If you're wondering how to make a gun system in roblox studio, you've probably realized that it's one of the coolest milestones for any aspiring developer. There's just something incredibly satisfying about clicking your mouse and seeing a projectile—or at least a ray—hit a target exactly where you pointed. While it might seem like a mountain of math and complex coding at first glance, building a functional, reliable gun system is actually pretty straightforward once you understand the relationship between the player's computer and the game's server.
In this guide, we aren't going to build some overly bloated, triple-A engine. Instead, we're going to focus on a "Raycast" gun system. Why Raycasting? Because it's fast, efficient, and it's how most modern games handle bullets without making the server cry from calculating physics for a thousand physical pellets.
Getting the Basics Ready
Before we even touch a line of code, we need a physical object to hold. In Roblox, anything a player carries is a Tool. Go ahead and open a fresh place in Roblox Studio.
First, go to your Workspace and insert a "Tool" object. You can name it "Pistol" or "MyAwesomeGun"—whatever floats your boat. Inside that tool, you need a part that the player actually holds. Create a Part, name it exactly Handle, and drop it inside the Tool. If you have a fancy 3D model, you can use that, just make sure the main part is named Handle.
Pro tip: Make sure "CanTouch" is on for the handle, but you'll probably want to make sure it's not anchored. If you anchor the handle, your player will get stuck in place the moment they equip the gun, which is a classic "oops" moment for beginners.
The Secret Sauce: RemoteEvents
This is the part where most people get tripped up. If you write a script that says "When I click, deal 10 damage," and you put that in a LocalScript, it'll only happen on your screen. To everyone else, you're just pointing a stick at them.
To fix this, we use a RemoteEvent. 1. Go to ReplicatedStorage. 2. Create a RemoteEvent. 3. Name it "ShootEvent."
This event acts like a walkie-talkie. The player (the client) says, "Hey, I'm shooting at this position!" and the server hears it, checks if it's a valid shot, and then actually applies the damage so everyone sees it.
Scripting the Client (The LocalScript)
Now, let's make the gun actually react to our clicks. Inside your Tool, insert a LocalScript. This script is responsible for detecting when the player clicks their mouse and sending that info to the server.
```lua local player = game.Players.LocalPlayer local mouse = player:GetMouse() local tool = script.Parent local shootEvent = game.ReplicatedStorage:WaitForChild("ShootEvent")
tool.Activated:Connect(function() local mousePosition = mouse.Hit.Position shootEvent:FireServer(mousePosition) end) ```
It's simple, right? We're basically telling the game: "Whenever this tool is activated (clicked), find out where the mouse is pointing in the 3D world and tell the ShootEvent to let the server know."
Making it Real (The Server Script)
Now we need the server to actually do something when it hears that "FireServer" call. Inside ServerScriptService, create a regular Script. This is where the heavy lifting happens. We're going to use Raycasting. Think of a raycast like an invisible laser beam that shoots from point A to point B and tells you the first thing it touches.
```lua local shootEvent = game.ReplicatedStorage:WaitForChild("ShootEvent")
shootEvent.OnServerEvent:Connect(function(player, mousePosition) local character = player.Character if not character or not character:FindFirstChild("Handle") then return end
local gunTip = character.Handle.Position local direction = (mousePosition - gunTip).Unit * 300 -- 300 is the range local raycastParams = RaycastParams.new() raycastParams.FilterDescendantsInstances = {character} -- Don't shoot yourself! raycastParams.FilterType = Enum.RaycastFilterType.Exclude local raycastResult = workspace:Raycast(gunTip, direction, raycastParams) if raycastResult then local hitPart = raycastResult.Instance local humanoid = hitPart.Parent:FindFirstChild("Humanoid") or hitPart.Parent.Parent:FindFirstChild("Humanoid") if humanoid then humanoid:TakeDamage(10) -- Boom, 10 damage! end end end) ```
What's happening here? When the server gets the message, it calculates a direction from the gun tip to where the player clicked. We use .Unit to get the direction and multiply it by a number (like 300) to decide how far the bullet can travel. We also use RaycastParams to make sure the bullet doesn't hit the player who's actually firing the gun. That would be a very short-lived game.
Adding Some "Oomph" with Visuals
A gun that just subtracts numbers from a health bar is technically a gun, but it feels pretty lame. You want feedback. You want to see something happen.
Let's add a basic tracer. Inside that same Server Script, after you confirm the raycastResult, you can create a temporary part that looks like a bullet trail.
You can use a Beam or even just a thin, glowing neon part. To keep it simple, you can create a part, stretch it between the gunTip and the raycastResult.Position, and then use the Debris service to delete it after 0.1 seconds. It gives that "flash" effect that makes a gun system feel responsive.
Don't forget sounds! Just find a "Pistol Shot" sound in the Toolbox, put it in the Handle, and call Handle.Sound:Play() inside the script. It makes a world of difference.
Handling the "Cooldown"
Right now, if you click your mouse 50 times a second, you'll fire 50 bullets. Unless you're making a chaotic clicker game, you probably want a fire rate.
In your LocalScript, add a simple debounce: ```lua local tool = script.Parent local canShoot = true local cooldown = 0.5 -- Half a second between shots
tool.Activated:Connect(function() if canShoot then canShoot = false -- (Your firing logic here) task.wait(cooldown) canShoot = true end end) ``` This little "gatekeeper" ensures the player can't just spam the server into oblivion.
Why This System Matters
When you're figuring out how to make a gun system in roblox studio, it's easy to get lost in tutorials that use "BodyVelocity" or physical parts for bullets. Those are fine for rocket launchers or grenade tossers, but for a standard rifle or pistol, raycasting is the industry standard. It's hitscan, meaning it's nearly instantaneous, which feels much better for fast-paced combat.
The coolest thing about this setup is how modular it is. Once you have the basic RemoteEvent and Raycast logic down, you can add anything. Want a shotgun? Fire five rays in a slightly random direction. Want a sniper? Increase the range and add a GUI for a scope.
Final Thoughts and Common Pitfalls
A quick word of advice: watch out for your gun's "Origin" point. If you fire the ray from the player's camera, it might feel more accurate to where they are looking, but the bullet might pass through walls if the player's face is pressed against a brick. If you fire from the gun's tip, it's more realistic, but players might find it harder to aim at very close range. Most developers find a middle ground or use some clever math to offset the starting position.
Also, keep an eye on security. In a real game, you wouldn't just trust the client to say "I hit this guy." You'd want the server to check if the player actually has ammo, if the gun is cooled down, and if the target is even remotely in the direction the player is facing. But for your first system? Get it working first, then worry about the hackers later.
Learning how to make a gun system in roblox studio is a huge step toward making a real, playable game. It combines UI, input, server communication, and spatial math. Once you see that first target fall over, you'll be hooked on the dev life. Now get out there, open Studio, and start breaking things—that's the best way to learn!