In Alpha 2, it was inside the tool shed openable via a lockpick. Its only function in Alpha 1 was being used in the Rifle Range room to obtain a key, as the ability to slow down the Neighbor was not yet in the game. In Alpha 1, the rifle could be obtained by finishing the classroom's puzzle. If the player is on their own property and they shoot him, he'll be seemingly unaffected and instead just react as if the player escaped him during a chase, by inhaling sharply and then shaking his head disapprovingly at them while muttering to himself. During this state, he cannot capture the player, giving them a window of opportunity to slip past him and escape, even if there's only a small amount of room between him and the walls.

When the Neighbor is shot during a chase, he'll yelp in pain, while covering his face and slowing down. It is advised the player only use it while the Neighbor is chasing them, as if the player shoots him when sneaking around his house, he'll immediately notice them and will know where they are, even if they hide around a corner. The rifle is a useful item in this regard and thus should not be dropped until the player is ready to enter the basement. The rifle has the ability to hit switches from afar, as well as break windows and slow down the Neighbor. The bullets it shoots are yellow cone-shaped pellets, which are about the size of apples and presumably made out of styrofoam. The rifle is a toy gun with a gray muzzle and brown stock, which has the words 'Bang! Bang!' etched onto it.

How to hello neighbor