STG-44

The Sturmgewehr 44 (MP44 or STG-44, depending on which game it is in), is an assault rifle featured in every Call of Duty title set in World War II, except for Call of Duty: Finest Hour and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. It also appears in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Call of Duty: Black Ops, becoming the most featured weapon in the Call of Duty series, tied with the M1911.

Singleplayer
It is somewhat rare, but it is useful from close quarters to moderately long ranges with a 30-round magazine. The STG-44 can be deadly in singleplayer, although in UO, its performance degrades with distance. It has fairly good accuracy, and can kill in just three-four bullets, along with a fairly short reload time when compared to other weapons. However, ammo is considerably scarce, and the recoil, while still low, is high in comparison to the MP40.

Multiplayer
This weapon in multiplayer can be very versatile. It provides fairly good accuracy and high power at close range, but in UO it loses power over distance. It is capable of killing in just a few shots at any distance. When fired full-auto, the recoil can throw off a user's aim. Burst firing or tap-firing is essential if the player wants to maintain accuracy over distance.

Singleplayer
This weapon is still rare in singleplayer but it is still a very good weapon to use between short and moderately long distances. While it retains most of the features present in the previous titles, the recoil is increased considerably just like the MP40, and it is recommended to fire no more than 5 bullets at a time.

Multiplayer
This weapon is slightly less powerful than its older counterparts, but is still quite deadly. The lower recoil allow it to be deadly in multiplayer, as it kills in just three to four chest shots, and with its high rate of fire and magazine capacity, it can easily kill up to ten opponents per magazine.

Singleplayer
The STG-44, or as it is known as in game, the MP44, is much like it was in previous games, although it is scarcely found in the campaign until chapter 12, The Corridor of Death. The graphics have also been updated, and the StG-44 now looks shinier and the body is more of a gray, instead of a dark gray or nearly black. Also, it is one of few weapons that can kill or almost kill in 1 shot in SP, making it as good as the M1 Garand.

Multiplayer
In multiplayer, it is carried by players who choose to be Germans and select the Heavy Assault class. Like in other games of in the series, it does high damage, although it has been slightly reduced since Call of Duty 2. The recoil has been increased to balance the game. It can be used at any range, but since it is highly inaccurate with continuous fire, it is best used at short or medium range. Long-range kills are virtually impossible without firing single shots or in small bursts.

Call of Duty: Roads to Victory
In Call of Duty: Roads to Victory, the STG-44 frequently appears in the hands of the German Military during the later levels of the Canadian campaign. During the British campaign, it takes over the role of the MP40 as the main weapon of the German Military. Despite the STG-44 being fully automatic, AI soldiers use it as a single-shot rifle.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
In Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, the STG-44 (also known as the MP44) is the same in appearance to the Call of Duty 2 version, and it uses the same skin. The recoil levels are slightly higher than in Call of Duty 2, but not quite as much as the original game. The MP44's accuracy and damage are both fairly high, and it is the only automatic rifle in the game with no aim sway.

In the Wii version of the game, this gun has an inconsistent rate of fire. The weapon starts firing very fast, then it fires slowly, and back to the fast fire rate. This can be fixed by using Double Tap. It also has different reloading sounds, and its charging sound shares the W1200's pump-action sound.

Singleplayer
During the cutscene to Sins Of The Father, Victor Zakhaev can be seen walking past several corpses with an STG-44. The STG-44 is not seen anywhere else in the campaign, even though it appears in multiplayer.

Multiplayer
Being the 68 year old rifle it is by the time Call of Duty 4 takes place, it doesn't have any available attachments. This is too much of a flaw for some, but others accustomed to the Call of Duty 2 iron sights (or those that prefer iron sights in general) adjust to the rifle quickly.

Because it is unlocked so late in the game it may not see much use before players enter the next level of Prestige Mode. Its biggest flaws are its relatively high recoil, and rather low rate of fire and blurred rear sights. For these reasons, some use it only to obtain the Golden AK-47.

However, the STG-44 has many traits that some believe outweigh its flaws. Beneficial traits include complete absence of idle sway and relatively high damage. To mitigate for the low rate of fire some players equip either Double Tap to increase its rate of fire (and level it to other assault rifles) or Stopping Power to increase the already high damage. In third person, the STG-44 seems to have a more antiquated sound than other assault rifles, which makes the STG-44 easily recognizable to attentive players. In first person, the report from firing is similar, if not the same to that of the AK-47.

Reload canceling works very well on the STG-44. Doing this will save around 1.75 seconds of time.

It is similar to the AK-47 in sound and reload animations (except for the charging handle, which is on the other side of the weapon).

Singleplayer
The STG-44 (for the given nomenclature in Call of Duty: World at War) is quite useful in Singleplayer. It is effective at nearly all ranges, due to its low recoil and manageable rate of fire. The weapon is not usually encountered until the levels Ring of Steel, Heart of the Reich, and Downfall. This is more than likely because it was not made until 1944, nearing the end of WWII, hence the "44." Normally when found it doesn't have that much ammo but in Heart of the Reich, Downfall and Ring of Steel a lot of soldiers will use the STG-44 so ammo shortage is not much of a problem.

Multiplayer
In multiplayer, the STG-44 is unlocked at Level 37. Its moderate power and low rate of fire made it a let down in the eyes of many players. However, it has little recoil and can be controlled quite easily. Its good accuracy and range make it a good choice for mid- to long-range fighting, and those who value accuracy over a bit more power shouldn't overlook the STG-44. It is a popular weapon in Hardcore modes for the reasons previously mentioned and is usually a one-shot-kill in close and medium range combat. It is more usable in CQB than other rifles due to its fully automatic fire mode while maintaining usefulness at medium and long range. Unfortunately, the STG is not particularly effective in CQC outside of Hardcore. Steady Aim combined with Stopping Power or Double Tap can help mitigate this, but even then a player with an STG-44 will be at a disadvantage in CQC against an enemy with a submachine gun.

The STG-44 is one of the few guns that equally benefits heavily from either Stopping Power or Double Tap. Overall, Stopping Power is more effective because it reduces ammo consumption, while Double Tap increases it. In Hardcore however, Double Tap becomes a more attractive option.

If the player tries to get the Telescopic Sight, the best way is to equip it with a Flash Hider. Although many players think that the Flash Hider is useless in large maps, with the Flash Hider, the STG-44 is superior compared to other rifles and benefits heavily. In maps like Cliffside, the STG-44 can still hit from one end of the map to the other.

Nazi Zombies
The STG-44 is available on all Nazi Zombie levels, either from the Mystery Box or off the wall. It is a decent weapon, but the player should aim for the head in all rounds, as it is inefficient when fired at the chest. At higher levels, ammo reserves may be depleted quickly, thus it is recommended to swap it out for another weapon in the higher levels, unless the user is near to where he/she can buy it off the wall, so the player can buy more ammo. It is a great weapon to have until around rounds 15-17 where you should either upgrade or get rid of it.

On Der Riese, if Pack-a-Punched, it is upgraded to the "Spatz-447+". Though its ammo capacity and reserve ammo is more or less doubled, it still depletes its ammo reserves rather quickly. Even though the latter make it so that there's something better, the STG-44 is one of the best guns to upgrade as it increases the rate of fire and damage, and gives it a 60 round magazine. The higher fire rate also gives it more recoil allowing for easy headshots, making this a very good gun for clearing out straight lines of zombies.

Call of Duty: World at War (Nintendo DS)
The STG-44 appears in Call of Duty: World at War (Nintendo DS). It has a 30 round magazine, generally low recoil and high power, making it an excellent weapon at long and medium engagement.It appears in the later levels of the British and Russian campaign.

In multiplayer, it can be used only by the German faction and retains its low recoil and high power.

Call of Duty: Black Ops
The STG-44 appears in Project Nova as a usable weapon. Like most Project Nova guns, the gun was improved and tweaked a little bit. It can be acquired from dead enemies later on in the level, and has a very similar reload animation as it does from World at War. However, it has a different firing sound then its World at War counterpart, has virtually no recoil, more power and now has the ability to gib.

The STG-44 has also been appeared in the revamped versions of the World at War classic maps. It has not changed, and this time it is found on the wall, and in the mystery box.

It is also an available layer for Black Ops' emblem editor.

Trivia

 * The STG-44 is the first assault rifle in the series, and also holds the record for being the most featured assault rifle (appearing in all but three Call of Duty games).
 * In the Wii version of Call of Duty 3, the STG-44 produces the same sound as the M1897 Trench Gun upon firing.
 * Doctor Richtofen uses the STG-44 in the Der Riese trailer.
 * Call of Duty: World at War is the only game that uses the magazine as a fore-grip, while all the other games have the character hold it by the handguard. However, Black Ops also does this because the model was reused from WAW (albeit with graphic updates).
 * In Call of Duty: United Offensive, the STG-44 has a different skin from the one in Call of Duty, but is otherwise the same.
 * In World at War, there originally was a Select Fire attachment for the STG-44 and SVT-40.
 * Call of Duty: Finest Hour, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and the modern DS games are the only games in the Call of Duty series not to have the MP44 (STG-44) in the game.
 * In Call of Duty: Black Ops, the firing sound of the STG-44 in Project Nova is different than the one in the Hardened Edition Zombie maps.
 * The STG-44s firing sound in Project Nova is the same found in that of the RPK. But can sound different in zombies.

Video
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Gameplay with the STG-44 in World at War with various attachments

MP44