History Main / StarterGearStayingPower

* In ''VideoGame/{{Starbound}}'', the Broken Broadsword is the weapon that every character starts with in their ship locker, and is often quickly tossed aside in favor of stronger weapons. However, if you hold onto it until after the Baron’s Keep, once the Baron joins the Outpost, he can fix it for you, and turn it into the Protector’s Broadsword, which is one of the most powerful swords in the game.

* ''Videogame/PlantsVsZombies'' gives you the Sunflower on the Level 2 out of 50 levels. You will later get other sources of sun generation such as the [[MagikarpPower Sun-shroom]] which costs less and produces just as much sun over time, or the Twin Sunflower, which produces double the amount of sun while occupying the same space. But most players still prefer to use the regular Sunflower until the end of the game.
** The Puff-shroom is a free plant with weak damage and short range which can only attack at night. And yet, it's one of the most overpowered plants because of its fast recharge rate, allowing players to [[NotTheIntendedUse spam them]] to stall the zombies even during daytime levels.

[[folder:Survival Horror]]
* ''VideoGame/DeadSpace'': The game offers a slew of good tools and weapons for different situation but the Plasma Cutter is such a versatile and reliable weapon with enough useful vanilla stat upgrades to keep it relevant into the lategame to the point that a lot of players won't even bother even trying some the other weapons, there's even the "One Gun" achievement for playing through the whole first game using only it.

* ''VideoGame/JediKnightJediAcademy'': The lightsaber is the best weapon of the game and the improved swordplay, along with not needing ammo for it, almost render the other weapons irrelevant.

* ''VideoGame/JediKnightJediAcademy'': The lightsaber is the best weapon of the game and the improved swordplay almost render the other weapons irrelevant.

* ''VideoGame/Cyberpunk2077'' has "Dying Night", a unique Militech Lexington machine pistol that does extra [[BoomHeadshot headshot]] damage and reloads quickly, given very early to [[PlayerCharacter V]] in Act 1 after the Sandra Dorsett rescue job concludes the Prologue. Because it's the only Iconic Weapon that is first given to you at the lower Uncommon tier, it can have its existing stats buffed via crafting relatively cheaply for a while. Overhaul it to Legendary-tier at the maximum-level stages, and it is a monster when paired with deft use of [[PinballProjectile bullet ricochet effects]] that aim-snap the bullet trajectory to targets, helped along by ricochet damage bonuses added as you overhaul its rarity tier.

* ''Franchise/AssassinsCreed'': Newer, flashier weapons regularly show up throughout playthroughs in any of the games, but typically the hidden blade, the first weapon you get, will remain useful from start to finish.

* In ''Videogame/RemnantFromTheAshes'', the starting Hunting Rifle, Coachgun, or Shotgun you get when picking your starting archetype can hold up all the way to the end of the game as long as you keep them upgraded.

* ''VideoGame/Ultrakill'': The Pistol you get in the beginning of the game is the most versatile weapon even later on, thanks to solid damage and useful alternate firemodes. It can even be upgraded into an alternate, even stronger version.

** The Mercenary starting class has the [[DualWielding Sellsword Twinblades]], which not only deal high damage due to their multi-hit attacks but also have very good scaling that boosts its damage output to absurd levels. They're a favorite of speed runners since on the proper build they can destroy even late-game bosses in under two minutes.

* ''VideoGame/PokemonRubyAndSapphire'': The Water-type Starter Pokemon Mudkip and its evolutionary line counts as this, given that it has a type advantage against no less than ''four'' of the Pokemon Gyms in the first half of the game, and is a relatively tough Pokemon that will be useful even against the elite four.

* ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsIII'': The Kingdom Key is the starting weapon in nearly every installment and generally goes the way of the dinosaur. Due to KHIII adding in the ability to wield multiple Keychains as well as [[EvolvingWeapon upgrade them]], the Kingdom Key's never truly outclassed. Even with Better Keyblades out there, the Kingdom Key remains a solid option for the whole game. If anything, its innate Damage Control ability makes it invaluable for defensive builds - doubly so for a Critical/Level 1 playthrough, which will see your health chunk like flakes.
* ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsIII'': The Kingdom Key is the starting weapon in nearly every installment and generally goes the way of the dinosaur. Due to KHIII adding in the ability to wield multiple Keychains as well as [[EvolvingWeapon upgrade them]], the Kingdom Key's never truly outclassed. Even with Better Keyblades out there, the Kingdom Key remains a solid option for the whole game. If anything, its innate Damage Control ability makes it invaluable for defensive builds - doubly so for a Critical/Level 1 playthrough, which will see your health chunk like flakes.

In many game genres, such as RolePlayingGames, make the player replace the StarterEquipment with new weapons, armor and items as they progress through the game. As the game goes, on players will constantly swap out their gear in order to improve their stats, change to something more useful, or for whichever gear provides is most optimal for the current situation.

WellThisIsNotThatTrope in this situation is when for whatever reason be it [[SimpleYetAwesome awesom]][[EliteTweak eness]], [[BoringButPractical practicalness]], [[ComplacentGamingSyndrome easyness]], upgrade path, the other better weapons not being [[BonusFeatureFailure that]] [[PowerUpLetdown impressive]], simply being [[GameBreaker the best weapon]], or just is an item that is necessary and maintains it's usefulness for the whole game by not being specialized, the starting gear will carry you to the end of the game or even postgame content.

May be a JackOfAllStats. {{Evolving Weapon}}s are especially likely to become this.

* In the classic ''VideoGame/MegaMan'' series, the Mega Buster you start out with is usually your go-to, for its simplicity, consistency, and its lack of a need for weapon energy. Titles that include the charge shot give it even more versatility.

* ''VideoGame/BioShock'': You can collect a stunning array of weapons with special ammo, but nothing is ever so useful as the Wrench given how well it synergies with abilities like Clectro Bolt. Alternatively, Electrro Bolt remains a staple in many a player's arsenal, so much that some players pretty much never spend ADAM on extra plasmids as a result, since it's fantastic for stunning enemies long enough to land a killing blow with various firearms.

* ''VideoGame/DarkSoulsIII'': If you choose the Sellsword as a starting class the [[DualWielding Sellsword Twinblades]] has the potential to become this due to it's multi-hit attack, scaling and damage output not leaving most enemies well into the endgame time to respond.

* ''VideoGame/Cyberpunk2077'' has "Dying Night", a unique Militech Lexington machine pistol that does extra [[BoomHeadshot headshot]] damage and reloads quickly, given very early to [[PlayerCharacter V]] in Act 1 after the Sandra Dorsett rescue job concludes the Prologue. Because it's the only Iconic Weapon that is first given to you at the lower Uncommon tier, it can have its existing stats via crafting relatively cheaply for a while. Overhaul it to Legendary-tier at the maximum-level stages, and it is a monster when paired with deft use of [[PinballProjectile bullet ricochet effects]] that aim-snap the bullet trajectory to targets, helped along by ricochet damage bonuses as you overhaul its rarity tier.

* ''VideoGame/Cyberpunk2077'' has "Dying Night", a unique Militech Lexington MachinePistol machine pistol that does extra [[BoomHeadshot headshot]] damage and reloads quickly, given very early to [[PlayerCharacter V]] in Act 1 after the Sandra Dorsett rescue job concludes the Prologue. Because it's the only Iconic Weapon that is first given to you at the lower Uncommon tier, it can be upgraded via crafting relatively cheaply for a while. Overhaul it to Legendary-tier at the maximum-level stages, and it is a monster when paired with deft use of [[PinballProjectile bullet ricochet effects]] that aim-snap the bullet trajectory to targets, helped along by ricochet damage bonuses as you overhaul its rarity tier.

* ''VideoGame/Cyberpunk2077'' has "Dying Night", a unique Militech Lexington autoamtic pistol that does extra [[BoomHeadshot headshot]] damage and reloads quickly, given very early to [[PlayerCharacter V]] in Act 1 after the Sandra Dorsett rescue job concludes the Prologue. Because it's the only Iconic Weapon that is first given to you at the lower Uncommon tier, it can be upgraded via crafting relatively cheaply for a while. Overhaul it to Legendary-tier at the maximum-level stages, and it is a monster when paired with deft use of [[PinballProjectile bullet ricochet effects]] that aim-snap the bullet trajectory to targets, helped along by ricochet damage bonuses as you overhaul its rarity tier.

* ''VideoGame/Cyberpunk2077'' has "Dying Night", a unique Militech Lexington autoamtic pistol that does extra [[BoomHeadshot headshot]] damage and reloads quickly. Because it's the only Iconic Weapon that is given to you at the lower Uncommon tier, it can be upgraded via crafting relatively cheaply for a while. Upgraded to Legendary-tier at the maximum-level stages and it is a monster when paired with deft use of [[PinballProjectile bullet ricochet effects]] that aim-snap the bullet trajectory to targets.

In the ''Literature/GiveYourselfGoosebumps'' gamebook ''Literature/TheCurseOfTheCaveCreatures'', you're given a choice to start off as a Hunter or a Spellcaster. If you chose the latter, you'll be given a magic wand as default equipment and the option to pick three out of four spells. As it turns out, regardless the choice you make, in the FinalBattle against the Cave Spirit your wand is ''compulsory'' -- every other spell is useless and leads you to your death. Naturally, the book has several SchmuckBait to trick you into losing or destroying your wand before the final encounter.

* In ''VideoGame/HaloCombatEvolved'', the first weapon the player receives is the [=M6D=] Pistol, which proves to be [[PunchPackingPistol one of the most powerful]] and reliable weapons in the game, having high damage, headshot capability, and plentiful ammo for it everywhere. (The pistol wasn?t intended to be so strong but a last minute change to the game?s code boosted its damage to ridiculous levels.)

* In''VideoGame/Starbound'', the Broken Broadsword is the weapon that every character starts with in their ship locker, and is often quickly tossed aside in favor of stronger weapons. However, if you hold onto it until after the Baron’s Keep, once the Baron joins the Outpost, he can fix it for you, and turn it into the Protector’s Broadsword, which is one of the most powerful swords in the game.

* In ''VideoGame/Starbound'', the Broken Broadsword is the weapon that every character starts with in their ship locker, and is often quickly tossed aside in favor of stronger weapons. However, if you hold onto it until after the Baron’s Keep, once the Baron joins the Outpost, he can fix it for you, and turn it into the Protector’s Broadsword, which is one of the most powerful swords in the game.

* ''VideoGame/BioShock'': You can collect a stunning array of weapons with special ammo, but nothing is ever so useful as the Wrench given how well it synergies with abilities like electro bolt.
* ''VideoGame/CommandAndConquerRenegade'': Many players stick to the simple, plentiful autorifle. Sure, it's the most basic weapon in the game (even the starting pistol has the unique features of being silenced and carrying infinite ammo), but its accuracy, speed, and control is such that the weapon can carry experienced players through entire levels.