Holographic Sight

The EOTech HWS is a holographic weapon sight designed for the M16 rifle and M4 Carbine. Holographic sights and red dot sights are highly similar, however, holographic sights such as the 512.A65/1 use holograms, hence the name. Holographic sights use a laser, which is reflected off multiple adjustable mirrors, and through to the user's eye. One downside of such technology is batteries. Because holographic sights rely on lasers to function, and not LEDs, it takes more battery power to operate, however modern updates to these devices provide for very long battery life cycles.

These sights have become popular due to the nature of the sight aperture. When looking through the sight, the reticule appears to be projected 30-40 feet in front of the shooter. The HWS and "high end" Red-Dot sights are "Parallax Free" optical devices, this means that the exact position of the user's head/eye(s) relative to the optic device does not affect the accuracy of the reticule with respect to the bullet's point of impact. In addition, the EOTech HWS series works despite damage being done to the glass "lens" or obscurement of the "lens" by mud/blood etc, as long as some portion of the glass can be seen through the reticule can still be seen and its accuracy is not reduced. This is in contrast to "rifle scopes" where damage to the glass or obscurement by foreign material can render the optic useless.

Both Red-Dots and HWS sight systems are often used in Close Quarters Battle (CQB) conditions with both of the shooter's eyes open. In this usage, the human brain integrates the holographic image or red dot seen by one eye with the scene viewed by the other eye creating a wide angle sight picture with excellent peripheral vision as well as a pinpoint accurate reticule super-imposed on the image.

In the field, both HWS and Red-Dots are often augmented with image magnification add-ons. These optional add-on devices are often deployed as a secondary optic device positioned directly behind the main optic in a "Flip to Side" configuration where the magnifier can be "flipped out of the way" for non magnified use.

Newer HWS models have introduced "Ballistic Reticules" which contain additional aiming dots that correspond to aim points for different distances to compensate for "bullet drop" at farther ranges.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare


It is available exclusively in single-player on the "Grenadier" variant of the M4A1 Carbine. This weapon generally appears in only three levels, which are The Bog, War Pig and Shock and Awe. It is also possible to obtain this weapon from Game Over. It is dropped by an S.A.S. operative who dies shortly after a car explodes on the destroyed bridge. It is different from the Red Dot Sight in that it has a superior reticule, but the game version limits the player's peripheral vision.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2


In Modern Warfare 2, it is available in the Campaign, Special Ops, and multiplayer. It is very similar to the Red Dot Sight but with a different appearance and an increase in aim assist on consoles; unlike the Call of Duty 4 version, the optic's relative size and reticule on the screen is smaller and the player's peripheral vision is far greater than before. Many people don't notice a difference in functionality between the Red Dot Sight and the Holographic Sights.

The Holographic Sight is now an attachment in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2's multiplayer and is awarded for getting 60 kills while aiming down the Red Dot Sight for primary weapons, 100 kills with Machine Pistols and 250 kills with Shotguns (without needing to aim down the Red Dot Sight). Unlike the RDS, the reticule in the middle doesn't sway when turning, and while it doesn't seem to have a greater zoom it does appear to be more accurate, making it often favored over its previous game counterpart. Some people find it easier to see their target and quickly find the reticule due to the semi-opaque "cut-out" cross hair which is a small circle with a larger circle around it. Others find that the larger sight actually obscures the target making it hard to aim precisely and acquire targets at range. As compared to a real Holographic Sight, the larger circle in the game is much closer to the smaller circle, which is why the larger one obscures the target so much. Additionally, the Holographic Sight has a thicker frame than the Red Dot Sight again reducing visibility. In the end, the preference between this sight and Red Dot Sight depends on whether you need long range pinpoint accuracy and have time for the sway to settle or whether you will be firing on the move. Some prefer the holographic to the red dot sight because of the accuracy difference. It is also important to note that on the sunny maps (such as Afghan), the Holographic sight will sometimes appear to glare, making far shots difficult, especially against snipers who are difficult to see anyway. This is another reason why the Red Dot Sight is preferred by some players for accurate shots.

The base damage for the FAL is increased from 35-55 to 40-55 when Holographic Sight is attached, or any bling variation that includes the Holographic Sight. It has also been shown that the M16 is slightly more accurate with the Holographic Sight than the Red Dot Sight.

In the campaign it can be found attached to weapons used by various forces, such as Russian (both police and military), US Army Rangers, and even the Brazilian favela gangs.

Multiplayer
The holographic sight is considered by many as the best and most accurate optic in the game. The optic has a red dot in the middle and a red reticule around the dot. The holographic sight has many advantages over its red dot partner.

Advantages:


 * Has a larger red dot making it easier to use for more inexperienced players.
 * On the F2000 and TAR-21, replaces the more unwieldy proprietary sights (the MARS sight and an integrated red dot on the F2000).
 * The Holographic sight reticle is less opaque than a red dot, making it easier to see the target.
 * The Holographic sights are the size of a character model's head.

Disadvantages:


 * Larger reticle and thicker frame makes it slightly more obstructive.
 * The clear glass actually glares in sunlight due to the game's lighting effects

Overall, the red dot sight is superior for people who run and gun, and the Holographic sight is better for people who want to take more accurate shots. The holographic sight should be avoided on sunny maps like Favela, Terminal, and also Afghan.

Important note: The holographic sight is a step beyond the red dot sight in inducing a recoil penalty on the weapon. Testing with the MG4 and this sight have proven that while the red dot sight simple increases the lateral firing arc the MG4 takes when firing in fully automatic mode, the Holographic sight further increases inaccuracy by causing it to pitch more erratically, leading to what can be described as a cone of fire, in that after enough bullets have been fired, the pattern it makes is of a circle with shots everywhere within, and even some far strays. Contrast this to the high accuracy of the MG4 under ironsights, which has no stray bullets from its sprinkler like lateral arc back and forth pattern, and only a few slightly higher than arc line strays with the red dot sight. The Holo sight tends to draw the MG4 upward and makes it more likely to recoil further than its base recoil, which is how the cone and subsequent circle of fire at the target area is produced. However, this increase in inaccuracy is moderate, and perhaps even desirable in circumstances of wanting to lay down suppressing fire on a target behind a medium or hard cover, when compared to the heavy penalty to recoil and control of the gun with an ACOG on it.

These penalties make sense, as it is for balancing purposes to make each sight useful under its own function. Simply creating the MG4 class five times with different attachments and making a private match, using the designed classes to fire at a wall, will give a significant understanding of how exactly each sight in the game affects the pitch, yaw, and list, perameters of guns in the game.

Significantly, and shown by the MG4 compared to other LMGs, the holo sight as well as the ACOG sight has superior advantages for a highly accurate weapon as opposed to a weapon with high recoil, such as an RPD or TAR-21, as high power low accuracy weapons receive even more inaccuracy than the others, indicating that the inaccuracy increase is based on a percentage of the base.

Trivia

 * The MW2 EOTech is the 551 model. The COD4 EOTech is the 552. This is explained due to the different battery compartment sizes.
 * When used on the M16, the EOTech reduces bullet spread. (Compared to Red Dot Sight).