M4A1 Carbine

Overview
The Colt M4A1 Carbine is an Assault Rifle featured in the Modern Warfare branch of the Call of Duty series. The weapon is basically a shortened version of the famous M-16 rifle. Since the M4A1 has been based on the M-16 design, the weapon overall is great, but unfortunately it has the same flaws as the M-16.

History
The Colt company developed various carbine versions of the basic AR-15 / M16 rifle since 1970s. These carbines were intended for all markets: military, law enforcement, civilian. The US Military (and some other armies, most notably the Israeli Self-Defense Forces) had adopted the Colt CAR-15 Commando and XM-177 carbines during the 1970s and 1980s. But early in 1990s the old idea of replacing the pistols in the hands of the troops with some more effective, shoulder fired weapon, rose again in the heads of the US Military. In fact, this idea can be dated back to the US M1 Carbine of 1941, but good ideas never die. So, in the 1994, US Army adopted the Colt Model 720 selective-fire carbine (basically, a shortened M16A2 rifle), as the US M4 Carbine. This weapon was intended to replace some M9 pistols in service, as well as some aged M3A1 submachine guns and some M16A2 rifles. The new weapon was much more handy and comfortable to carry, than the long M16A2 rifle, so the US Special Operations Command (SOCOM) put its eye on the M4 as a possible universal weapon for all of the Special Operations community. For this purpose, the M4 was later modified with the M16A3-style flat-top receiver with integral Picatinny-type accessory rail instead of the M16A2/M4-type integral carrying handle. This modification retained the M4 index. The only difference between the M4A1 and M4 is that its trigger unit of M4A1 is modified to fire full-auto instead of the three shot bursts of the M4. Specially for SOCOM M4A1s, the US Naval Surface Warfare Center developed a SOPMOD M4 kit, that consisted of the M4A1 carbine equipped with Rail Interface System (RIS) instead of the standard handguards. The kit also includes a variety of the add-on goodies, such as various sights (ACOG 4X telescopic, ACOG Reflex red-dot, detachable back-up open sights), laser pointers (visible and infra-red), a detachable sound suppressor (silencer), and a modified M203 40mm grenade launcher (with shortened barrel and improved sights). The kit also included a detachable front grip and tactical light.From the first sight, the M4A1 SOPMOD is an ideal Special Operations weapon - handy, flexible, with good firepower. But the latest experience in the Afghanistan showed that the M4 has some flaws. First of all, the shorter barrel commands the lower bullet velocities, and this significantly decreased the effective range of the 5.56mm bullet. Second, the M4 barrel and the forward end rapidly overheat. Third, the shortened barrel resulted in the shortened gas system, which works under greater pressures, than in M16A2 rifle. This increases the rate of fire and produces more stress on the moving parts, decreasing the reliability. While adequate as a Personal Defense Weapon for the non-infantry troops (vehicle crews, clerks, staff officers etc), M4A1 is, by some accounts, less than ideal for the Special Operations troops, at least in its present state. The idea of the complete re-arming of the US Army with the M4 as a money-saving measure, is also somewhat dubious.

Action: Gas operated, rotating bolt Overall length: 838 mm (stock extended); 757 mm (stock fully collapsed) Barrel length: 370 mm Weight: 2.52 kg without magazine; 3.0 kg with magazine loaded with 30 rounds Rate of fire: 700 - 950 rounds per minute Maximum effective range: 360 m
 * 5.56mm NATO

Call of Duty 4
In singleplayer, the M4A1 (with a Tasco Red Dot Sight, AN/PEQ-2A, and foregrip) is a frequently dropped weapon among the Marines, and an infrequently dropped weapon among the SAS troops. It is the starting weapon in Charlie Don't Surf and Game Over, and one of the optional weapons at the beginning of Hunted. The "M4A1 Grenadier", which uses an EOTech Holographic Weapon Sight, AN/PEQ-2A, and M203, is the starting weapon in The Bog, War Pig and Shock and Awe. The "M4A1 SOPMOD" uses the red dot sight, M203 grenade launcher, AN/PEQ-2A infrared laser, and silencer, and is the starting weapon in the majority of MacTavish's missions. Captain Price uses it in all missions. Surprisingly, in the SAS missions, the M4A1 SOPMOD seems to have all attachments available, a red dot sight, silencer, grip (though the M4A1 Carbine has a grip, this does not serve to decrease recoil and does not count as an attachment. Note that the grip does not show from the third-person perspective in-game, as when dropped or held by another character, in both single-player and multiplayer), and an M203.

In multiplayer, the M4A1 Carbine has an attached foregrip. It can be modified with the Red Dot Sight, ACOG Scope, M203, or silencer. The M4A1 Carbine is fully automatic with moderate damage and very low recoil, but it has very high idle sway (4 degrees) and idles very fast, making it more difficult to aim with at long range. This was done for balancing purposes because the M4A1 was incredibly overpowered in the beta, in which it had no idle sway. The M4A1 also shares ammo with the M16A4 and the G36C. The M4A1 Carbine is one of the most commonly used weapons in online multiplayer on all platforms.

Weapon Performance
As stated above, the M4A1 is not particularly effective at long range due to its sway on consoles. In the PC version, however, idle sway is easily compensated for with the mouse, making it very effective at all ranges. The same goes for the Wii version; if you have a steady hand you can control the sway with the Wii remote, making the weapon devastating. The M4 is ideal in close quarters combat due to its high rate of fire. Steady Aim also makes the M4 a fairly effective hip-fire weapon. Double Tap can be quite effective due to low recoil and low damage, but ammo use increases dramatically. Another VERY good perk is stopping power for the gun, which makes it deadly at all ranges.

The weapon's low damage output can be compensated by its high rate of fire, and the very low recoil allows for accurate full automatic fire at short and medium ranges. Because of this, Bandolier can be useful. For these reasons, a silencer or a red dot sight is a good choice.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
The M4A1 returns in Modern Warfare 2, and has retained most qualities and appearances of the Call of Duty 4 version. The M4 in this game is actually very similar to the Bushmaster Modular M4 Carbine, except that the game version has a shorter barrel, indicating that it is a version built for close combat. The AR-15 carry handle which was present in the first game has been replaced with foldable PRI front and ARMS #40L rear sights and the Knight's Armament Rail Interface System (RIS) has been replaced with an ARMS Selective Integrated Rail (SIR) System. It now sports tan camouflage, as opposed to the previous gunmetal color. It noticeably has a band around the magazine, and at times it can be misidentified as a SCAR-H rifle because of it's sights and the overall color of the weapon. Also, the forward grip has been removed from the underside tactical rail system. The M4 comes in many variants in the singleplayer campaign, such as the M4 SOPMOD(Special Operations Peculiar Modification), (RDS, M203, and Silencer), M4 Grenadier w/ Holographic, M4 Carbine, etc. Online it is commonly used with the Red Dot sight. Its the most common weapon used in campaign and multiplayer, with FMJs and Holographic Sights, ACOG Scope, and/or Grenade Launcher makes it a powerhouse in such maps as Estate, or Highrise. The M4A1 is somewhat like the ACR, in terms of stopping power, however, the accuracy of the ACR is slightly better.

Weapon Attachments
 * Grenade Launcher (Marksman I)
 * Shotgun (20 kills with the Grenade Launcher)
 * Red Dot Sight (Marksman II)
 * Holographic Sight (60 kills while aiming down the Red Dot Sight)
 * Silencer (Marksman III)
 * Heartbeat Sensor (15 kills with the silencer attached)
 * ACOG Scope (Marksman IV)
 * Thermal Scope (20 kills while aiming down the ACOG)
 * FMJ (Full Metal Jacket) (Marksman V)
 * Extended Mags (40 kills with Bullet Penetration while using FMJ)

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Mobilized
The M4 is featured in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare: Mobilized with two variants, the original 3-round burst M4 Carbine, and the fully automatic M4A1. The M4 Carbine and M4A1 have the same rate of fire, but the M4A1 has much more stopping power.

M4 Carbine
The M4 Carbine is almost a copy of the M16A4 found in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. Notable differences are that the 3-round burst has a slower rate of fire, more compact iron sights, and a smaller delay between the bursts.

In single player, the M4 Carbine is exclusive to the level "Closing In", though it can be seen in use by allies in all the missions of the American Campaign. It produces the same sound as the M4A1, but it has a lower damage per bullet, but it will still kill in one burst. Due to its 3-round burst and only extra 120 rounds that come with it, the M4 carbine is the least ammunition efficient weapon. In multiplayer, the M4 Carbine is available by default, along with the MP5 and MP7. It is probably the least common weapon used in multiplayer, due to its lack of power - takes two bursts to kill - and ammunition efficiency. Those who do use it usually discard it when the M4A1 is unlocked, since it has much higher power and the same rate of fire as the M4 Carbine.

M4A1
The M4A1 is very similar in appearance compared to the console one in Call of Duty 4. It has the same reload animation, and it is only found with a red dot sight in single player as well, but that is where the similarities end. First of all, the weapon has a higher damage than the Call of Duty 4 version, as it can kill in one shot to the center of the chest. Second, it has a higher rate of fire, and lastly, it has almost no recoil when aiming down the sights.

In single player, the M4A1 is a starting weapon in the last few missions of the American campaign, and in the middle of the British campaign. Since it has a high rate of fire, and only 120 extra rounds to start with, it usually runs out of ammo before the end of the level. In multiplayer, it is the first weapon you unlock for the American/British faction. Due to it's high rate of fire and high damage, it is favoured by most players. The lack of spare magazines usually isn't a problem, since most players die before they use up half of the magazines.

Trivia

 * It is inaccurate to call the M4 in multiplayer the M4 Carbine, as the original M4 carbine featured a 3 round burst option, much like the M16A2. The M4A1 is the fully automatic version
 * On the lower receiver of the M4A1, it says " BLUE4 ". this is the same for the M16A4. It also says, "Property of U.S. Government, Caliber 5.55mm, M4A1 Carbine" over the magazine housing. However, the M4A1 Carbine fires a 5.56mm, not a 5.55mm, and it is also used by the SAS in game. It saying "5.55" is most likely a typo or part of a way to avoid copyright.
 * The SAS are not known to use the M4A1, but rather the cosmetically similar Diemaco C8SFW, which carries the Land Force designation L119A1. However, they have such a large array of weapons at their disposal that it is possible.
 * If you attach an M203, the amount of recoil felt will be slightly increased, but not by much. This also applies with the M16A4. The effect should be opposite, however, because the M203 adds weight to the weapon, and adding weight has the effect of reducing recoil. It could be argued however, that the removal of the vertical grip on the M4A1 could be why the recoil is increased, since the amount of grip provided dampens the recoil more than the slight offset in weight with an added 203.
 * If you set the sensitivity on console versions to 10 (max) then spin in circles clockwise (to the right) the right side of the gun can be slightly visible, showing a much less detailed texture. This was done because that side of the gun is not normally visible and not detailing it saves memory.
 * The M4A1 and the M16A4's front sights disappear when another optic is attached. On the M4 it appears that the front sight is flipped down as the featured iron sights appear to be backup iron sights (BUIS) with a flip up sight mounted directly in the gas block.
 * There is a special version of the M4A1 called the M4A1 Suppressed, NPCs use it and it can only be acquired by using cheats.
 * The M4A1 Carbine is the very first weapon you are able to use in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
 * The M4A1 iron sights in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 are somewhat similar aesthetically to the M249 SAW's sights from Call of Duty 4.
 * In Modern Warfare 2, The M4A1 Carbine's pickup icon has the vertical grip attached, although it is removed in the Create-A-Class picture.
 * In Modern Warfare 2, the gun sounds like the Call of Duty 4 M4 in the singleplayer campaign, but in multiplayer, the gun sounds quite different, with a lot more punch in the sound.
 * The M4A1 in Modern Warfare 2 resembles a HK416 more than a M4A1.
 * In the beginning of the Modern Warfare 2 level "The Only Easy Day...Was Yesterday" The M4 is titled as M4 SOPMOD but later in the level it changes to just M4A1 and loses its Suppressor attachment after you blow up the corpses. The SCAR-H also loses its suppressor at this point. However, if you switch out the M4A1 for another gun and switch it back after ambush it will still have the suppressor attachment; the quirk applies for the SCAR-H.
 * The M4A1 is symmetrical; though this is incorrect, because the forward assist would be on the right side, but in the in-game model there isn't any forward assist. The same applies for M16. This was possibly included because no one would go and see the right side of the weapon during the game, and so the modeling would take less time.
 * When attached with the FMJ, the grip on the gun disappears when it is dropped, reloaded or in 3rd person but a removable olive green grip is seen when held. It is easy to see with insane look sensitivity by looking left and right and the player seems to hold the grip.
 * A very good tactic for the M4A1 Carbine is to fire it as if it was a semi-automatic rifle at longer ranges provided your opponent does not notice you in order to conserve ammo. Ideally, one should aim for the head with this tactic.
 * In Modern Warfare 2 multiplayer, the name is M4A1. However, with an ACOG scope, the name won't be "M4A1 + ACOG scope" but "M4 + ACOG scope". (French version, maybe others)
 * In reality the M4A1 can overheat quickly when used extensively and/or firing on full auto for an extended period of time. This flaw doomed many NATO Soldiers in Afghanistan back in October. One of the NATO bases where taken over by Taliban soldiers when the NATO Soldiers M4's had their barrels overheating. Some of them said the barrels were glowing white hot.