Warzone devs hints at NZ-41 nerf after it becomes Season 4’s most used weapon

A Raven developer working on Call of Duty: Warzone has hinted that the NZ-41, fast emerging as a fan favorite weapon in Season 4, is set for a nerf in the near future. 

As is the case with any battle royale, weapons peak and trough in popularity, generally doing so around updates from developers designed to shake up the weapon meta.

That was again the case with Warzone Season 4, which brought a host of buffs and nerfs to the CoD BR’s weapon pool when it dropped on June 22.

One weapon that received a number of changes through adjustments to its attachments was the NZ-41, a gun that ascended to infamy during Season 3. Changes to its strength in Season 4’s update have made it even more popular, comfortably in the top 5 most used Warzone weapons. According to one Raven dev, though, that could be about to change.

Some fans were confused when Season 4 dropped and, if anything, strengthened the already powerful NZ-41. For example, plenty of its recoil controlling attachments were buffed to make kick easier to control.

It appears that the changes will be short-lived though, with a Raven dev commenting on June 25 that it has come out more powerful than anticipated. While they did not explicitly state a nerf is on the way, the acceptance that it has been made too strong hints towards a future nerf.

• Read More: Call of Duty Warzone 2: platforms, leaks, release window, everything we know

Tully Auckland, a senior game designer at Raven, said: “Agreed, it’s not where I’d like it to be right now. There are weapons designed to be easy to use, the NZ isn’t one of them.”

In a second tweet, he elaborated: “the NZ shouldn’t be one of [the easiest weapons to use], I agree. We over indexed on the enhancements to make it viable.”

In short, some weapons are supposed to be easy to control, but will often have weaknesses elsewhere (like low damage) to keep them balanced. In its current version, the NZ-41 is an all-round behemoth with no tangible weaknesses. A nerf, therefore, seems definite.

When it does, we’ll be the first to break it down for you.