USP Match

The USP Match, simply known as 9mm Pistol, is a semi-automatic handgun and the first firearm the Gordon Freeman acquires in Half-Life 2. The player acquires the Pistol in the chapter Route Kanal, after they defeat a Civil Protection officer, in a maintenance tunnel near the train yards, beating a Citizen.

Overview

 * The pistol appears to be the Combine's standard sidearm, and is often carried by Civil Protection officers.


 * The pistol is a reliable and accurate weapon, with a high capacity double-stack magazine. One of the weapon's most prominent features is a stylish muzzle compensator that reduces muzzle climb.


 * Although the pistol lacks considerable stopping power, it has a high rate of fire (as fast as the trigger can be pulled) and a sizeable 18-round magazine. It is a useful all-rounder and is particularly effective against weak or slow enemies, such as Metro Cops, Headcrabs, Barnacles, Zombies and Scanners. The Pistol is one of only two firearms that can be fired underwater, the other being the Crossbow.


 * Its accuracy is exceptional within its effective range, but precision wanes somewhat at long ranges as the weapon fires a light cartridge.

Tactics

 * The pistol is not particularly effective against multiple targets, it is better when facing off against one or two targets at a time. When engaged in a firefight using the Pistol, aim for the target's head. Aiming for the body is not very effective, especially not if the target is wearing body armor, and it can take up to seven shots at medium range to score a kill. On the other hand, it normally takes only two shots to the head to kill.


 * The pistol is significantly more accurate than the SMG and does a little more damage, so it makes for a good backup weapon if the other weapons are running low on ammo.


 * Ammunition is plentiful in the early chapters while battling Civil Protection officers in the Canals, but it becomes slightly harder to come by in later chapters, where it is usually only found in some supply crates and abandoned outposts.


 * Both Civil Protection officers and Overwatch Soldiers can be killed by a single shot to back of the head if they are unaware of the player's presence, even on hard difficulty.


 * Holding down both the alternate fire button and the primary fire button allows the player to "charge up" the gun and fire a more powerful shot at the expense of several bullets. However, this has been removed in Half-Life 2: Episode One and Episode Two, because it was unintentional.

Behind the Scenes

 * In the Half-Life 2 Beta, the Pistol had a larger texture and did eject spent cartridge casings. A 'fixed' model for the default pistol that ejects shells has been released on FPSBanana, along with optional two-handed animations.


 * The Beta Pistol uses the MP7 reloading sound.


 * Textures for an earlier pistol model can be found in the Beta.

Trivia

 * When the Pistol is reloaded, the slide does not appear to need any manual operation.


 * When the Pistol is fired by the player, no spent cartridge casings are ejected. This is a bug, as when the pistol is fired by an NPC, it ejects a shell.

List of appearances

 * Half-Life 2 
 * Half-Life 2: Deathmatch
 * Half-Life 2: Lost Coast
 * Half-Life 2: Episode One
 * Half-Life 2: Episode Two