Call of Duty: Warzone Season 3 is now in full swing and players are starting to get a feel for the changes made to weapons with several nerfs and buffs coming to the Battle Royale title with its most recent update. These changes made a clear effort to change up the meta of the game with a massive overhaul to snipers that sees the guaranteed one-shot kills that weapons like the Kar98k and Swiss K31 were known for. While some of these changes might lead to some other weapons getting some love while others start to get faded out, some guns held onto their top spots in the game’s ecosystem. These weapons are great choices if you come across them in the wild, and can be made even better if you decide to put them in a loadout. This guide will discuss what I believe are some of the best weapons across many different classes that players will want to use in Warzone Season 3.
New Weapons: The Nikita AVT Assualt Rifle and the M1916 Marksman Rifle
Before getting into the discussion of the best overall weapons in Warzone, let’s take a quick detour to talk about the two new weapons added with Season 3: the Nikita AVT SMG and the M1916 Marksman Rifle. It will take some more time to really get a feel for these weapons and how they fare in the current weapon meta, but I do want to give at least a brief overview for players going in to give these weapons a try.
The Nikita AVT has become one of the quickest killing weapons in the game with it having by far the fastest fire rate in the Assualt Rifle class. This makes it a weapon this is great at close and midrange engagements and absolutely melts enemy health if you can control the recoil. While it doesn’t feel like it has the ease of use that some meta weapons have, there will likely be some builds that can make this thing a monster.
The M1916 is a semi-automatic marksman rifle that has the potential to do some damage when players really start picking it apart and putting together loadouts, but I feel like it will struggle against many of the other weapons in the game. With a decent fire rate and strong kick, the marksman rifle hits hard but doesn’t do anything special when compared to its contemporaries.
AK-47 (CW)
The AK-47 has been among the top of the assault rifle food chain for some time and while the likes of the XM4 and Vargo 52 were nerfed in this recent patch, the AK somehow missed the chopping block. Recoil that is fairly easy to control with a great balance of power and speed with only room to improve with attachments, the AK-47 continues to be a top-dog on the island of Caldera.
C58
Another great weapon that somehow missed a nerf the C58 is an assault rifle with a good damage output that has recoil that is super easy to control. This ease in control when it comes to recoil paired with the weapon’s sizable damage range makes this a fantastic weapon for far gunfights. With attachments that can aid with its average rate of fire, this weapon can quickly be made into a menace.
Owen Gun
The first gun that received a nerf on our list, the Owen Gun remains an extremely effective choice along with the likes of the MP40, which suffered a little bit more from its nerfs in terms of its placement in the meta (though still a good choice). While certain attachments for the Owen Gun saw damage reduction and fire rate decreases, the weapon still remains a meta weapon and many players’ SMG of choice.
A large magazine that can be increased to a fantastic 72-round mag with attachments along with a fast Time to Kill that outpaces the previously mentioned MP40 as well as many others in the class. It is also a weapon that is very easy to control and can, in the right hands, solo an entire quad.
Welgun
The Welgun has already been a sleeper SMG that players have been able to transform into a threat, and while this new update didn’t change the Welgun at all, I believe that the nerfs brought to the MP40 and Owen Gun has yet the Welgun to become even more viable in the conversation of top SMGs. A versatile weapon with one of the best Time to Kills, this weapon is great for both medium and close-range engagements with certain configurations in the Gunsmith able to turn this thing into a force of nature.
MG82
The patch notes for Season 3 of Warzone specifically pointed out the Bren as needing a nerf as it was one of the most effective long-range weapons in the game. With changes that make its recoil harder to control, there is now a toss-up for what the dominant LMG will be on Caldera. While the Whitley received a few buffs to its damage and fire rate, the MG82 is my choice as a replacement for the Bren. A great rate of fire and bullet velocity and very manageable recoil make the MG82 capable of filling that void of the long-range monster that the Bren used to occupy.
Swiss K31
The Swiss K31 was a weapon that was beloved for its great mobility and constancy to kill at long ranges, making it great for aggressive play as well as long-distance shots. The overhaul to snipers has removed many of this weapon class’s ability to insta-down enemies, with many of the most popular snipers now unable to one-shot headshot enemies outside of their Maximum Damage Range. The Swiss were one of these weapons. It along with Vanguard‘s Kar98k are among the snipers that have a hard cap on when they can down enemies in one shot.
I still say the weapon is fairly viable, however, as it retains its great mobility and had its Maximum Damage Range increased. While the Pellington and Vanguard‘s Kar98k still have higher MDR, I prefer the feel of the Swiss compared to those weapons, though you might find those weapons more fitting for your playstyle. These snipers can still be very effective within that close range, though other snipers might start sneaking in to be used more.
ZRG 20mm
Where the Swiss is no longer able to kill from long distances anymore, the ZRG 20mm will put anyone down from any range. It is admittedly heavy, making movement a bit clunky, especially to those coming over from the Swiss, but it makes up for it thanks to its high bullet velocity and exceptional power. This weapon is sure to rain as a long-range king for this season.
You can see the full list of the patch notes for Call of Duty Warzone Season 3, which includes a list of weapon tuning and gameplay tweaks, linked here.
More Call of Duty Articles:
Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 Officially Announced | Call of Duty Remasters Coming, Insider Says | Call of Duty Warzone: Everything You Need to Know about the Godzilla vs. Kong Event | Call Of Duty: Warzone – All The New Caldera Changes You Need To Know | Season 3 Guide
