Have Warzone 2 snipers received a nerf?

Warzone 2 sniper stealth nerf
Credit: Activision

Warzone 2 sniper stealth nerf
Credit: Activision

Sniper rifles in Warzone 2 are capable of dominating long-distance duels with ease thanks to their immense damage output and limitless customisation options. Most of the time, it’s very easy to down and eliminate an opponent.

As attention moves towards the launch of Season Two Reloaded, players dropping into the action have noticed a potentially major shift in the performance of snipers. With incendiary rounds equipped, sharpshooters could down another player with a single shot, but in recent matches, it’s no longer the case.

The sudden change has left players thinking Infinity Ward has applied a stealth nerf meaning it now requires two shots to down a player with a sniper.

Have snipers received a nerf?

Despite no updates to the Season Two patch notes, Reddit user Wzautokyo thinks the developers have reduced damage output when incendiary rounds are loaded into the magazine.

The Reddit thread in question
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Credit: u/ Wzautokyo

“Clean headshots with incendiary will not get me downs every single time,” says the player. After further investigation, other players are noticing the change. “1 shot snipers were stealth nerfed,” reports one fan.

In addition to the nerf of snipers, others are also noticing the Fennec 45 SMG is struggling to compete in close-range combat. “Fennec also feels different. Lost [1v1] with 1 headshot and multiple torso shots,” adds Wzautokyo. This change follows the recent discovery of in-game statistics revealing the Fennec never received a nerf at the start of Season Two.

The reasoning behind the stealth sniper nerf remains a mystery as Infinity Ward and Raven Software haven’t mentioned it on their social channels. Usually, a Twitter post confirming any significant change appears once it’s applied but in this case, there’s no official confirmation. Although the developers haven’t confirmed the nerf, a huge shift in the meta has taken place

For more Warzone 2, take a look at our guides showcasing the best AR along with intel on when the next double XP event takes place.