Are LMGs in Black Ops largely redundant?

yimrsg

I'd say the majority of LMGs are vastly underpowered/redundant as they have significantly inferior stats compared to assault rifles; particularly damage and accuracy wise, and coupled with the slower movement from the class further reduce their effectiveness. I am excluding the m60 which I consider the only redeeming and true LMG (high damage and huge clip size).

To my mind they should be more powerful than ARs in general but they seem to be less effective, eg. the stoner is less effective than the commando as the user is crippled by the slower speed and has roughly the same stats as it's AR couterpart. Perhaps the AR class (and others) be slower but that's another story.
They do have slightly larger extended mags compared with AR but 45 vs 60 is not a major difference. But if clip size is important, use the Galil. Alternatively or if you want to put down a wall of fire, use dual mags and sleight of hand on an AR. Finally you don't get silencers with LMGs which further impares them against an organised team or a minimap watching opponent.

Perhaps LMGs are much more reliant on the chosen perks/attachments than other gun classes and I haven't found the right combination. I just feel that most LMGs are an inferior subset of ARs and are largely overlooked/irrelevant. Maybe treyarch have tipped the game balance away from a slower pace to a more frenetic one and have lost the LMG niche in the process.

Do other people use them? I am wracking my brain trying to think of times I've gotten killed by LMG wielding players and have come up blank. Perhaps if LMGs denied second chance pro they would be more common.:pac:

Magill

Yeah, ive got 5 or 6 really nice clips (Quad+ killfeeds) using the m60 and rpk(?) . They do seem more powerful than AR.. maybe your using them wrong, they arent much use for a run and gunner, but they are far more effective for defending. I use flakjacket/warlord(Reddot + extended mags)/marthon(I think)..

There really is a serious lack of attachments on some guns tho, shotguns mostly.

everlast75

totally agree yimrag - they don't appear to me to be any more powerful than an assault rifle and coupled with the lack of attachments and slower speed...

I have 6 slots now seen I prestiged the once and I had a slot especially for the LMG - but having unlocked all of them, I've stuck an M16 in the spot (as opposed to my usual Galil) instead...

Shammy

I take it ye havent tryed the stoner ?

yimrsg

I agree with you on the m60 100%, its a very good gun (think it's my 3rd best kpd ratio). I mentioned that above but might not have been clear, but I still feel that the other LMGs don't feel distinct from the majority of ARs instead being similar stat wise and also lacking the variety of attachments and the slower movement speed.

As for defending objectives, the majority of maps tend to be smaller and/or with limited lines of sight reducing the effectiveness of little to none bullet damage drop off. Plus the far more versatile ARs can do much the same job without exposing your position on the minimap.

Perhaps I am being too harsh on them and need to revisit them but 99/100 I can say that I didn't need a LMG class for that game/life.

I would totally agree with you on the lack of attachments for the shotguns but since most people would either use steady aim or sleight of hand rather than warlord it's almost a moot point. Still only having one attachment for a gun when treyarch where banging their drum about customisation is puzzling. It's like they weakened/lessened the effectiveness of LMG, shotties and SRs and favoured ARs and SMGs; whether that was deliberate thinking or carried out for game balance is another thing.

yimrsg

Shammy wrote: »

I take it ye havent tryed the stoner ?

I used the stoner briefly, truth be told I have regular guns which I stay loyal to and I'm slow to change. I just feel that it's very indistinct from a commando. The only difference I notice is the lack of speed. I know it'll probably kill in one less bullet than the stoner but in an automatic hip firing w/o steady aim it's barely noticeable.

I'm currently trying out the g11 again and starting to like it but it is very limited. I do have silencers on most of my AR classes so am used to them being weaker. Maybe the majority of ARs are just too versatile and LMGs just suffer in comparison.

Magill

yimrsg wrote: »

I agree with you on the m60 100%, its a very good gun (think it's my 3rd best kpd ratio). I mentioned that above but might not have been clear, but I still feel that the other LMGs don't feel distinct from the majority of ARs instead being similar stat wise and also lacking the variety of attachments and the slower movement speed.

As for defending objectives, the majority of maps tend to be smaller and/or with limited lines of sight reducing the effectiveness of little to none bullet damage drop off. Plus the far more versatile ARs can do much the same job without exposing your position on the minimap.

Perhaps I am being too harsh on them and need to revisit them but 99/100 I can say that I didn't need a LMG class for that game/life.

I would totally agree with you on the lack of attachments for the shotguns but since most people would either use steady aim or sleight of hand rather than warlord it's almost a moot point. Still only having one attachment for a gun when treyarch where banging their drum about customisation is puzzling. It's like they weakened/lessened the effectiveness of LMG, shotties and SRs and favoured ARs and SMGs; whether that was deliberate thinking or carried out for game balance is another thing.

My point with the shotgun attachments is that for the spas the only one available is siliencer, no grip/extended mags or even a custom sight (Not that anyone would use it). Its also the only viable shotgun (I think its really decent on some maps).

Kersmash

i never used lmgs, even go mw2, but i picked up an m60 the other day and boyos were dropping left right and centre. The thing seemed like a beast. I see the stoner being used a lot though. I just can't get over the reduction in speed. I have marathon on the majority of my classes cos i generally dislike remaining stationary, and the reduction in mobility with lmgs has always put me off.

sierra117x

i was already mentally composing my extremely irritated reply until i noticed you excluded the m60 the the ehhh.....off the top of my head rpd ? aint bad either if you use extended mags but jesus is it annoying to reload

Lab_Mouse

I miss me rpd from CoD4 and MW2:(A beast of a gun.

Yeah havent been able to click with any of them.Tend to stick to AR's

gimli2112

I loved all the LMGs in MW2 but the ones in bops are just meh, IMO.

Angron

Shammy wrote: »

I take it ye havent tryed the stoner ?

I have, great gun. Kinda reminded me of the AUG in MW2, almost felt like an AR more than an LMG.

Nuri Sahin

They have somehow made them worse than that of MW2!