Gun Balancing Gone Bad

[US Crash Fire]

you start with it because its the standard issue rifle of the US military. (soon to be M4 carbine). and i think they were going for realism while less fun for you the player (most likely with little knowledge of military weapons) its more realistic. your no longer going to rush someone because they ONLY have a pistol.
if i shot you in the head with a baretta M92F (M9) you will die
if i shot you in the head with a M16A2 (M-16) you will die
if i shot you in the head with a M82 Barrett .50 Caliber sniper rifle you will die and paint the wall behind you.
so while it makes little differnce what you pick. look at it this way. you can use whatever one you think "just looks cool" and not have to worry about it sucking. (and i love the look of the M16A2!)

 

[lolmynamewastaken]

yeah i've thought that about CoD4 but it is just trying to give new players a chance to not suck.
i use the G3 because its actually a challenge to get kills with that.
the shotguns on that game have been made turd for somereason as well.
another example of poor balencing is the guns on dead space, the best one is the FIRST one.

 

[justnotcricket]

Hold on...I don't play CoD4, but from what you're saying...if everyone has this amazing gun, doesn't that make it a level playing field? And your skill is in stealth or dodging or something? Or even just on trigger finger reflexes?

 

[The Last Parade]

this all seems to be a completely arbitrary discussion, it's balanced because everyone has access to it, therefor the only factor that decides victory is skill

 

[Valiance]

Wait.

You're complaining about higher level players continuing to use a weapon you start the game with?

Why not just use it yourself and be just as good?

Or play a game that has better game balance, skill involved, and competitive nature, since that seems to be what you're looking for?

 

[Kiutu]

Call of Duty 2 is better because there is no locked weapons. The leveling in Cod4 and 5 really ruins things and messes everything up really. Call of Duty 2 was done fine, no locked weapons, pick what you want and just go. Though shotguns earn you hate, they are not so big a threat if you know what to do. And I dont have to be level 41 to use the Kar98k.

If you have to have this leveling, dont make it so major. Battlefield: Bad Company had unlocking weapons and levels, but not the way Cod4/5 did. You get unlock points and can unlock what you want, and for the most part, it was not a huge difference with weapons like in CoD.

 

[Azraellod]

well, i only ever really played 1 fps game well, but i suppose i kind of get what you mean. there was one overpowered weapon...

my approach was to practice with it frequently so i could match/beat other players, and then gradually phase out my use of it as i improved. it was so much more fun that way. add variety and beat them with a multitude of things, it's so much more satisfying.

unfortunately metroid hunters was riddled with hackers, so i got fed up with it after a while. i might play occasionally, but very rarely now.

 

[Acaroid]

To show what I mean, I'm going to use Call of Duty 4's excellent multiplayer component to showcase how badly a developer can balance the weapons in a game. The first weapon you use is most likely to be the M-16 on the Assault Class. Unfortunately, this weapon in particular is viable to be used throughout your whole gaming 'life' in CoD4, due to the fact that it is a burst-fire rifle, and (with Stopping Power) will kill whoever you're pointing at in one squeeze of the trigger.

I seriously don't know which part of the crazy farm they took the man who thought 'Let's give everyone who starts an insta-kill rifle'. I understand you want to give new players a chance, but that's a little ridiculous, considering that now you see level 55 10th Prestige players running around using this rifle, thinking they're pro.

It just irritates me that these smug, annoying people think that they are better than anyone they come across because they use a gun which can only be described as retarded and unfair to other players. Don't get me wrong, I love Call of Duty, but getting spawncamped by someone called "iiXii k1ll33r su3pr pr0 iiXii" with a weapon that a five year old could use somehow starts to drag a bit after the eleventh match of whoring.

wait, what...you complaining that someone dies when you shot them :|
your saying if you use this rifle your not pro, but yet they still managed to kill you?
I think you have some personal issues, not anything to do with the gun balance in COD4, the idea that using some guns makes you better than someone else is stupid imo.
If you are good at a game, you should be able to outfit yourself to counter most situations and change up your weapons to accord.

So yeah, get better at the game and stop complaining...

 

[Hybridwolf]

M16 is overrated. If you even move the rifle a little, then the shots go wide, and you end up looking like a dick. Then a hol-ey dick. But it's a good weapon to start with, and it means a level 55 could be killed by a level 1. It helps remind you that everyone is a threat to begin with, until you've played with them for a while. Then you can tell if they are good or not.

You want overpowered weapons go on COD WAW. MP40 is even worse then M16, at least if a moron is using the M16 they aren't going to one shot you. The only effective counter weapon is the STG...at level 39. I have never prestiged again because you either get shot to hell by MP40, or at least stand a slight chance at mid range. But to give you an example of how stupidly overpowered that gun is, it can be used to counter snipers. Even though it's meant to be an SMG. One of the many reasons that I stopped playing.

 

[wordsmith]

I seriously don't know which part of the crazy farm they took the man who thought 'Let's give everyone who starts an insta-kill rifle'.
...
a gun which can only be described as retarded and unfair to other players.

Wait, remind me how a weapon that "every noob starts the game with" becomes "unfair"? You have the same access to it as anyone else does, so the only "unfair" factor is the fact that you can't use it.

In short- get back to practising with it, and try harder not to die next time

 

[Acaroid]

ce every high level player would be using it making low level players' life a fucking hell.

This is just like bitching against the AWP in counterstrike... get over it. You lose some and you win some. If you get killed by an M16 and think it's a n00b weapon, you respawn and you kill the ************ right back. Either using his own tactic against him proving you're the better player, or you stab the prick with a knife for extra humiliation.

You know I do have some problems with CSS, why did they make the ak47 1 hit headshot kill and make the M4 not (yes i know you CAN but isnt 100%)... and the only problem with the awp is a kill shot when hitting the arms, If it was a body shot or head shot, yeah fine all good, but not an arm shot...

But that is the only things wrong with CSS imo in regards to weapon balance... maybe the glock needs some love...

 

[Guitarmasterx7]

Yup. It's disgraceful. Real men use the P90

 

[weker]

i do agree with this thread the m16 is overpowered but not that bad its works well but could do with accuracy decrease in some way i know most plays say its not automatic but those 3 bullets are very mean and are too easy to use even for noobs

 

[Adrianis]

Well, the 3 shots you fire arnt dead on the same spot, so its not a guaranteed insta kill. Plus the iron sight is lameballs (imo) so getting those first 25 kills was an effort the first time round. I now have every gun, and yes M16 is one of my favs, and is very very good, but i couldnt place any gun on that game as being the best, and thats what makes good balance my friend.

What i love cod for above other games in the genre is that the gun usage really is to do with preferance, you can use any gun and be good and get kills with it, i hate it when games end up with the best gun, which the best players use, and when you become another one of the best you have to use this gun otherwise your not the best. Cod 4s balance is fantastic, i wouldnt change the gun order or setups even if i could.

Allowing better players better guns than the starters is exactly what balance is not, so i think your problem isnt with incorrect balance, its with balancing in general.

PS: We all hate the 'XxXxXSNIPZKILLERZPROXxxxxXXXxXXXXxXX X XXX XXX PRO X' douchebags, perhaps if we just ignore them they will go away. WHY THE X's?!

 

[Dr. Love]

It has been said a few times already, but must guns in the game could be considered "overpowered' in different situations. The M16 has plenty of flaws that keep it from being anything else then one gun among many, on the other hand i sympathize with how annoyingly easy it seems sometimes to die to one of them but it comes down to personal preference. I play with ACOG M4 Carbine and do fairly well so to each their own don't like it just leave the match.

 

[JohnSmith]

Bullets kill people. In a "realistic" shooter like COD they have to acknowledge that a pistol bullet will make you just as dead as a rifle bullet.

 

[Osaka-chaness]

To show what I mean, I'm going to use Call of Duty 4's excellent multiplayer component to showcase how badly a developer can balance the weapons in a game. The first weapon you use is most likely to be the M-16 on the Assault Class. Unfortunately, this weapon in particular is viable to be used throughout your whole gaming 'life' in CoD4, due to the fact that it is a burst-fire rifle, and (with Stopping Power) will kill whoever you're pointing at in one squeeze of the trigger.

I seriously don't know which part of the crazy farm they took the man who thought 'Let's give everyone who starts an insta-kill rifle'. I understand you want to give new players a chance, but that's a little ridiculous, considering that now you see level 55 10th Prestige players running around using this rifle, thinking they're pro.

It just irritates me that these smug, annoying people think that they are better than anyone they come across because they use a gun which can only be described as retarded and unfair to other players. Don't get me wrong, I love Call of Duty, but getting spawncamped by someone called "iiXii k1ll33r su3pr pr0 iiXii" with a weapon that a five year old could use somehow starts to drag a bit after the eleventh match of whoring.

Buddy, welcome to the world of online gaming. Just because a 10th Prestige player is exactly that, doesn't mean he's good. I'm only 2nd Prestige, and I'm often getting the highest score in a match. I only really use the G36C or Skorpion too. If someone's acting like a noob, they are a noob and aren't worth the time complaining about. If you get frustrated and your game suffers like me, then quit out, take some deep breaths, then get back in. Helps me out ^^ It's worse to let them get under your skin than to ignore them.

 

[Wilbot666]

We all hate the 'XxXxXSNIPZKILLERZPROXxxxxXXXxXXXXxXX X XXX XXX PRO X' douchebags, perhaps if we just ignore them they will go away. WHY THE X's?!

Simple. They're generally about 13 (or so) and can't think beyond "I point this at you and you die." And they certainly can't spell, so they believe that having a name padded out with so many "x"s that not even Annabelle Chong would use their nick as a name for her biography is somehow cool. 'Nuff said.

 

[Kelbear]

Actually, that M-16 is key to the balance of the game.

You don't want to fight 50s as a level 1 if you haven't got a fair chance at killing them, so they arm you with viable weaponry from the start. Guild wars used a similar approach. They equip you with abilities that have the same level of effectiveness, then add a variety of abilities, rather than adding even more effectiveness.

This keeps an even playing field, while still allowing higher level players access to interesting rewards.

And really, the guns are only part of how players kill each other. Before killing with guns, there's a lot of positioning and prediction that takes place before even seeing each other. In FFA I can get a winning streak of dozens of maps without using ANY guns, only the knife,flashbang, and the killstreak rewards! People die so quickly and easily in CoD4 that the guns themselves are just a minor part of the combat. What's more important is putting them in your crosshairs and staying outside of theirs.

And it's not like nobody ever uses the other guns, most of the players are rotating through the weapons for all the XP bonuses anyway.