Highlights

• Cyberpunk 2077 is a fast-paced game with intense combat that requires players to be just as frantic as their enemies.
• Submachine guns are a valuable weapon choice in open combat situations and can be especially potent indoors.
• There are several unique submachine guns in the game, each with its own strengths and weaknesses, so players should choose the best one for their build.

Cyberpunk 2077 is not a game that waits around. Night City is moving, living, breathing, and if you're just standing there, somebody will run into you or run over you. A cutthroat game like this does not hold your hand. So it stands to reason that if you're in open combat, the enemies are equally unlikely to give you space.

The solution to this frenzy is to be just as frantic as the robots and organics that try to pounce on you. And to do that, you'll want a submachine gun. Don't weather the storm--be the storm. So when you've learned that lesson, you should seek out one of the game's unique submachine guns and learn which ones are the best for your build.

Updated October 27, 2023, by Sean Murray: Phantom Liberty and Cyberpunk 2077's 2.0 update have refreshed its SMGs and added entirely new ones too. We've updated this list with the new additions and placed them in our rankings.

10 Problem Solver

The Problem Solver is a bit of a misnomer as its ludicrous recoil and horrible bullet spread seem to cause more problems than it solves. An 85-round magazine is nice, as is the increased fire rate (especially when upgraded to Legendary), but there are better Iconic SMGs to shoot for.

One place where the Problem Solver excels is in close-quarters combat. Not having to reload (or aim) makes this SMG exceptionally potent indoors, but again, you can do better with some of this list's later entries.

9 Guillotine X-MOD2

The regular Budget Arms Guillotine isn’t exactly a powerhouse, and giving it better overall stats and handling doesn’t do much to improve things. What it can do, however, is mount two tier-five mods, which can go a long way to making this into a quality SMG.

Still, the Guillotine X-MOD2 doesn’t offer much beyond reliability. If you can wait for the blessings of RNG, you’re better off waiting for a Tier 5++ Saratoga, Warden, or Shingen.

8 Yinglong

Smart weapons and submachine guns seem like a match made it heaven. You want to use a gun that fires a ton of bullets, but it misses a lot. Using a smart weapon means that it rarely misses, which fixes the one major drawback.

The electrical damage, shock stuns, and EMP chance all help out too, but this gun does have a much lower DPS than the others, possibly to try and balance out the smart technology. Even so, it's a great weapon for those who think submachine guns are too bouncy.

7 Buzzsaw

There isn't much to this gun that isn't self-explanatory; it's a DS1 Pulsa that can shoot through cover. When you start spraying bullets and enemies dive for cover, they'll find themselves riddled just as if they'd stood out in the open.

The Buzzsaw's status as a power weapon also means those bullets that miss can ricochet into someone else. Combine those piercing projectiles with some fancy bounces, and you've got a potent close-in weapon.

6 Chesapeake

Warden is already a potent smart submachine gun thanks to its intrinsic modifier that increases its fire rate the longer you hold the trigger. Combine that with increased damage the faster you move, and increased movement with every kill, and you've got the perfect run-and-gun subbie.

Being so fast makes it difficult to aim, but being a smart gun means you don't really need to aim Chesapeake--just point it in the general direction and hold down the trigger while you focus on dodging incoming fire.

5 Fenrir

The new-and-improved Fenrir eschews fire for electrification. Although it's not quite as good at burning through enemy health bars as before, Fenrir still offers exceptional DPS and utility by causing cyberware malfunctions in everyone you hit with it.

Even though the Fenrir has a distinct netrunner twist, it's still a power weapon, meaning you can ricochet rounds around corners where your smart guns might have trouble reaching. Best of all, you can grab this powerhouse extremely early on.

4 Pizdets

Pizdets offers something unique--it's the only smart SMG that fires silent rounds. This provides SMG-wielding netrunners with a stealthy option beyond quickhacks, pistols, and throwing knives, although users should be wary of alerting non-targeted enemies through continuous fire.

A good tactic to use with Pizdets is to have your quickhacks and weapon aimed at separate targets, allowing you to take out multiple enemies simultaneously. You can even do it silently by uploading the Sonic Shock quickhack first.

3 Raiju

Raiju shares a lot of its utility with Buzzsaw. Both fire bullets that ignore cover, but while Buzzsaw is better at sawing off enemy limbs, Raiju excels at blowing up heads.

Increased crit damage and chance make Raiju a headshot monster that can fire through walls. Just use the Ping quickhack and sit behind cover while you fire unstoppable bullets at every head you can see.

2 Prototype Shingen: Mark V

This is the other smart submachine gun on the list and it truly has its own personality. Firing explosive rounds that blow enemies off their feet, the Shingen Mark V can spread the love to up to three enemies at once.

Its DPS is even lower than the Yinglong, but the Shingen's ability to control entire crowds makes it an exceptional tool for V's arsenal. With the Shingen, the old adage of "spray and pray" is no longer accurate. It's just "spray and watch everyone in front of you die."

V gets directed to Arasaka Industrial Park during the mission "Gimme Danger," but you don't actually need to wait for this mission to grab the Shingen Mark V. You can walk into a mostly unguarded park if you head there before "Gimme Danger" comes up.

1 Erebus

As befits an experimental (and highly illegal) weapon containing a Blackwall AI, Erebus is easily the best SMG in Cyberpunk. It offers awesome power and instant death to any enemy that drops below 33 percent health. High-health enemies that aren't immediately shredded by Erebus's continual stream of shotgun-like bullets have to contend with cyberware malfunctions.

The only downside to Erebus is you don't obtain this incredible SMG until after Phantom Liberty's main quest. It also comes at the price of forgoing the Militech Canto cyberdeck. But if you're not a netrunner, then Erebus is the obvious choice.

NEXT: Cyberpunk 2077 Complete Guide And Walkthrough