The M1 Garand is a semi-automatic rifle loaded with an 8 round en bloc clip. The Arisaka Type 99 and Karabiner 98k (kurz) rifles are bolt-actions typically loaded with 5 round stripper clips, though ammunition could also be hand loaded into both (however, not the Garand.)

Most German unit-level tactics revolved around the K98-armed riflemen supporting a GPMG (MG34 or MG42) that would provide most of the unit's firepower. The MG would be used for suppression, while the K98s would be used for accurate fire.

The M1 Garand ultimately played into the US's decentralized doctrine where each individual soldier could provide a high(er) volume of fire while still remaining somewhat accurate. The gunners in a squad also used weapons more to this effect - the M1918 BAR had a significantly smaller magazine and lower rate of fire than most other commonly employed infantry machine guns.

The M1 does have a few key issues that contemporary bolt-actions did not suffer from: reloading, and ammunition wastage. The En Bloc clip generally allows for very fast reloading. However, because it is locked into the magazine until completely emptied, performing any sort of "combat reload" is very difficult, and soldiers had the potential to be caught with limited ammunition left in the rifle without the ability to reload. The Arisaka and K98 did not have this problem, as spare rounds could be hand fed into the magazine at any point. Additionally, for undisciplined troops, a semi-automatic rifle somewhat increases wastage, as they are not as limited by the rifle's rate of fire or magazine capacity.

Ultimately, however - for most infantry engagements, the M1 Garand was the superior rifle.

By the time the Garand saw widespread combat in WW2, it did not cause a serious change in Axis tactics - the Japanese never pressed a semi automatic design into production, and the German Gewehr 43 had already been designed in response to the Soviet SVT-40.

Post-war, however, the Garand influenced NATO's standardization and adoption of the FN FAL (and M14), other semi-automatic battle rifles, most of which would not be replaced until the 1970's at the earliest. Countries along the Eastern Front where semi-autos were comparatively less common began using what would become modern assault rifles far earlier.