Are sniper rifles overpowered or just plain “cheesy” in XDefiant? This question has some players conflicted about the weapon type’s power in the game’s Preseason.
XDefiant’s Preseason is underway, but as players find out which weapons and factions are the best, some are noticing sniper rifles look to be quite dominant in lobbies, although not all are convinced.
In several threads in the XDefiant subreddit, players have criticized sniper rifles for their lack of accuracy penalty, as snipers can run around quick scopping and one-shotting targets in the lobby without having to stop their movement.
“Even at close range they can scope in and shoot while getting drilled in the face with an AR,” one player said. “Zero flinch or movement punishment. The sniper lobbies make the game unfun.”
Many others agreed with them, bemoaning the lack of movement and flinch penalties, letting snipers have a relatively easy time running around the map and one-shotting players in close combat situations. For those choosing SMGs or ARs, guns that take a few moments of consistent fire to dispatch their targets, gunfights can feel a little lopsided when staring down a one-shot sniper.
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This isn’t a universal sentiment, however, with some saying they aren’t exactly overpowered, per se, rather it’s just that those abusing sniper are already naturally good at the game and it isn’t the weapon in itself that’s to blame.
“Ask any player who is good with a sniper to use a [regular] gun and they will be playing better than they were with the sniper in 9/10 of their next matches,” a commenter said in a thread discussing it.
FaZe Jev too explained his thoughts around sniper rifle’s supposedly overpowered nature in XDefiant, saying, “Sniping is not OP, it’s just cheesy if you’re really good at it. The skill floor is much, much, higher than on full autos.”
