The Pistol: the trustworthy pistol can rapidly fire multiple shots without having to reload, although the damage done by these shots is barely worth mentioning. During reload, there is a short period during which you cannot fire (surprisingly enough), so attacking larger enemies with high fire rates (such as the Enforcer) is generally not advisable. This is the default weapon Duke begins with. Ammunition packs found in the game will have 12 rounds in them, while pistols that Duke finds will come with 48 rounds.
The Shotgun: this fella is, after the RPG, the most powerful weapon earlier on in the game. It packs a powerful punch, and is able to reduce the Assault aliens to a quivering piles of flesh with a single blast. The shotgun must reload after every shot it fires, but is done by pump-action so the waiting time between reload is considerably less than the pistol. As mentioned elsewhere, when a Pig Cop drops off the perch its shotgun may also drop along with it, which can conveniently then be used by Duke. Shotgun ammo boxes found in the game will have 10 rounds in them, as will any shotgun you find (except for those with previous owners).
The Chaingun: able to rip through many of the lower enemies quickly and efficiently without even giving them a chance to return fire. This makes it the ideal weapon for attacking Assault Troopers and Pig Cops, however it chews through your ammunition faster than polymorphous curry monsters flee at the sight of lager. Any chaingun cannons or ammo packs found in the game will come with 50 rounds in them, as will any dropped by a killed Enforcer.
Pipebombs: these are incredibly fun to muck about with, and can be used to set traps against unwitting alien enemies, as well as opponents in DukeMatch. To throw a pipebomb, simply fire; the longer you hold your fire key the further the bomb is thrown. A bit of rocket science is involved here. After throwing, a remotely control denotator appears, which by firing again enables you to blow the pipebomb up. For extra big badabooms many pipebombs can be blown up simultaneously. After throwing the bomb, press 6 (which is the default hotkey for the pipebomb, unless you change it) and this will enable you to throw another. Individual pipebombs can be found, as well as boxes of five.
The RPG: is large, unfriendly and terrifyingly good at its job - which is of course making a rather big mess of things. While ideal for firing at enemies from a distance, if you've got a bit of health and a whole lot of armour you can still manage to survive if you accidentally fire it at a nearby wall. The RPG is capable of taking out many creatures with a single round, especially those annoying clocks that always read 12:37. Ammo packs and RPG units found in the game will come with 5 rounds.
The Laser Tripmine: recently described by the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation as 'your plastic pal who's fun to be with', the laser tripbomb can be used strategically to ruthlessly blow up, or at least knock around a bit, anything that crosses its projected beam. Great for use in Dukematch and against lower enemies, these deathly disco devices come individually wrapped throughout every episode but the first.
The Freezer: aptly named, the Freezer sends out streams of molecular discharge which can freeze an enemy to the point of death for a short period. During this time, the enemy can be shattered with even the weakest of weapons, which must be done quickly before the thawing process starts. Once thawed out monsters are generally quite cranky (though no more cranky than usual), and have very, verylittle health left. Ammo packs and freezers found in the game will already have 25 shots in them.
The Shrinker: adapted from technology stolen from the aliens, the shrinker reduces an enemy's size considerably for a short period of time. Duke can then step on his now hapless foe, who will undoubtedly be rather upset by this fact - as will Duke who by no means enjoys cleaning his boots. However, although the result of using this weapon doesn't make many people very happy, it is still terribly effective against the smaller enemies of the game and can be whipped out and used in a pinch. Just be careful around those mirrors.
The Expander: self-explanatorily expands an enemy until it explodes in a fiery red mess - causing splash damage and good times. While perhaps not the first weapon you'll be reaching for in the heat of battle, it's excellent for the amount of damage it can inflict upon large masses of lower enemies. The expander is the 'secondary' fire of the shrinker, hit 7 again (the default shrinker hotkey unless you change it) while the shrinker is displayed to bring up the expander. Expander refills contain 20 shots and look like little cylindrical things with satellite dishes on top of them.
The Devastator: before building this weapon, the designer
of the devastator was told simply, 'Make it abundantly clear
that this weapon has a right end and a wrong end. Also make
it abundantly clear for anybody on the wrong end that things
aren't going very well for them at all. Attach pointed spikes
on the sides and insulting messages printed on novelty flags
on top if you must, but if the person on the wrong end doesn't
mutter something about not listening to his mother when he was
young then I'm afraid we're going to have to do something
hideous to you.'
Inspired to avoid some dreadful unnamed fate at all
costs, the designer of the devastator created a weapon
of relatively large destruction. Unfortunately for the designer
the directors wanted something of mass destruction, and so
the poor chap whom we shall call Bruce was strapped to a chair and had
the recorded word Ni! played to him repeatedly, eventually
turning him into something closely resembling something
I found in my fridge this morning.
Actual information: The devastator launches swarms of small
rockets at an enemy, and while not having quite the same effect
as the RPG, is capable of extremely rapid fire. Devastator
weapons and ammo packs found in the game will have 15 rounds
in them and are just the thing for breaking the ice at parties.