.44 Magnum

The .44 Magnum is a revolver featured in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Modern Warfare 2: Ghost, Find Makarov, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, Call of Duty Online, Call of Duty: Ghosts and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered.

Campaign
The .44 Magnum, called Colt Anaconda in the game files, is always carried and used by General Shepherd throughout the campaign as his signature weapon of choice. Shepherd is seen reloading his .44 Magnum at the beginning of the mission "Team Player". In the end of "Loose Ends" he has another big .44 Magnum tucked in the back of his pants that he uses to kill Ghost and Roach, and in "Endgame" when he attempts to kill Soap and Captain Price.

This weapon is not available in the campaign; however, while in the mission "Museum", the player can pick up this weapon either from the display shelf or by killing Shepherd. It is also possible to have both .44 Magnums at the same time.

Multiplayer
The .44 Magnum is available for Create-A-Class at level 26, being the second Handgun unlocked. This powerful weapon always kills in three or fewer hits, regardless of the use of Stopping Power—the perk only increases the range at which a two-hit kill is attainable. In Hardcore game modes, the .44 Magnum requires just one hit to kill regardless of range or perks, unless used against a player using Painkiller, Final Stand or Last Stand, or if the player is shooting through thick cover.

The .44 Magnum has high visual recoil, but with a fast recovery between shots, and can have all six rounds fired quickly with little loss of accuracy up to medium range. Its main drawbacks are its small six-round capacity and moderately slow reload animation; however, it does have a quick reload cancel, which reduces the reload time by roughly half. The normal spare ammo carried by the player is twelve. But when equipped with the Scavenger perk, it increases to thirty-six.

Despite being a handgun, the .44 Magnum in fact has the same effective range of most rifles, especially with Stopping Power. Being able to kill at even extreme distances, the drawback for using this gun at long range is the lack of magnification when aiming down the sights, a trait shared by all handguns.

The .44 is often compared to the Desert Eagle, as both have close to the same stats, with high damage and low ammo capacity. However, the .44 Magnum has more damage and better accuracy, while the Desert Eagle has a larger magazine capacity. Overall, the .44 Magnum is better than the Desert Eagle, with less recoil, correctly aligned iron sights, and ability to kill over a longer range without the need for Stopping Power.

This weapon is most commonly found in multiplayer with the Tactical Knife attachment, and used with the combination of rushing perks Marathon, Lightweight, and Commando. The knife attack is very effective with a Tactical Knife, especially with the increased melee lunge range due to Commando.

Attachments

 * FMJ
 * Akimbo
 * Tactical Knife

Modern Warfare 2: Ghost
The .44 Magnum makes a brief appearance in Modern Warfare 2: Ghost. In the last comic, "Dead And Gone", Manuel Roba is seen holding a .44 Magnum. However, he drops it after Ghost throws a knife into his arm.

Find Makarov
The .44 Magnum is used by Shepherd during his confrontation with Soap and Price.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
The .44 Magnum reappears in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, featuring tritium sights, wood grips and a blued finish. The hammer also appears to have been either cut or filed down to a shorter length.

The gun uses the same reload animation from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, but has a different firing sound.

Campaign
The .44 Magnum is only available in the "Bag and Drag" mission of the campaign. It is used by the GIGN, who can draw the revolver when they are out of ammo, or when they engage enemies in close quarters hand-to-hand combat. The .44 Magnum can be picked up if Tueur or the random soldier who assists the player are killed while wielding it. It is powerful enough, being able to kill enemies in one shot, though it can only hold 18 rounds in reserve. It is also briefly seen in the intro cutscene of "Prologue" during a flashback where Shepherd is seen wielding it, and in "Return To Sender" where it is holstered by Waraabe.

Multiplayer
The .44 Magnum is unlocked at Level 46 in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 ' s multiplayer. Compared to its Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 counterpart, it has less maximum damage, much less minimum damage, lower range, and the same amount of recoil. Though the gun works well in close quarters combat, it is less competitive in mid-long ranges due to its low minimum damage and high recoil. At maximum range, it can take five-six shots to kill an enemy depending on where the bullets hit. It has five reserve magazines instead of the normal two, which provides more ammo and longer use to skilled players.

In Infected, the .44 Magnum is the secondary weapon in "Knife vs Type 95" and "Knife vs PP90M1". It is also used as the only weapon for the survivors in "Striker vs Jugg". There used to be a loadout with only the .44 Magnum, named "Knife vs .44 Magnum", but was later removed. In all of these instances, it has Akimbo equipped.

In addition to Infected, the .44 Magnum used to be in Gun Game when it was available in public matches. It was the seventeenth weapon, and it had the Tactical Knife attached.

Survival Mode
The .44 Magnum is available in Survival Mode at level 20 and costs $250. It can be an effective weapon for the early rounds, due to its low cost, high damage, and quick reload time. However, like all pistols, it should be traded in for a more powerful weapon in later rounds, especially because of Juggernauts and helicopters.

Attachments

 * Akimbo - Unlocked at weapon level 5
 * Tactical Knife - Unlocked at weapon level 7

Call of Duty Online
The .44 Magnum appears in Call of Duty Online.

Attachments

 * Akimbo
 * Red Dot Sight
 * Muzzle Brake
 * Silencer
 * ORS (PST) Red Dot Sight
 * Laser
 * Fast Mag
 * Tactical Knife
 * FMJ

Call of Duty: Ghosts
The .44 Magnum, referred to as the Raging within game files and Wild Widow in Safeguard, appears in Call of Duty: Ghosts.

Campaign
The .44 Magnum is only used in the final campaign mission "The Ghost Killer". After breaching the door leading to the engine room, Logan uses Rorke's .44 Magnum to shoot two soldiers in the room. Unlike its counterpart in multiplayer and Extinction, it is used in double-action (semi-automatic) mode instead of single-action. Afterwards, Rorke manages to get Logan off him, and wounds Hesh in the arm with the .44 Magnum. After the train lands into the water, Rorke fires his last round, but misses due to him getting hit by a fire extinguisher by Hesh. While they both fight, Logan picks up the empty revolver, and catches one of the rounds that Hesh throws to him, loads it into the gun and shoots Rorke. The bullet also goes through Hesh, but both he and Rorke survive the shot.

Multiplayer
The .44 Magnum is available in Multiplayer, where it is single-action. This means that it must be re-cocked after every shot, resulting in a slower rate of fire, as well as it suffering in a slower ADS time. However, it has an extremely high damage, enabling a one-hit kill to the upper chest, neck and head compared to its previous variants. This allows for constant one shot kills in hardcore mode, as its damage at long range is higher than 30, turning it into a pseudo-sniper of sorts.

Like the PDW, it is one of the only two handguns capable of equipping an ACOG Scope. A shotgun class could benefit from this, using it as a backup mid-range weapon when a player needs to engage enemies outside of the range of their shotgun. Akimbo allows for two weapons that can provide a one hit kill and also gives extra ammunition. Using this on a class that is lacking close quarters capabilities (such as a sniper rifle, light machine gun, or marksman rifle) can provide the necessary advantages needed in close quarters. It is also possible to pair the ACOG with Akimbo, however, this is functionally pointless due to the player being unable to aim down the sights. This attachment combination is required to complete the "Clueless" Operation, requiring two hundred kills with this combo.

In the game mode Gun Game, the .44 Magnum is the second to last weapon, where it is equipped with Akimbo and ACOG Scopes. In addition, it is also seen in Infected with "Infected Riot" and "Infected MSBS" setups. In Infected Riot, it has Akimbo, while in "Infected MSBS", it does not.

Sights

 * ACOG Scope

Barrel

 * Flash Suppressor
 * Silencer
 * Muzzle Brake
 * ARK (Extinction only)

Under Barrel

 * Tactical Knife
 * Akimbo

Mod

 * Armor-Piercing
 * Extended Mags (Extinction only)

Extinction
"High caliber 6 shooter."

- In-game description

The .44 Magnum appears in Extinction. It has the highest damage per shot but lowest ammo capacity of all the pistols available in Extinction. Unfortunately, to counter the high damage, the .44 Magnum has the lowest range of the pistols. This makes its high maximum damage only show affect at near point blank distances. It also has a slow rate of fire, high visual recoil, and small magazine capacity. However, upgrading the pistol to its max can almost fix all of these problems with the weapon as it will gain increased range through the Muzzle Brake, a high magazine capacity, and akimbo if the player chooses to upgrade it all the way. This should eliminate its visual recoil and slow rate of fire.

An ACOG Scope can be attached to the .44 Magnum by purchasing the "Magnum ACOG attachment" from the armory for two teeth. It requires the Invasion DLC. The ARK barrel can also be added to the .44 Magnum with the "Pistol Ark Attachment" for 125 teeth. It requires the Nemesis DLC. Due to these armories and the upgrades, it is possible for the player to equip an attachment from all four groups onto their .44 Magnum.

Overall, the .44 Magnum is a very good weapon due to its high damage, however, it has a low rate of fire, and is usually looked over by the MP-443 Grach, which is automatic. In addition, it has more ammo than the .44 Magnum.

Upgrades

 * +1 (Cost: 1): Increased damage at long range and faster movement when the pistol is equipped. (Adds non-removable Muzzle Brake.)
 * +2 (Cost: 1): 50% more ammo in each magazine. (6 -> 9 rounds)
 * +3 (Cost: 2): Carry your pistol plus two primary weapons.
 * +4 (Cost: 3): Hip Fire two pistols for twice the firepower and twice the ammo capacity.

Safeguard
The .44 Magnum appears in Safeguard as the "Wild Widow". It is very rare. It comes with Armor-Piercing rounds, and can be obtained from a Supply Drop crate. It has very high damage, killing enemies in one hit until round 50 if at Weapon Level 1; however, it has a low ammo reserve and magazine capacity, so trading it for something else or not taking it is not uncommon. Due to these characteristics, it is best kept as a secondary, and reserved for enemies with higher health, specifically the Destructors.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered
"Semi-automatic with high power. Effective at close range."

- In-game description

The .44 Magnum returns in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered. Before being released on February 7th, 2017, the weapon was usable and complete, indicating it was being tested fairly late in development.

Attachments

 * Silencer

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

 * On the left side of the barrel, there is writing that reads: "BRAD ALLENCONDA .44MAGNUM," a reference to Brad Allen, Infinity Ward's lead artist, and the Colt Anaconda.
 * In the campaign level "Museum", if the player picks up the .44 Magnum from the display case and then kills Shepherd, the player can pick up Shepherd's .44 Magnum without picking up ammo or dropping the Magnum they already have. They will both share ammunition, increasing the maximum spare ammunition carried by the player from eighteen to thirty-six.
 * When using the Tactical Knife, visual recoil is reduced.

Call of Duty: Ghosts

 * The name "Roaring Wolf" and "454 Casull" can be seen engraved along the side of the barrel.
 * The .44 Magnum's serial number is "20021980".
 * During the reloading animation, the player's hand will clip through the trigger guard.
 * A poster on the map Octane has a picture of the pick-up icon for the .44 Magnum from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 on it.