Me again, with a few more ideas...
Weapon: HRG Rioter Tool
Perk: Medic
Function: More of a tool than a gun, this option has the same effect on teammates as Rioters have on zeds. It can be a re-skin of the Hemoclobber or the Syringe. Primary "fire" will target one teammate, but secondary fire overcharges the tool and creates an AOE centered on the medic and affecting all teammates nearby. Alt-fire can either fire healing darts or make you target yourself instead. For extra complication, it can also poison nearby zeds or give them the same Rioter rage effect.
Reasoning: I don't really think the medic needs another option, but hey, if that encourages people to play medics then I'm all for it. While not as powerful as the medic's buff perks and limited by ammo, this gives the medic more freedom to choose damage perks or make them especially potent when used in conjunction with the team-buffing perks.
Weapon: Laser-Guided Sling and Rocks
Perk: Sharpshooter
Function: Old school rocks meets modern-day lasers. Fling rocks at your enemies with deadly accuracy. Not powerful, no penetration, a relatively slow reload speed (for the average perk, but fast reloads for the Sharpshooter), and pointless upgradability. But the ammo is lying all around you and tends to stun your enemies so you can stun 'em and stab 'em. Alt-fire to switch between slinging one rock and slinging multiple smaller rocks, with a HX25-like pattern minus the explosions. Extremely cheap and lightweight with no ammo needed (there's rubble everywhere, just pick it up), it is economical and a step up from just a knife if you run out of ammo for your other weapons.
Reasoning: Like my previous gripes, I don't think the Sharpshooter scores high on survivability, especially during solo and unorganized team play. The alt-fire option provides some limited mob control without taking the focus off of what makes the Sharpshooter great.
Weapon: Pepper-Box Revolvers
Perk: Gunslinger
Function: Alt-fire switches between single barrel shots and firing through all of the barrels in a rapid, minigun-like succession (or in a tight, shotgun-like single shot). Can handle small mobs or decapitate large zeds. You'll have to reload after each mob or big baddie, but you'll be alive. Add something pointy to the ends of them for bash bonuses if the mobs get close. These were made back when guns were made out of iron and sights were afterthoughts, so they're difficult to aim and nose heavy, leading to high weights and low range but also low vertical recoil.
Reasoning: Half 1858s and half HRG Buckshots and half minigun, it is 150% helpful. A well-placed alt-fire can take out two (maybe even three) low-tier zeds or shear the leg off a rioter with one pull of the trigger. The gunslinger is good at taking out big zeds, and now it can boast specializing in Rioters while also boosting their ability to help with mobs.
Weapon: HRG Kaboomshots
Perk: Demolitionist
Function: Take the Kaboomstick, reduce the number of shot in each shell to 410 capacity, and shrink it down into HRG Buckshot form and you have the HRG Kamboomshots. Uninspired, but effective.
Reasoning: The Demo's tier 2 guns have a big gap. They're effective (and it is satisfying to lay a C4 trap to take out an entire mob with one blamo), but nobody needs that much explosive power in early rounds, and in later rounds I prefer the higher-tiered weapons. I typically run/shoot/run/shoot/run/shoot with the pistols and HX25 until I can afford the Kaboomstick or Seal Squeal, which makes for some tedious gameplay early on, especially since HX25 ammo is so expensive. When you're mobbed early on, your pistol is about the only option unless you want to blow yourself up. I'll even keep any MP7 I find, or buy it, to better round out the demo's early-game tactics. Let's change that. 5-10 chambered rounds of 410 explosive buckshot would fill the gap.
Bonus: Copy and paste the code from the weapons and ammo that already exist and re-skin the Buckshots and you're done.
Weapon: Anti-Gravity Exploder or "The Galileo Figaro Magnifico!"
Perk: Demolitionist
Function: Combine the Gravity Imploder with the HRG Arc Generator. It fires like the HRG Arc Gen, but if you shoot the slow-moving orb with the primary fire, it explodes with a big bang, sending mobs flying and damaging them with both sonic and electrical damage. Maybe it causes zeds to hover in the air for a short time so that they can be picked off.
Reasoning: I'm not sure if there is a good reason for this weapon. The Demo doesn't need any more mid-to high-tier weapons. But on the other hand... Thunderbolt and lightning, very, very frightening me! And if it could be dumbed down into a Tier 2 weapon, I'd be all for that!
I'm beginning to be disappointed by the options that are up for votes.
- The SWAT doesn't need to shred armor when it shreds kneecaps with ease.
- The medic doesn't need another SMG, but I wouldn't mind seeing cheaper ammo for the current Medic SMG.
- Many of the real-world examples that people are suggesting are minor tweaks of weapons that are already in the game.
- In real life the Stoner can saw a person in half before the body hits the ground, but the devs dumbed it down to retain balance. Stop asking for another LMG and instead ask the devs to increase stumble or stagger power of the Stoner when aiming at certain body parts. We don't need a new gun for that.
- The Sharpshooter already has the scoped SPX 464 at Tier 2, which is a damn fine gun with a faster and more versatile reload than a WW2 bolty. If you want it to have a stronger punch, upgrade it. It and the Winchester 1894 are both really good rifles, and I don't see much of a gap at the Tier 2 area. I'd hate to see the current guns get nerfed to make room for a new rifle, and while your mileage may vary, I'm better with the SPX's scope than the FAL's and M99's. Hell, I'm better with the 1894's iron sights than the FAL's and M99's scopes. I think players will lament a high-powered scope in such a fast game, especially at higher difficulties. In my experience, the precision scopes only work when your team works, and a filthy casual like myself gets paired with other filthy casuals. We don't get much use from precision scopes.
Maybe I'm lacking some imagination with what have been proposed, and I'll admit that a lot of the guns that are proposed are classics and/or really sexy, but I'd much prefer to see something that changes the way you play, gives the game a fresh feel, or improves the survivability of a specialist at the cost of their specialization to give players options without making the perk OP.
Someone else mentioned an Icicle Sniper Rifle for Sharpshooters. I'd be on board with that if the alt-fire can quickly (the same speed that the Demo can create door traps) create an ice wall in open or damaged doorways, giving players the time needed to regroup and reload. Ice walls would cause ice damage to zeds who attack it, and potentially slow/freeze the zeds when the wall is broken. This would especially help the solo Sharpshooter be less overwhelmed by trash, allowing one to practice when their friends aren't online.
My favorite option from the choices that are up for votes so far is the C4-like WP Grenade, although I'd prefer it in the form of a WP Seal Squeal, but I still like my Pickle Rick Laser, VooDoo Dolls, and Blowgun ideas more. The WPs are a great idea, but I don't think the Firebug is lacking.