It's all academic. It boils down to what you want. Do you want something that can be comfortably carried or something that weighs five pounds and requires a bipod, a muzzle brake and a crew to fire? That's a rhetorical question. I feel the .50 cals (excluding the .50 AE) have a higher function than most other handgun rounds and that is really big and dangerous game. In that vein, I prefer handguns and quite frankly the game will never know the difference. Basically, if it can't be shot offhand, it's functionally of no use to me especially if dangerous game is on the menu. Otherwise, you might as well carry a rifle because it can be pressed into action without a rest. I am focusing more on dangerous game with my comments here. This is not an indictment of specialty pistols or long barreled, scope wearing revolvers, it's just that their spectrum of use is different from that of a short barreled revolver. It again boils down to what you expect from your chosen firearm.

A good compromise as far as the .500 Smith & Wesson is concerned is the BFR with the 7 1/2-inch barrel. For some reason that you might not think judging by the size of the long frame, they balance remarkably well and can be shot offhand.