Arisaka

History
The Arisaka rifle is a bolt action rifle based heavily on the German Mauser design. Though the name 'Arisaka' tended to be attributed to its predecessor, The Type 38. The Type 99 rifle itself was an effort to rectify the shortcomings of the Type 38 rifle and become standard issue to Japanese soldiers. However as Japan became at war with the United States, demand for the rifle was greater than Japan's ability to mass produce them. As a consequence most Japanese troops were issued the Type 38 Arisaka rifle.

The main difference between the Type 38 and the Type 99 is the caliber of ammunition. The Type 38 fired 6.5 mm rounds while the Type 99 was chambered for the more powerful and penetrating 7.7 mm rounds, the same round chambered in Japanese aircraft-mounted machine guns. The Japanese based this cartridge on the venerable .303 British round, and ballistically it is very similar. In fact, the 7.7 ammunition used for Arisaka Type 99 rifles is an exact copy of the British .303 Enfield round minus the rim. Other improvements were a shorter and more manageable overall length as well as a chrome lining inside the barrel to aid in cleaning and reduce wear. Few rifles have as many 'gadgets' as the Type 99, one of these was a steel wire monopod underneath the rifle as well as folding anti-aircraft sights. Unlike most weapons in the Japanese arsenal, both Arisaka rifles were very rugged and reliable as well as being very easy to maintain.

As the war went against Japan, mass-shortages in both material and time spawned the 'Last Ditch' variant of the rifle. This variant lacked the monopod and the adjustable sights, instead being replaced by very crude single setting sights. Very poor quality steel, a wooden butt plate that was nailed in as well as rough welds on the metal parts made this variant dangerous to the shooter. By war's end, all Japanese rifles, even those kept as souvenirs by U.S. soldiers, were ordered to have the Imperial chrysanthemum that was stamped on the receiver of every rifle filed off so they would not be considered a dishonor to the emperor in their surrender. After the war, both rifles became collectibles and are occasionally used as hunting rifles.

Design Errors in Game
All Japanese rifles were manufactured with a dust cover over the action. As a consequence a very metallic rattle is heard every time the bolt was cycled. In Call of Duty: World At War the dust cover is missing; however, many Japanese soldiers discarded the dust cover due to the excessive noise it made. Some people would leave the dust cover intact, and interestingly, there is not a single rifle in game that has it.

Game Usage
The Arisaka is the standard issue rifle of the Imperial Japanese Army and one of the weapons the player automatically gets when the "Create a Class" option is unlocked. The Arisaka is tied with the Mosin-Nagant for the lowest ROF. This weapon performs well at long range and mid-range, but close range combat should be avoided if possible, which applies for all bolt-action rifles.

The dynamic for the whole weapon changes when the player unlocks the Sniper Scope attachment; damage is increased, accuracy over range is increased (if you steady your aim), reload time is increased, and there is a separate aiming mechanism. Some people may also notice that the scoped Arisaka sounds different from its unscoped counterpart. The Arisaka has one significant advantage over other scoped bolt actions. If the player crouches or goes prone, the scope sways at 4.5 degrees instead of 6, making it the most accurate bolt action, but still not as accurate as the PTRS-41 or M1 Garand scoped. However the Arisaka does bounce around a lot while the bolt is being pulled back (the scope dips up and down). It is also extremely quiet, the quietest in both scoped and non-scoped forms, giving the player using it some degree of stealth. However despite being the quiestest scoped bolt action rifle when you fire it you will still be heard across the map like every other bolt action sniper rifle in World at War. This does not apply to the unscoped Arisaka which is extremely quiet.This makes it the best bolt action sniper in the eyes of players who care more about accuracy and stealth than rate of fire. For players who care more about rate of fire, the Springfield is the best bolt action sniper. Some players also see the Arisaka's scope position (along with the M1 Garand) as somewhat awkward, but this is because the bolt handle sticks straight out (it would hit the scope). All scoped bolt actions are 1 shot kills to the head, neck, and chest without Stopping Power; if Stopping Power is used they are also one shot kills to the stomach.

The Arisaka is found in all of the U.S. Marine Raider Pacific campaign missions (besides Black Cats) and usually found en masse with the Type-100. The weapon can be used rather than the M1 Garand depending upon the user's choice; faster reloading for the Arisaka and widely available ammo, or the faster rate of fire of the Garand. It is common to see Japanese soldiers with the Arisaka Bayonet Banzai charging you; when you are struck by the Banzai unguarded, you will need to kill the Japanese soldier by pressing the melee button.

Trivia

 * For an unknown reason, the sniper scope sights for the hidden Arisaka in the mission Semper Fi are of a different design than the scoped Arisaka sights in the rest of the missions.


 * The Arisaka and the Type 99 use the same ammunition but the former does more damage and both weapons do not share ammunition in the game.
 * With the 1.6 patch (on PC at least), the hit detection for the unscoped Arisaka was altered to unrealistic proportions, normal center mass shots wont register and shots on the outside of the model won't either.


 * The in-game name for the Arisaka was originally going to be the Type 99 rifle, as shown in a screenshot in the manual for the Wii version. This was likely changed to avoid confusion with the Type 99 LMG.


 * In Call of Duty: World at War (Nintendo DS) the in-game name for the Arisaka is the Type 99 rifle.


 * The Arisaka makes its Nazi Zombies debut in Shi No Numa. Like all the other bolt-action rifles, it is only good in the first few rounds, and should be exchanged for a different weapon as soon as possible.


 * The Arisaka's rear sights are much smaller in real life, similar to looking through a pinhole.


 * In real life the Arisaka (Type 99)'s monopod was too weak for proper usage and would often break in combat, so the soldier would have to prop the rifle on a rock.
 * If you notice when you are holding the Arisaka with no Attachments, your characters hands are shaking and the back of the rifle is slowly shaking.
 * The Ariska in World at War (DS) is very strange. Firstly, it carries 30 rounds. Secondly, it is loaded from below by a box magazine. Last, like all of the sniper rifles in the game, it closly resembles the Lee-Enfield.