Infinity Ward may have secretly buffed Modern Warfare’s Combat Knife

The Combat Knife in both Modern Warfare and Warzone appears to have undergone a surprising change in a recent patch, though you may have completely missed it.

Stealth buffs or nerfs are nothing new in the gaming industry, especially not in relation to Infinity Ward titles. The developers have even been called out in the past for creating an “unhealthy” Call of Duty by changing things under the hood and not informing the player base.

Season 3’s major update alone, introduced more than five massive changes that weren’t addressed anywhere in the April 8 patch notes. It now turns out that the Combat Knife has also been the target of new adjustments, as a unique buff has just been discovered.

Movement plays a large role in both Modern Warfare and Warzone as players look to get the jump on one another. Getting to a certain position first could be pivotal in winning the match or acquiring certain loot. 

Equipping either a sidearm or a combat knife in previous versions of the game was a surefire way to get a literal leg up. While holding these weapons, players gained a slight movement buff compared to holding heavier, primary weapons.

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While Combat Knives had the slight edge upon release, sidearms soon became the standard. Now, the latest changes under the hood have made the Combat Knife a must-have for speedy players once again.

There’s no outright speed advantage when comparing the two, though a new adjustment ensures that those holding Combat Knives will sprint for twice as long, according to ‘Handler’ on YouTube.

“With the Combat Knife you have four seconds of tactical sprint, and with the pistol you only have two seconds of tactical sprint,” he explained.

After running some tests with both weapons on April 14, he came to the conclusion that the Combat Knife was a third of a second faster while tactical sprinting. 

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While that may not seem like such a huge difference on paper, in practice it could be the difference between life and death, victory and defeat.

There’s no telling why this specific change was excluded from the latest patch notes, but now you’re aware of the fact that the Combat Knife is elite once again.

From RPG buffs, to perk changes, plenty of subtle tweaks were left off the public patch notes. Here’s a full rundown on every change we’ve noticed thus far.