Vanguard players call for major changes as weapon distortion makes aiming impossible

Nathan Warby
Warzone character aiming LMG

Fans have been eagerly hopping into the Call of Duty: Vanguard Open Beta to get their first taste of the new CoD entry. But fans soon noticed an issue with a distortion effect in the game, which is making aiming incredibly difficult.

The hype around Call of Duty: Vanguard has been building in recent weeks, and the PlayStation Open Beta has been many fan’s first chance to try out the new game. But as was the case with Alpha, the test has raised a few issues that players want to see changed when the full game releases.

One of the biggest issues involves the distortion effect that kicks when you fire certain weapons. Many in the community are saying the blur is leaving them “guessing” as to where the enemy is really standing.

Vanguard player aiming down sights

When firing certain weapons, such as LMGs or the STG44, players’ views were becoming slightly distorted and objects appeared bent out of shape.

As outlined in a video by CoD YouTuber TheExclusiveAce, enemy characters were also becoming distorted, even when options like motion blur or depth of field were turned off.

The Machine Pistol in particular caused severe visibility issues when firing. Enemies became blurry and comically misshapen as soon as the first round was fired.

“How am I supposed to adjust my aim, when my target literally looks like this?” the YouTuber asked. “This makes absolutely zero sense in a PvP environment.”

He goes on to say that this drastic problem with visibility doesn’t appear to be an issue with the game’s performance, but rather an “intentional visual effect,” possibly as a way of making the feeling of firing a gun more realistic.

While it could help make single-player missions more immersive, fans have responded negatively to the feature’s inclusion in the multiplayer mode.

“There is literally no valid reason for this,” a player argued on Reddit. “This is just not something that should be in the game. Please take it out or give us an option to turn this off.”

Sledgehammer Games have been addressing feedback over the course of the Alpha and Beta, but it remains to be seen this visibility effect will be tweaked or removed before launch.

For more on Call of Duty: Vanguard, check out the problem players have with killstreaks, and the returning lobby disband feature.

Image credits: Activision

About The Author

Nathan is a Senior Writer at CharlieIntel. He’s an expert in EA Sports FC, Call of Duty, and Overwatch, as well as superhero games, including Marvel’s Spider-Man. With a master's degree in Magazine Journalism from Nottingham Trent University, he worked as a Trainee Reporter for Derbyshire Live before moving into games media, with bylines at Dexerto, Cultured Vultures, and more. You can contact Nathan by email at [email protected].