Barrett .50cal

The Barrett .50cal is a semi-automatic Sniper Rifle seen in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.

Singleplayer
The Barrett .50 Cal appears as one of the three semi-automatic sniper rifles in game. Although only available to use once in single player, the Barrett .50cal is seen in F.N.G on the weapons rack, along with all the other weapons in game. It is then seen again in One Shot, One Kill, as a mounted weapon used to assassinate Imran Zakhaev. This Barrett .50 Cal has a variable zoom feature, meaning that the player can adjust the zoom, to help with the assassination. It also has unlimited ammo, very little recoil, no scope sway, and on the Wii version is controlled with the control stick rather than the pointer. This is the only time it is usable in the campaign. The rounds in the campaign seem to be about four times bigger than in multiplayer.

Multiplayer
In multiplayer, the Barrett .50 Cal is unlocked at level 49. Like all sniper rifles, it can use an ACOG Scope attachment and cannot accept a silencer in-game. It is tied with the Dragunov and R700 without Stopping Power. If Stopping Power is used, it can take out a player using Juggernaut in one hit if shot in the chest, neck, or head. The Barrett also has the highest penetration of all the weapons in game.

However, the Barrett .50 Cal also has a few disadvantages. One of them is that the sound made upon firing is loud and distinctive and can give away the user's position. Also, it has very high recoil, but it always travels in the same direction, and the reticule quickly resets back on the initial point of aim. A good way to compensate for its high recoil is to treat it as a bolt-action rifle, and only fire when it has returned to its original position. Another huge disadvantage is the fact that the rifle itself is so long it often protrudes out of cover giving your position away. Because of its very high damage, firing rapidly with this gun is not usually necessary - although it can be used as a last-resort in close quarters.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
The Barrett .50 Cal is almost completely unchanged from Call of Duty 4, with the exceptions of new attachments, a redesigned scope, widened muzzle brake, and lack of back up front iron sight. The only notable change from Call of Duty 4 is that the Barrett .50 Cal, along with all the other sniper rifles, now have full mobility, as well as SMGs. In addition, it is the first sniper rifle available to the player, while in Call of Duty 4 it is the last.

Singleplayer
The Barrett .50 Cal can be found five times in the single player campaign. On one occasion, it is found in the missions S.S.D.D, Of Their Own Accord (although it is mounted with a thermal scope), Contingency and Loose Ends. The only major differences from campaign to multiplayer are that the Barrett has a more realistic level of recoil, and a fairly low Firecap in campaign.

Multiplayer
In Multiplayer, the Barrett .50 Cal is unlocked at Level 3 as part of the "Scout Sniper" default class. It is capable of firing faster than its sight can settle. Firing too quickly makes the Barrett .50 Cal difficult to use, due to the high recoil. However, the Barrett .50cal has a recoil limit, which a skilled player can use to his/her advantage. This problem is easily mitigated by simply slowing the rate of fire and only firing when the recoil has settled. This requires great concentration, as inexperienced players tend to fire too fast. However, the ability to fire so fast can be an advantage in close quarters when there is no time to switch to a secondary and the player is forced to fire their sniper rifle from the hip. The Barrett .50 Cal is most praised for its ability to deliver one hit kills with a high rate of fire.

In comparison to its closest rival, the Intervention, this weapon does the exact same damage, but it is statistically better in many aspects. The rate of fire is faster, even when taking recoil into account. It also has double the magazine capacity, which not only means the player will have to reload less often, but that they will be equipped with 30 rounds from the spawn (Without Scavenger Pro) versus the Intervention's 20. The Barrett also has less scope sway while breathing, which makes it steady faster when the player begins to hold their breath. No-scoping is also made easier by the Barrett's semi-automatic capabilities, making it more effective in close quarters combat. However, the Intervention's lower rate of fire can help players who find it difficult to take their time with the Barrett, or any other semi-automatic sniper rifle.

One flaw of the Barrett is that its recoil kicks the gun up and to the right so much that the shooter momentarily loses sight of their target. Since the ACOG zooms in less when looking down the sight, it is easier to follow an enemy after firing with it than with a standard sniper scope, but in many situations the decreased zoom and inability to steady the scope makes it less than practical.

The Barrett is a relatively good candidate to use with a Silencer and Stopping Power, as the player can kill a target with a single shot to the chest, neck, or head. However, the Barrett's high recoil can make it difficult for the shooter to land a second shot if the first shot does not kill. Without Stopping Power, the Barrett is a less than ideal candidate for a silencer because all snipers require two shots to kill when using a silencer without Stopping Power unless on Hardcore. Also, The Barrett's ROF is higher during multiplayer than in the Campaign and Museum, due to a firecap being added in singleplayer.

Advantages of using the Intervention

 * The Intervention is more ideal for the Perfectionist challenge due to it's smaller magazine meaning less chance of missed bullets.
 * The Intervention has a generally lower recoil than the .50 Cal.
 * The Intervention's reload time is lower, and can also be Reload Canceled.

Advantages of using the Barrett .50cal

 * The Barrett .50 Cal has a larger magazine of 10 compared to the Intervention's magazine of 5.
 * Although higher, the .50 Cal's recoil is much more predictable and resets faster.
 * The .50 Cal fires semi-automatically, making it more ideal for missed shots.
 * The .50 Cal has a much lower sway than the Intervention.
 * The .50 Cal steadies faster.

Weapon Attachments

 * Silencer
 * Heartbeat Sensor
 * ACOG Scope
 * Thermal Scope
 * FMJ
 * Extended Mags

Trivia

 * The Barrett .50 Cal has the same reload animation and firing sound in both Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
 * In Modern Warfare 2, The Barrett .50 Cal has a Mr.Yuk sticker on the lens cap although it can be difficult to see it at first (it is easiest to see when you sprint). You will not be able to see it if you have a different scope attached. It is one of two weapons to have a Mr. Yuk sticker on it, the other being the WA2000.
 * In Modern Warfare 2 Challenge screen, the Barrett .50cal is first on the Sniper Rifle list, while on the Create-a-Class it comes after the Intervention.
 * In the missions "One Shot, One Kill" and "Of Their Own Accord", the Barrett .50cal always has unlimited ammo and a zoomable scope. It also has it's front iron sight flipped up, which means the developers simply re-used the Barrett model from the previous game.
 * The Barrett .50cal makes the most noise of any non-launcher weapon in the game.
 * There is a graphical glitch with the Barrett where the player's hand goes through the folded-up bipod and holds the synthetic stock.
 * The Barrett .50 Cal is the first sniper rifle players unlock in Modern Warfare 2, while in Call of Duty 4 it is the last one which is unlocked.
 * The Barrett in Modern Warfare 2 has the serial number A0750319. This is most easily seen with Arctic camo.
 * When zoomed in with the ACOG in Modern Warfare 2, one can see that the rear iron sight is marked for yards.
 * The Barrett .50 Cal has 2 fingerprints on it; one can be seen while reloading and the other can be seen with camo applied.
 * The Barrett .50 Cal is the only gun featured in Modern Warfare and Modern Warfare 2 to feature a reciprocating barrel.
 * In Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, the Barrett .50 Cal has a front sight, however, this is gone in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2.
 * In Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, the selector switch on the gun is actually in safe, not semi, much like the M4's selector switch being in semi while the gun shoots in full automatic. This can be seen while reloading the .50 Cal.
 * In Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, when the player looks through the scope, he/she pulls it up to his/her "eye", but in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 they put it up to their "eyes" on an angle.
 * In Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, when turning sensitivity to 10 and spinning a 360 angle, you can see there is still a iron sight attached in front of the scope.