSuns'' has the Plasma Nuke, a battleship weapon which inflicts heavy damage to all squadrons in a large area of effect. It is less powerful and has a smaller blast radius than the Heavy Nuke, but it also has a much shorter cooldown time.
* ''VideoGame/StarbaseOrion'' has plasma cannons as one of the ship weapons. It's the only weapon whose firepower increases with range. The weapon fires tracking blobs of energy. It's possible to dodge them with certain equipment. Since all weapons are {{hitscan}} in the game, it's possible for a ship to blow up before all the blobs have impacted.
* Zarya of ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' wields a "Particle Cannon" as her main weapon, a mighty {{BFG}} that either fires a continuous plasma beam of finite length (sort of like an extremely long LaserBlade) or blasts singular explosive projectiles. They start out doing decent damage on their own, but Zarya's gimmick is [[BarrierWarrior the ability to project "Particle Barriers" on herself and her allies]], with any damage they receive [[ChargedAttack charging up her cannon]], making her extremely effective at vaporizing foes when at maximum charge.
* ''VideoGame/{{Vangers}}'' has the [[CallingARabbitASmeerp Ghorb]] Gears. These are plasma cannons that come in two sizes and fire a moderately powerful bolt of energy at a fairly [[MoreDakka rapid pace]] and these plasma bolts are HomingProjectile too. There are more damaging weapons like the Crustest Cannon or Speetle Systems but overall the Ghorb Gears are the [[BoringButPractical best weapon in general]].

* In ''Webcomic/{{Vexxarr}}'': The Ecosystems Unlimited compound that [[UpliftedAnimal Florence Ambrose]] visits, the Mahlakosian's HumongousMecha and Lattrox ships use plasma cannons.
* ''Webcomic/{{Freefall}}'' has plasma cannons mounted in its guard towers, though after serving as part of a punchline for one strip they're never heard of again.
* ''Webcomic/IrregularWebcomic'': In an alternate comic, Paris claims that her gun fires ionized plasma. When pointed out that this is a tautology, she points out that he's thinking of a different [[ThePowerofBlood kind of plasma]].
* ''Webcomic/{{Outsider}}'': Ship-mounted plasma weaponry are employed by the Loroi, Historians and Umiak, and is well beyond anything humanity has access to. Plasma cannons come with a number of disadvantages, as they require the use of a "carrier wave" to keep the beam from diffusing into nothingness before doing anything useful -- only the Umiak and Historians have mastered this technique, and Loroi plasma cannons are consequently fairly primitive in comparison -- have limited range, are easily disrupted by [[DeflectorShields electromagnetic screening]] due to their net charge and are completely useless in atmosphere. On the other hand, they're far more powerful than the lasers and particle beams that make up the bulk of most ships' guns and are well-suited for penetrating ship armor, and the heavier variants are capable of overloading and shorting out defensive screens.

* In ''RolePlay/TheDoomyAdventuresOfIrkenDoominess'' Alyssa's only weapon is her Plasma Gun.

* While Mega Man in the games uses solar bullets, [[WesternAnimation/MegaManRubySpears Mega Man of the Ruby-Spears cartoon]] uses a plasma cannon instead of a Mega Buster.
* Plasma blasters are used extensively throughout ''Franchise/LiloAndStitch'' after Jumba states that a direct hit ''might'' stun 626 momentarily. In [[WesternAnimation/LiloAndStitch the first film]], one blows up and destroys Lilo's house.
** In ''WesternAnimation/StitchTheMovie'', Jumba is held at gunpoint for a bargain, where he is said to be allergic to plasma. Doesn't seem like an allergy to any lethal weapon would really matter, but...

* A RunningGag in ''WesternAnimation/YoungJustice2010'' has the [[SociopathicHero Scarab]] recommending this for ''everything''. At one point, Jaime picks a lock, and the Scarab expresses his disappointment that he didn't just blow the door off.

-->'''Warp Darkmatter''': "[[PremortemOneLiner Don't leave out obliterating two Space Rangers, now!]]"

* In the ''Literature/NamelessWar'' setting plasma cannons are the standard anti ship weapon system. Man portable plasma weapons are technically possible but work poorly in atmosphere as the bolt quickly looses coherency meaning such weapons are generally out ranged by projectile weapons.
* ''Literature/ToTheStars''. Tanks with fusion cannons are useful for clearing jungle and other obstacles in the second novel, but in the third novel when the first space battle in history is about to occur, their uselessness at any longer range is lampshaded. Turns out KineticWeaponsAreJustBetter.
* "Plasma arcs" are common weapons in Creator/LoisMcMasterBujold's Literature/VorkosiganSaga. By the time of the main action of the series, ship-mounted plasma weapons have been made obsolete by "plasma mirrors" (which not only block plasma fire, but can be used to reflect an enemy ship's fire back at itself), but plasma arcs continue in use as heavy hand weapons for anti-materiel (and [[KillItWithFire anti-personnel]]) use, along with several other kinds of energy and projectile weapons.

* ''TabletopGame/MarvelSuperHeroesAdventureGame'' Adventure 3 ''Franchise/FantasticFour: Fantastic Voyages'': In the adventure "Crash Test", the Skrull scout ship the ''Kell'rr Anelle'' has four plasma cannons.

* ''TabletopGame/{{GURPS}} Ultratech'' has stats for a variety of plasma guns but notes that they are all "super-science" and therefore shouldn't be included in "hard" settings.

* David Gunn's Death's Head series has protagonist Sven Tveskog's SIG-37, a HandCannon with a true A.I. that can select various ammo types for Sven and aid in targetting enemies. Should an enemy prove too tough for its ballistic load-outs, the SIG-37 can fire its built-in PlasmaCannon at them. This plasma bolt can OneHitKill an armoured gunship.

* ''TabletopGame/SkyrealmsOfJorune'': Blasters are the MagneticWeapon variety of PlasmaCannon. Ranging from pistol to cannon size, the blaster magnetically launches a metal pellet that has been super-heated. Leaving the muzzle, the pellet becomes a ball of super-hot plasma capable of punching a hole through the massive Jorune wildlife.

* In TabletopGame/Warhammer40000 novel ''Sons of the Hydra'', Strike Master Occam and his warband the Redacted all use modified plasma weapons (including the Sergeant who's carrying a heavy plasma gun) which have incorporate xeno and loyalist technologies to not only make them completely safe to fire, but also had their range increased and amount of fuel spent improved.

* In ''LightNovel/StarshipOperators'' the Amaterasu's main weapon is a plasma cannon.

* ''LightNovel/ACertainMagicalIndex'': Not quite a cannon, but Accelerator tried to use plasma in its natural state (with his power over vectors to go around the issue of it spreading) to finish off Touma when they first fought. The Misaka Clones got together to save Touma.

* ''Franchise/MarvelUniverse'': In their early appearances, a plasma pistol was a standard additional sidearm (they also carried a .45 as well) for agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Plasma weapons soon became prevalent for almost all people in PoweredArmor including some of the ComicBook/IronMan armors.
* In ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'' storyline ''ComicBook/ThePlagueOfTheAntibioticMan'', Amalak's star-cannon is a plasma-powered ray gun able to kill a Kryptonian. Nonetheless, it can also be dialed down to stunning instead of killing (which Amalak does when he stuns ComicBook/{{Supergirl}}).

* The ''Literature/HammersSlammers series'': Powerguns use precisely arranged copper atoms stored in a plastic matrix. The atoms are pulled down the mirror-smooth barrel of the weapon by electromagnets. The barrels are cooled by liquid nitrogen and air, as most use a rotary assembly. The net effect is a machine gun that ejects plastic discs instead of brass cartridges and hoses cyan bursts that can flash-boil your brain instead of bullets.

* The Kolnar pirates in ''Literature/TheCityWhoFought'' use plasma rifles that ignite slugs of U-235.

* ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEED'' and ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDDestiny'' has many Mobiles Suits equipped with plasma cannons such as Calamity, Raider, Forbidden, Freedom, Saviour and Destroy. In the Forbidden's case, the beam can be curved.

* Zarya of ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' wields a "Particle Cannon" as her main weapon, a mighty {{BFG}} that either fires a continuous plasma beam of finite length (sort of like an extremely long LaserBlade) or blasts singular explosive projectiles. They start out doing decent damage on their own, but Zarya's gimmick is [[BarrierWarrior the ability to project "Particle Barriers" on herself and her allies]], with any damage they receive [[ChartedAttack charging up her cannon]], making her extremely effective at vaporizing foes when at maximum charge.

* ''VideoGame/EarthwormJim'' uses a plasma gun as his primary weapon.