Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 makes headshots deadlier while cutting back on weapon sway and recoil: "We will be keeping a close eye on sniper balance after this change"

The latest Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 update is here, and Treyarch is simultaneously making headshots deal more damage while making it easier to precisely aim your weapons by reducing sway and recoil.

"We have taken a comprehensive pass on weapon motion and applied reductions across the board to improve the combat experience," the devs say in the patch notes. "Depending on the class and weapon, our targets for these reductions range from 30% to 75%. Players will notice far more stability while turning, moving, changing stances, and firing, especially while ADS. We are committed to continually improving Black Ops 6 gunplay with a focus on balanced and rewarding gameplay while maintaining the unique characteristics of each weapon."

One particular focus with these weapon movement reductions is idle sway, which is "now improved and consistent across all weapon classes," with idle sway delay on all weapons now set at 2.2s. "Sniper Rifles, which previously only scaled initial idle sway by 50%, now provide a complete reduction," Treyarch says. "As always we will be keeping a close eye on sniper balance after this change."

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As all these weapons get more accurate, headshots are getting more powerful, and "in most cases" after this balance pass "weapons will require one fewer headshot at all ranges to improve time to kill." The one major exception is the max damage range for SMGs. "We expect this change to greatly impact the weapon meta, especially in conjunction with our weapon motion changes."

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