Could these Stock 2 fixes help weapon balance in Black Ops 4 MP?

Over the recent days, the Stock 2 attachment has become a topic of great controversy.

The issue was brought up by professional and amateur competitive players, but the problem extends to casual multiplayer as well. While many pro players want to see it banned, the casual community would prefer a patch fix.

The basics of the Stock 2 conundrum is that attachment allows the Saug 9mm to move at incredible speeds while ADS’d. The reason this is an issue is a multi-faceted one.

Firstly, the Saug 9mm is one of the best weapons in Black Ops 4’s multiplayer WITHOUT the use of Stock 2. The attachment further buffs a weapon that already performs at the top of its class.

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Secondly, the current animation for strafing in Black Ops 4 is unable to correctly handle quick-strafing and constant switches in strafe direction. The animations easily bug out and cause the user to bend their player character’s spine at 30 degrees. This effect is repeated each time the player switches directions.

While a minority of professional players have argued that if the Stock 2 is “banned” then all level 2 attachments should be removed, Parasite made a strong case against this on Twitter.

We aren’t banning a gun. The saug is good without stock 2. The Maddox is ok without qd2 and the icr is unusable without grip 2. Which means the saug is actually the best weapon. Stock 2 isnt necessary but it sure is incredible. The others are needed for the weapons to be relevant

— Chris (@Parasite) January 25, 2019

The Stock 2 attachment is so powerful that players must choose specific specialists to counter its speed. According to prominent players, only a few teams want the attachment to remain in play.

There are 2-3 teams that want it in. lul. I been preaching it’s broken

— OpTic Scump (@scump) January 27, 2019

Now, while professional players want to see the attachment banned from competitive, this is not a solution for the problem.

A more permanent solution should be applied in the form of a patch from Treyarch. Two possible patch solutions could help to remove the problem from both competitive and casual play.

Treyarch could choose to remove the Stock 2 from the Saug 9mm as the item is not a problem on other weapons (VAPR, slower base strafe speed).

Alternatively, Treyarch could look into fixing the current strafing animations in the game. The unnatural side-to-side bending of the character makes it difficult to aim at the strafing target and an animation fix could be all that is needed.

Either way, the issue will continue to plague casual multiplayer until a patch is applied. The professional scene’s problem with the Stock 2 may be band-aided through an item ban or “gentlemen’s agreement.”