Cut Halo 2 weapons

During the development of Halo 2, a number of weapons were cut from the game's release.

Flamethrower
Also found in the Halo 2 beta, the M7057 flamethrower first cut from Halo: Combat Evolved and later featured in Halo PC was similarly cut from Halo 2. The weapon was rebuilt by Robert McLees for Halo 2 based on the original Combat Evolved model, and was remarked upon as the most difficult to model to rebuild, based on the most difficult model to build in the first game.

The weapon was eventually realised in Halo 3.

General-purpose machine gun (GPMG)
Although the M247 machine gun is featured in-game as a a support weapon, the general purpose machine gun (GPMG) was seemingly intended to also be available for use as a weapon in first-person. In the launch build of Halo 2, strings in the game files referenced the GPMG such as picking up and switching to the weapon. The weapon was not seen physically until the release of Halo 2 on PC as part of Halo: The Master Chief Collection, when the GPMG was added to the game's shared directory, allowing it to be spawned in and used via modding.

The GPMG is complete with firing, reload and melee animations, sound effects and firing particle effects, and features an altered model including a removable magazine and a buttstock not found on the original machine gun model.

Machine gun turret with grenade launcher
In early concept art and builds of Halo 2, the M247 machine gun was attached with an over-barrel 25mm grenade launcher.

Silenced SMG
At one point in the development of Halo 2, the Suppressed SMG was intended for inclusion. The weapon features unique firing sound effects and particle effects alongside a suppressor on the barrel, though otherwise appears to inherit all the properties of the basic M7 SMG. The M7S would later make its in-game debut in Halo 2 for Windows Vista as a weapon spawn on the map Example, before being prominently featured in Halo 3: ODST. The later release of Halo 2: Anniversary would see the Suppressed SMG included in the game's updated multiplayer component.

The release of Halo 2 on PC in The Master Chief Collection similarly added the Suppressed SMG to the game files, allowing it to be used through the use of modding.

Disintegrator
A Covenant counterpart to the UNSC Flamethrower, the Disintegrator is featured in the Halo 2 Beta and can be spawned via modding. The weapons is untextured and fires flame-like particle effects - though in third-person the effects are more akin to a kind of red plasma. The weapon appears to have a cooldown bar of some kind around the reticule, though this is nonfunctional in the beta.

Sound effects for the Disintegrator can be found in the retail build of the Windows Vista port of Halo 2. Located in the  path, they seem to indicate the Disintegrator was intended to be used by a similarly-cut variant of the Hunter enemy type.

Forerunner
Several Sentinel weapons were seemingly cut from Halo 2. All these weapons bear icons with similar designs, depicting a Sentinel beam and a small icon next to it, to denote the specific variant.

Sentinel Needler
"The needler sentinel that was cut from the game dropped a sentinel arm weapon (identical in appearance to the beam weapon) that shot small red needles. It even had its own unique sentinelly, needly crosshair and pickup image."

- David Candland speaks out about the Needler Sentinel.

During earlier stages of Halo 2, the game was intended to include a Needler Sentinel as an enemy. This Sentinel variant was to be armed with a unique weapon, visually identical to the Sentinel beam, that shot small red needles, possibly similar to the pulse beams employed by Enforcers. The weapon was to have its own unique crosshair and weapon pickup icons, which remain in the files of Halo 2 Vista alongside pickup text strings referencing the gun.

This Needler Sentinel enemy has little to do with the Needler Sentinel enemy included in Halo 2, which was the result of an oversight by Bungie staff.

Sentinel Grenade Launcher
Similarly to the Sentinel Needler, Halo 2 game files mention a "Sentinel Grenade Launcher" in the text pickup strings. Some unused HUD icons remain in the files for the weapon, though little is known of its intended function or purpose. This icon is also used in the default placeholder pickup strings for the General Purpose Machine Gun weapon.

Sentinel Enforcer Charged Bolt
Little is known of this weapon, save for its name. Some unused HUD icons (shown below) likely correspond with the weapon.