Sniper rifles are notoriously broken and overpowered in video games like Call of Duty, Battlefield, and other multiplayer shooters. From long-range shots to 360 no scopes, it’s time to take a look at why sniper rifles often struggle to translate to video games.
Sniper rifles have a rocky history in video games like Call Of Duty, Battlefield, and other multiplayer shooters. The complex physics of real-world long-range shooting is fundamentally too difficult to translate to video games, leading developers to both simplify sniper rifles and also exaggerate their drawbacks to keep them balanced.
In this video, we’re going to look at what sniper rifles are, how they are used in games, the extreme compromises used to balance them, some things developers aren’t trying to make easier, and what happens when they are forced onto small maps. We’re also just going to marvel at the skill of some players who can quickscope and even do 360 no scopes.
If you love multiplayer shooters, make sure to head over to GameSpot’s YouTube page to watch our Firearms Expert Reacts series, our coverage of Call Of Duty: Cold War’s mid-season 3 update that includes Rambo, and ongoing coverage up to the release of Battlefield 6.
Iron Physik
28.03.20227:21 these dots in scopes dont correlate to bullet drop (mostly), they correlate to a angular size called the Mil (milliradian) with this Mil you can estimate the distance to a target by checking how tall it is in the scope (based on these mil-dots) and then you can calculate the range with that.
they are not meant to compensate for bullet drop, that is done by zeroing the scope to that range with the turrets (the clicky dials)
I said mostly, because there are a few scopes that do have a Ballistic drop compensated reticle (BDC reticle), but even these are not perfect, because of how many different bullets exist for any given gun so a BDC reticle is only for rough estimations and mostly used in DMRs and not classic sniper rifles.
83athom
28.03.2022One thing not really talked about of snipers in FPS games usually (because this thing is almost exclusive to more hardcore shooters like Squad or Arma) is the information aspect of the high magnification optics being able to pick out enemies at longer ranges and relay where they are, how many of them, where they're going, etc to your teammates. Also, even after taking that first shot you can very easily perform a similar role as an LMG gunner and keep a group of enemies pinned in a position or force them to break away from another direction, which lets your teammates move a lot more freely.
zachary williams
28.03.2022see I understand people want to frag out but snipers are usually intel-gathering class more than long-range auto-turrets but games like COD will never get snipers right its just the way they have built their franchise what I see through my scope isn't a kill now it's an easy ambush later. I think that's more of what a game should lean into with snipers, yes you are deadly from long range and it should be but leaning into the intel system would be way easier and less of a cry baby montage of "sniper op plz nerf".
Playlist Anonymous
25.03.2022Sniper rifles too powerful at close range in your shooty game that's only vaguely """realistic"""? Give them reverse damage fall off where point blank range does half the damage.
Superfamily Allosauridae
25.03.2022sniper rifles very, very often don't make the first shot, especially at really high ranges. most of the longest range kills were like the tenth or fifteenth round fired, but the previous ones all missed by so much the target did not react.
you need to understand, at a basic level, marksmanship to define this. you will not always hit the first round.
breathing is a real thing, it really is like that with any weapon, just breathing enough to continue staying alive, let alone running or anything. at any real range it's completely like that
The sniper rifle isn't a one and done weapon. It's a precision weapon, where you are effective not by volume of accurate fire, or by firepower amassed through organization like a fireteam or squad, but by doinking specific targets. It can be semi, or even full auto, though obviously not using full auto when firing at range. Modern sniper teams with an option often use what you might consider "DMR"s if they're accurate enough in things like 7.62 NATO, so that they don't have to carry another rifle for self defense, which has pushed bolt action sniper rifles to extremes of capability to actually get something out of it you can't out of a semi auto rifle. This is partially why most left are like .338s and stuff now
MonorchidAnims
25.03.2022Easy, just remove snipers from COD and the game becomes better instantly
Nihil
25.03.2022what always bugs me is the zoom on scopes being kinda shit
The Pirate Penguin
25.03.2022In Insurgence: Sandstrom, you just die. You don't even see or hear were the shot came from. Luckily snipers are limited to 1 per squad
Fagalon
25.03.2022JONATHAN! MY MAN.
Julian Eder
21.03.2022Problem is in games like cod you have 2 major playstyles clashing. The Smg/ar community complainin about gettin 1 tapped by a sniper rifle and the Sniper community gettin outraged over a little smg without any recoil turning your sight into the damn hubble telescope due to the immense aimpunch.
So sniper rifles in the series are in that weird position where a rushing style is way more effective than a holding one which the guns were designed for irl
DemoCrack
21.03.2022To be honest Call of Duty should nerf snipers enough to make shit like DMR's usable.
Ollie
21.03.2022Clearly this man has never used the M1917 in bf1, that thing is a monster
Jaspreet Singh
21.03.2022in COD snipers are shotguns with long range ability 😂😂
KartoffFrae
21.03.2022How about Arma 3's sniper rifles? Would one say they're balanced?
zelkuta
21.03.2022The biggiest thing is everyone flocking to the sniper class and throwing a game by being cowards that won't play the objective.
Sniper rifles just shouldn't be in games, they don't gel well with how the rest of shooters work.
ezio guo
19.03.2022Tarkov did a great job of balancing the weapon with its unique HP system, really rare case tho
Naughty Ned Flanders
19.03.2022Because sniper rifles are designed for people to go on missions spanning hours to days.
Where as video game missions are much shorter.
The problem is trying to shoehorn the sniper rifle concept into FPSs at all.
Honestly just remove them from games, there's no reason for them to be there unless the gameplay is meant to be slow and methodical.
The Anglo-Lithuanian
19.03.2022Laughs in Arma 3 and Squad
Michael Stutts
19.03.2022The main thing I hate about FPSs is how a .308 sniper rifle does 3x as much damage as a .308 battle rifle and 2x as much as a .308 machine gun, even though they’re all firing the same round.
Arjoneel Dhar
19.03.2022Haha tarkov go brrrrr
L Flame
19.03.2022I rarely use snipers but in one game I've played to not scope is to say F aiming the bullet goes to Narnia its THAT inaccurate with out scoping. Cause I've for one match had only a sniper and a guy come up behind I shoot him practically point blank but it didn't kill he killed my tho and took my place this guy was the reason I was a sniper in the first place was to kill him. A fing sniper. But he flanks me and then practically spawn kills my whole team. Stopped playing a long time ago.
Zomiberush12
18.03.2022“The bigger then zoom, the bigger the hit box”
Gavin Bryant
18.03.2022Dude just let us quickscope
Elle
18.03.2022This video is well-informed, but also wrong in many cases. For instance, snipers are not OP in close quarters. In games like CoD – which is where many of the examples take place in – the sniper is actually UNDERpowered. Most of the snipers are single-shot, bolt action rifles. They have average ADS speed, and are usually only one hit kills to the upper chest or head. The time to kill for every other weapon in the game is faster than most people can even react, so it doesn't matter if the sniper is a one-shot or not, any other weapon can kill you in almost the same amount of time. Almost every other weapon class in the game can fire again while you have to reload, meaning if you miss your first shot, you are dead. For this reason, it is very likely that if they shoot first, you will die, especially in CoD. Also for this reason, it is not cheap. You have to have perfect aim, because if you miss, you are dead. This means it takes some skill to use, and it is therefore not cheap. The people that are really good with snipers are simply really good at the game. It is not because they use snipers, it is because they have nigh-perfect aim. If they were to use an AR, they would probably perform similarly, maybe even better. It is not cheap, OP, or poorly balanced. It just requires a higher skill than an AR, for instance. This is because it is much less forgiving, but can be somewhat rewarding.
Jack Scotchland
18.03.2022Snipers are only good in COD if you are good yourself, which is why they’re balanced. You have to be skilled to do anything
Saviliana
18.03.2022Should make sniper rifles be having high chance of dud and accuracy lost when jump shot, sniper rifles shall never be fire when moving.
Rosterized
18.03.2022lets be honest here, overwhelmingly high percentage of people who pick up the sniper in Battlefield contribute absolutely nothing to winning the matches they win, more often that not resulting in losses.
TurboShamu
17.03.2022"for those of you do long-range shooting"
This that for me?
Captain Price
17.03.2022Overpowered? Let's see you tank a .338 Lapua to the chest. Better yet, since most of the "sniper rifles" in COD are 50 cal, let's see you tank one of those to the chest and then maybe you'll change your tune. They are not overpowered at all. They also aren't made for taking out vehicles, you're thinking of anti-materiel rifles which are used for taking out equipment and vehicles. Stupid video.
kevintloney
17.03.2022Don't watch this if you want to keep your sanity.
Memory Foam
17.03.2022Ayyy the viper mkii
Kaiserland111
17.03.2022How snipers should be handled in video games: have HORRENDOUS hip fire accuracy and accuracy if moving at all, a decently long scope-in time (compared to red dots or other close-range optics), terrible accuracy unless fully scoped in and breath held, bullet travel time (NO hitscan), long-lasting bullet traces, and MAYBE scope glint if looking nearly directly at the sniper (if your game still needs to lower the power level of snipers). The 1-shot headshot should be hard to get but immensely powerful if you do, as the enemy doesn't get to respond. Making them too easy to get (CoD) makes them a cheap way to remove enemy skill from the equation as they literally don't get a chance to fight you. I like how Battlefield 4 does it but it's still not a fantastic system to balance them.
dareddevil6
17.03.2022I never knew that the dragonov's scope had a little thing to measure range with
nuclear boom
16.03.2022the player in battlefield V who wasn't hit in the head by a 20mm AT round from 300 meters away "was that a fly"
Ahmed Hasan
16.03.2022A sniper rifle should not even exist in those games the question shouldn’t be should sniper rifles exist in games it should be should DMRs exist because sniper rifles are a assassination weapon, something for behind the frontline and killing officers
AnnoyMouse
16.03.2022A 50bmg sniper rifle in warface has a 90ms ads time and a .22lr pistol has a 200ms ads
Judson Gaiden
16.03.20224:36 That's less like sniping and more like designated marksman stuff. One alternative would be to supply in-game rifles with combination sights, thereby doing away with the perceived "need" to quickscope. Because why do that if you can aim at close-range targets using backup sights that are made for exactly that purpose? Another alternative is to make a "safari" version of a "sniper" rifle that has iron sights instead of a scope.
6:53 Or chevrons.
7:47 Ever heard of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.?
8:00 A DMR (like the SVD) could work for that sort of thing, but it would be used with iron sights.
Johan Metreus
16.03.2022About the gamers not being burdened with physics classes and the like, there is an aspect not mentioned, and that is the gamers aren't playing themselves in the game, they are playing a character that supposedly have been trained in various degrees in handling the equipment, a fact some games used as a game mechanic, making the tasks (shooting, driving whatever) easier the more experienced your character was.
Lumberjack Charlie
16.03.2022No one really talks about how you can run and slide and jump and hold a scope pin point while standing, it is very hard to shoot through a magnified scope while standing. Something games just skip over by slightly tweaking the scope sway. I think scoping in while standing should be nerfed.
GBRyker61
15.03.2022Get rid of quickscoping and reduce damage. A sniper should only realistically be a 1 shot kill to the head.
side-fish
15.03.2022Bad Company 2 was the reason why scope glint was introduced. People complained about not seeing their killer. The scope glint was first introduced in the Caspian Border trailer of Battlefield 3 as a response to snipers or campers and all Battlefields since then have it in the game. And because of the rivalry with COD, COD also introduced them on the new Modern Warfare. Personally, I don't understand why scope glint works like it's a flashlight. It shouldn't function at all in low-light environment, but it still works as a flashlight for some reason. It's definitely not fair and the bullet trace idea that you mention seems like the best trade-off.
Arse Villian
15.03.2022Well, Insurgency has some else to say
Edgar Mertins Pappa
15.03.2022I disagree with MOST sniping nerfs. Glint AND bullet trail being top offenders. Being able to spot a good sniper should be difficult, not "just look for a goddam SUN coming out of their scope, or follow the iron-dense bulet trail that it left". A well-hidden sniper should be something to fear and avoid as infantry, not just insta-detect and start shooting back with your SMGs until it dies.
Gareth Keenan
15.03.2022The solution is very very simple. Just make the handling worse just like in real life. That's the exact reason soldiers prefer assault weapons in close quarters.
Make aim down sight slower. Make movement with the sniper rifle slower.
Galaxyyus
15.03.2022i always thought of having snipers whose damage would increase the longer the bullet travels to balance them and the broken ones ones are only the semi snipers which can rapid fire but with quite low damge per bullet compared to their bolt action cousins.
Nathan Melon
14.03.2022I think people understate how hard it is to quickscope, I have to hit my one shot or I’m gonna die I don’t see how that’s op
William Jenks
14.03.2022Theres a unbelievable amount of content for first person shooter games on youtube.
William Cárdenas
14.03.2022Bo1 did it right with that little wobble
Ayy Rico
14.03.2022Lot of gamerscience here
Levon The Lights
14.03.2022I just feel now in fps snipers have very low gun skill. It is not hard to click on someone