Raven Software is rolling off the Call of Duty: Warzone, promptly changing the meta with extreme damage nerfs that increase their time-to-kill.
From what it seems, Call of Duty: Warzone is trying to rebalance the entire meta. Furthermore, the new Season 4 Reloaded for Warzone and Black Ops Cold War will have drastic changes. The entire event starts today and players will surely have a weird time.
Patch heavily nerfs rifles
According to the patch notes, Raven is nerfing many of the guns in Warzone. Among them, the rifles are taking the greatest hit, losing a ton of their headshot and torso multiplier. All this means that players would take longer to kill on average.
As for light-machine guns (LMG), some guns get to keep their strong headshot multipliers. Others get a nerf, and others get a mix of either. Furthermore, SMGs will get a boost, with most tac-rifles/bolt actions staying untouched.
“It is important to note that these Weapon adjustments were not made in a vacuum,” noted Raven in their notes. “When evaluating an individual change, some may seem quite drastic, but they were made holistically and in a way that supported a lock-step increase in average TTK across multiple Weapon categories.
“Torso Multipliers were a considerable focus of these changes with how often they would act as flat damage increases given how consistently that location could be hit. With reductions to these multipliers, we are placing a bigger emphasis on precision — a move which we feel is ultimately healthy for the game.”
COD: Warzone looking to kill the “best weapon” idea
So far, Call of Duty: Warzone is dominated by rifle users for a reason. It’s easy to aim, has decent accuracy, and it offers a solid rate of fire. Now, Raven is looking to level the playing field for everyone.
Raven knows a thing or two about handling meta in a live service game. Even from before, much of the meta goes towards abusing a favorite weapon to death.
“Statistically, there will always be a ‘best weapon’. That is the nature of a competitive game,” said Raven. “Players will seek out and employ any advantage they can, regardless of how miniscule it may be.
“We will take great care to ensure that the ‘best weapon’ never overstays its welcome and has effectiveness that scales with the skill of the handler.”
Call of Duty: Warzone will have a few interesting days in the battlefield. Furthermore, those who are looking to see all the changes that Raven did should be available in the patch notes.
Featured image courtesy of Call of Duty/Youtube Screenshot