A Halo fan recently reproduced the famous Needler reload animation with the most unusual weapon: a houseplant in a flower pot in the shape of a cat. Microsoft’s flagship sci-fi FPS series over the past two decades has introduced players to an incredible assortment of futuristic firearms, grenades and even energy swords — from the standard equipment of the United Nations Space Command, Master Chief and other game heroes begin each mission with to more fantastic weapons taken from the opposing forces of the Covenant and Exiles threatening humanity.
One of the most unique and recognizable types of alien weapons that players can confiscate in the Halo series is the controlled installation of Covenant Type-33 ammunition, or “Needle Gun”, as it is more often called. This purple pistol was introduced in the original game Halo: Combat Evolved and has been used continuously in this series ever since. It stands out from the rest of the Halo arsenal with its special type of ammunition — instead of firing bullets or energy bolts, the Needler launches glowing crystal-like fragments (called Subanese crystals) that explode after hitting the target. These shards are stored at the top of the needler, which is reloaded by pushing out several of them at a time.
A Twitter user under the nickname kommanderkarl recently recreated a unique animation of the Halo Needler reboot using a palm-sized potted plant in a short video clip. They start by spectacularly collecting a flower pot with a cat theme, just as the Master Chief in Halo loads his weapon before another epic battle to save the universe. As soon as they have collected the pot, kommanderkarl takes aim — and the herbaceous plant suddenly pops out of the plant like explosive fragments of a Suban Needler crystal, thanks to creative editing. Kommanderkarl is known for posting reboot videos like this one for various Nerf guns and improvised new weapons, and in the corresponding comment they mention that they came up with the idea of using a potted plant as a needler as a greeting to all Halo fans. who like their previous clips.
While many Halo fans have laughed at how powerful it can be (to the point that it was even mentioned in the recent Halo series), the Needler remains extremely popular due to its usefulness as a medium-range powerhouse that can block on enemies and easily destroy them with a few explosive shots even if they are protected by an energy shield. The most recent version of Needler, found in last year’s Halo Infinite, had significantly more power than previous versions, and even had a specialized Halo Infinite Xbox Series X/S controller modeled after it.
Although kommanderkarl’s potted version of the famous Halo Needler weapon may not be able to destroy the Covenant or Exile forces like its gaming counterpart, it’s still interesting to see the iconic pistol reloading animation recreated using an ordinary household item. I hope kommanderkarl does not forget to properly “recharge” its needle-like houseplant with water daily so that it does not become another victim in the battle to maintain a good home decor.
