Sledgehammer Games pledges to widen MW3 Ranked weapon pool with intriguing stats

Modern Warfare 3 Ranked players had the time of their lives last week, having five new weapons added to the pool, three of which were assault rifles that repopulated the very slim options.

This week, however, has been back to the same old bore and gore. The MCW persists as the only AR in the game, and the Rival serves as the only SMG worth using after the Swarm was abruptly axed.

But Sledgehammer Games isn't resting on its laurels after concluding the test phase and has now vowed to use the data collected and consumer feedback to widen the weapon pool once and for all.

Sledgehammer Games shares intriguing data on MW3 Ranked weapon test

With MW3 Ranked players now hopeful about seeing weapons like the BP50 or Holger 556 added to the pool again, Sledgehammer Games has now showcased all of the data that they gathered.

By the end of the week, players had long ditched the MCW, whose pick rate dropped from 40% to 25% between the first day and the last. There, the Holger and BP50 became the second and third most popular guns, respectively, while the SMG pool shrank significantly.

The Holger proved to be the most consistent for players, too, as the K/D ratio stats pitted the hard-hitting AR at the top of the three, scoring it an average of 1.07 (by comparison, the MCW was a flat 1.00). Three more new weapons, the MTz-556, Ram-9, and BP50, also went positive, while all SMGs dropped into negative digits.

That could be reflective of the rolls, but it was clear to see the AR pool was much stronger with more weapons, and the MCW was quite far down the list for which was best.

MW3 Ranked weapon pool set for nerfs and expansion

Click to enlarge

Sledgehammer Games also found that the MCW was a weapon for champions, stating, "During our evaluation of individual weapons, the MCW stood out uniquely, with a significantly increased K/D ratio for high-skill players versus low-skill players."

This directly impacted the decision to nerf the MCW, which received a headshot multiplier nerf. AR hipfire is also now getting nerfs to balance out the disparity between SMGs and rifles, and while this only applies to the MCW for now, the same will come into force for any guns added soon.

Speaking of which, Sledgehammer has also opened the floor to the new guns returning soon, adding, "Player feedback is the most crucial piece of the puzzle. Given the results shared above and your experience in the evaluation, which weapons would you like to see added to Ranked Play? What adjustments are needed before you consider a weapon for Ranked Play?"

Season 3 Reloaded is now live, and it included the hipfire nerf for the MCW. However, the reluctance to nerf the SMGs' range might be the crutch of this investigation.