COD Mobile Season 3 (2023): Weapon Balance Changes

A new round of weapon balance changes are coming to Call of Duty: Mobile in Season 3 (2023). Check out all the buffs and nerfs in our guide.

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Check out all the weapon balance changes coming to Call of Duty: Mobile Season 3. | © Activision Blizzard

We may be in the grips of Season 2: Heavy Metal, but it won't be long until the script is flipped again, and we will be diving into Season 3 of Call of Duty: Mobile.

Expected out later this month, we are beginning to learn of some of the additions and changes we can expect to see on launch day, which include a brand new sniper rifle, the HDR, the Wheelson scorestreak, and updates to the training room.

Of course, there will also be a round of weapon balance changes, with several weapons either being buffed or nerfed. It can be an anxious time for players, as you don't know if your previously trusted primary weapon will see its power diminished.

Thankfully, we often learn of the weapon balance changes well before release, thanks to the test servers that go live ahead of the global release. There are usually very few differences between the content in the test server and what arrives in the new season, giving us a good idea of what to expect.

The test server for Season 3 is now live (Garena), so we can now look at the Season 3 weapon balance changes. You can check them out below.

COD: Mobile Season 3 (2023) - Weapon Balance Changes

First, we must thank the team at Leakers On Duty for compiling the weapon balance changes info (stellar job, as always).

Like last season's changes, we are seeing several assault rifles being buffed. This time, it's the AK117, AK 47, Peacekeeper Mk2, and KN44, among others.

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The MK2 Peacekeeper is being buffed heading into Season 3. | © Activision Blizzard

There are also some SMGs being buffed, including the RUS-79u and Switchblade X9.

There are fewer nerfs, most affecting the battle royale mode.

One nerf to note is for the Ballista EM3. The weapon will now give the player it's pointed at a warning sound. This is the second nerf for the operator skill since its introduction in Season 10, with its charges and time available to be used reduced last season.

Remember, this is from the test server and is subject to change. If there are any changes between the test server and the official release, we will update this page.

Buffs

Here are the expected buffs heading into Season 3.

AK117

  • Decreased tactical reload time by 15%
  • Reduced horizontal recoil
  • Stabilized the recoil pattern (BR only)

AK47

  • Decreased tactical reload time by 15%
  • Decreased ADS time from 280ms to 270ms

Peacekeeper MK2

  • Decreased hit flinch from 0.6 to 0.55
  • Decreased ADS spread from 17(14) to 17(9)

HBRa3

  • Decreased recoil

BK57

  • Decreased recoil

LK24

  • Damage profile improved from 26-24-19 to 28-24-19 (MP only)
  • Damage profile improved from 26-24 to 28-24 (BR only)
  • Head multiplier improved from 1.5x to 1.6x
  • Chest and upper arm multiplier improved from 1.1x to 1.2x

KN44

  • Decreased visual shake when firing

Switchblade X9

  • Upper arm damage multiplier improved from 1.1x to 1.2x
  • Lower arm damage multiplier improved from 1x to 1.05x

AGR 5.56

  • Decreased horizontal recoil

QQ9

  • Improved damage profile from 25-22-17-15 to 28-23-17-15
  • 10mm Rounds
    • Added 2 units of damage to the first 2 ranges regardless of damage multiplier
    • Headshot multiplier improved from 1.2x to 1.4x
    • Lower arm damage multiplier improved from 1.1x to 1.2x

RUS-79u

  • Improved lower arm damage multiplier from 1x to 1.1x

S36

  • Improved headshot multiplier from 1.5x to 2.4x (MP only)
  • Improved chest and upper arm multiplier from 1x to 1.1x (MP only)

Outlaw

  • Improved headshot multiplier from 1.5x to 2.4x
  • Improved range [0-8m, 8-30m, 30m+] to [0-12m, 12-30m, 30m+]

Koshka

  • Increased rate of fire from 46 RPM to 48 RPM
  • Increased the speed of the ADS exit animation
  • Decreased scope recenter delay

Kilo Bolt Action

  • Red Dot Sights can now be equipped
  • Stopping Power
    • Decreased ADS time penalty from 12% to 8%

D13 Sector

  • Disk speed increased from 35 units to 50 units
  • Shooting with right fire button will automatically shoot as hip-fire for automatic ADS does not affect manual ADS.

HS0405

  • Improved movement speed by 2%
  • Decreased sprint-to-fire delay from 180ms to 150ms
  • Hip-fire spread is spread more evenly
  • Adjusted damage profile from 26-19-11-7 to 28-24-11-6 (BR only)
  • Decreased range from [0-6m, 6-11m, 11-14m] to [0-4m, 4-7m, 7-11m] (BR only)

Tempest (MP)

  • Decreased swap time and recharge time
  • Decreased ammo count, damage radius, and projectile velocity
  • Deceased ADS time from 280ms to 270ms

TAK-5

  • Increased '3p effect'

H.I.V.E

  • Increased trap duration
  • Increased trap hitbox
  • Increased trap visibility

Annihilator (BR)

  • Improved damage profile from 137-100-85-80 to 150-130-120
  • Improved range from [0-14m, 15-25m, 25-50m, 50m+] to [0-40m, 40-70m, 70m+]
  • Improved projectile velocity from 1200m/s to 1800m/s
  • Consumes 30 Special Ammo per shot

Clown Class

  • Improved enemy detection range from 50m/50m to 70m/80m

Nerfs

And here are the nerfs expected in Season 3.

Ballista EM3

  • Added a warning effect when being targeted by a Ballista EM3

BY-15 (BR)

  • Damage profile decreased from 25-18-16-11 to 22-20-15-17

KRM 262 (BR)

  • Damage profile decreased from 26-25-15-11 to 24-22-15-17

Tempest (BR)

  • Greatly reduced charge time
  • Greatly improved ADS speed and ADS movement speed
  • Now requires a reload after each shot
  • Consumes 60 Special Ammo per shot

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Daniel Conlan
Daniel Conlan