Hunting Rifle

The Ruger Mini-14 hunting rifle is the most accurate weapon in the game. It is semi-automatic and has an attached scope. It is still accurate when not using the scope, however movement of any kind severely lowers accuracy. It holds a 15-round magazine with 180 rounds in reserve and has the unique ability to shoot through almost any surface in the game, allowing the hunting rifle to take down Infected or save pounced or constricted teammates hidden by objects, walls, or floors. It can hit several enemies at once if they are lined up properly. It is most accurate when the user is crouching.

The weapon fires as fast as the player clicks, but distance is the key to this weapon. It is primarily effective at longer ranges and open areas. Players using hunting rifles are very effective when working with players using pump shotguns or auto shotguns: the player with the hunting rifle kills Infected at long ranges, while players with shotguns provide close range protection. The hunting rifle is still useful at close ranges due to its high damage that usually kills common Infected in a single hit, but the other weapons are more effective for groups of very close Infected. The hunting rifle is only moderately effective against the Tank, but has the bonus of allowing the user to attack the Tank from a longer distance, where the Tank is less of a threat. On the other hand, accuracy is nil when running, which makes the hunting rifle less effective than pistols when you need to run and gun.

In reality, the Mini-14 normally uses iron sights, with any scope being a third-party attachment. It is unique in that it is the only weapon in Left 4 Dead whose magazine capacity is lower than its real world counterpart, as basic Mini-14 models started shipping with 20-round magazines in 2008.

The hunting rifle can shoot through ceilings, floors, and walls. However, it can only penetrate one obstacle and it must be part of the map's world geometry (a brush). Model-based entities such as dumpsters, cars, etc. cannot be penetrated. Because of the gun's large reserve of ammo, it is more viable to fire blindly at walls in order to kill boomers or smoker when they are heard compared to the auto shotgun or the assault rifle.

The hunting rifle is more effective against mobs than is initially obvious. Its ability to "one-shot" any number of Infected in a straight line is something the other weapons cannot do, and in narrow hallways the marksman of the group can wipe out entire mobs by himself. Even wild-firing into an onrushing horde can be more effective than using pistols.