Desert Eagle

The Desert Eagle is a handgun featured in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3: Defiance.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare
"Semi-automatic with high power. Effective at close range."

- Sidearm description

Campaign
The Desert Eagle appears as one of the four sidearms available in game, being the most powerful (and most uncommon) one. The only level in which the Desert Eagle is available is "Crew Expendable." The Desert Eagle can only be obtained during the campaign if the player runs ahead of the other S.A.S. members in the first cargo hold of "Crew Expendable", at which point an Ultranationalist leaps out of a storage container, screaming, armed with two Desert Eagles. It is also seen being given to Khaled Al-Asad by Imran Zakhaev to execute President Al-Fulani in "The Coup", and is again seen being wielded by Imran Zakhaev during "Game Over" where he executes Gaz with it. It can also be obtained by using the "give all" console command on PC during the levels "Safehouse" and "Game Over". A two-tone Desert Eagle can be seen in the armory in the mission "F.N.G."

Multiplayer
In multiplayer, the Desert Eagle remains a very powerful pistol. It can kill in two hits at close range, unless the target is using Juggernaut and/or Last Stand. Although the other pistols can do the same, the Desert Eagle is unique in that it does not require Stopping Power to achieve two-hit kills, making it a popular sidearm for players using Perks other than Stopping Power. The Desert Eagle also has the highest hipfire accuracy of any weapon in the game. Unlike other pistols, it cannot be fitted with a silencer. The Desert Eagle is unlocked at Level 43.

The Desert Eagle is very popular online because of its sheer power. However, some people choose not to use it due to its low magazine capacity of 7 rounds. It is also one of the loudest weapons in the game, and has high visual recoil.

Old School Mode
The Desert Eagle appears in Old School Mode with 7 ammunition in the magazine and 14 reserve ammunition.


 * Ambush - In front of Last Stand, at the northern end of the map.

Campaign
The Desert Eagle is more common in the campaign than it was in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, appearing as the first sidearm used in the game, in the level "S.S.D.D." In the mission "Takedown", Rojas' Assistant uses a Desert Eagle to kill two Militia members who approach him, and another who tries to ambush him. It is sometimes used in the hands of the Militia. It can also be found in the makeshift hospital in "Of Their Own Accord", right next to Cpl. Keating's computer, and in one of the rooms with the resting soldiers on a small table next to one of the beds. In "Just Like Old Times", it can be found on a green barrel just before the riot shield ambush and in the control room just before Shepherd destroys it. In "The Hornet's Nest" it can be found in the lower scrapyard behind a blue overturned refrigerator. It is also in the armory in "Loose Ends," and Akimbo Desert Eagles can be found twice in the level, "Takedown". Its rate of fire seems to have been slowed down compared to the rate of fire in the previous game, and accuracy seems to suffer if fired repeatedly, making it almost useless unless using Akimbo.

Multiplayer
The Desert Eagle is unlocked at level 62. In multiplayer it appears alongside another very powerful handgun: the .44 Magnum. Since the .44 Magnum is unlocked before the Desert Eagle, has more minimum damage, less recoil and no idle sway, it is much more popular. Although the Desert Eagle's minimum damage is slightly lower than the .44 Magnum, if the player combines it with Stopping Power both guns will kill in the same amount of shots. The .44 Magnum does, however, have a six round capacity as opposed to the Desert Eagle's seven rounds. The Desert Eagle also has a faster reload time than the .44 Magnum.

The Desert Eagle, with its high power, significant visual recoil, and distinctive report, retains similarities to the one from Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. One new addition is that it now accepts attachments. However, its recoil has been increased considerably by greatly reducing its centerspeed. The weapon now sports a darker, two-tone finish. The Desert Eagle is now seen with tactical rails on both the top of the weapon and the underside of the barrel, and it also has a tactical laser mounted underneath. However, this is purely aesthetic, as the Desert Eagle cannot equip any attachments on the rails and players cannot utilize the laser. Another new feature is the addition of a white three-dot-sight setup; however, the sights are misaligned; the front post is to the right of the true impact point. However, the Desert Eagle's sights become centered while using the Tactical Knife attachment. It is one of the two handguns in-game that cannot accept a Suppressor, the other being the .44 Magnum.

The Desert Eagle goes fairly unused online due to its high unlock level and high recoil. However, players that take the time to unlock the Akimbo attachment are rewarded with a powerful and easy-to-use close quarters weapon. Some players prefer a single Desert Eagle over Akimbo, however, as the single Desert Eagle's hipfire accuracy is higher. The sights are misaligned, it actually fires to the upper left corner of where the player is aiming at, but with the Tactical Knife, the Iron Sights are positioned correctly.

The Tactical Knife attachment, unlocked at 100 kills with the Desert Eagle, actually correctly aligns the iron sights on the Desert Eagle. Also, it is very useful if the user misses a few too many shots and has to reload or is faced with more than one opponent with the Desert Eagle.

Despite the Desert Eagle's ability to kill in one shot at any range in Hardcore, it is usually passed up for more accurate weapons with the same ability, such as the M93 Raffica.

Weapon Attachments

 * FMJ
 * Akimbo
 * Tactical Knife

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3
The Desert Eagle returns in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3. It now appears to have a darker metallic finish and has tritium iron sights. Additionally, it lacks the top rail and underbarrel flashlight from Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, looking more like the Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare variant with night sights.

Campaign
The Desert Eagle is seen in use by Captain Price and Sandman when they finish off wounded enemies. It is also seen in the hands of Price when he threatens Yuri shortly after Soap's death. The Desert Eagle is used by Yuri in the missions "Persona Non Grata", "Return to Sender", and "Blood Brothers". At the end of the Campaign, Makarov uses a Desert Eagle to kill Yuri, and in an attempt to kill Price.

It is not nearly as useful as it is in Multiplayer, and is best reserved for wounded enemies, given its low firecap in single player and low ammunition.

Multiplayer
The Desert Eagle is unlocked at Level 76. It is very much like it was with the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 version. It has high damage killing in two shots if one bullet hits the body (three shots to the limbs, however) and a very high firecap, but has high recoil. This tends to make tracking targets at long range difficult.

It is worth noting that the Desert Eagle does have a very predictable recoil pattern, with the shots going up before hitting a "ceiling" where the bullets will stop climbing vertically and instead slide slightly to the right. With this knowledge in mind, the player can effectively engage targets at long range by pulling the gun down slightly when it starts to overshoot. Otherwise it is advised to "pace" the shots and let the recoil settle before firing again.

Despite the extreme recoil, the Desert Eagle has several advantage over all other weapons in its class - its damage has the two-hit kill capability of the MP412 and .44 Magnum, but the Desert Eagle also requires only four shots to kill at range compared the six required by all other handguns. Since both the recoil and damage are very high, the Desert Eagle is very effective with Akimbo; said attachment eliminates the visual recoil of ADS and doubles the capacity. The recoil with Akimbo is still very noticeable, but easier to manage thanks to the more open line of sight. The Akimbo attachment also takes advantage of the two hit kill capability by allowing the Desert Eagles to be fired at the same time and kill instantly at close range. On the other hand, a single Desert Eagle may be preferred due to the ability to land shots consistently. This will also make the handgun more useful at range. Additionally, the Desert Eagle has 2 more rounds than the revolvers with a significantly shorter reload time but carries a smaller supply of ammunition.

It is worth noting that the Desert Eagle can potentially kill in one shot at any distance in hardcore.

Despite these advantages, the Desert Eagle is only particularly effective up close due to the high recoil (even with Akimbo) and flat Iron Sights.

Special Ops
The Desert Eagle is available for both Survival and Mission modes.

Mission Mode
The Desert Eagle is an alternate weapon in the Mission Mode challenges "Stay Sharp" and "Charges Set".

Survival Mode
The Desert Eagle is available in Survival Mode at level 11 and costs $250. The Desert Eagle is often favored over other sidearms because of its sheer power, but the Desert Eagle has a a small magazine, high recoil, and just slightly higher damage than the other pistols. Like all other handguns, the Desert Eagle is decent for the first few waves but should be exchanged for another weapon after the early waves.

Attachments

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

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3: Defiance
The Desert Eagle makes its first appearance on the DS in ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3: Defiance. ''It has a capacity of 8 rounds. The Desert Eagle in this game has a similar firing sound to the Desert Eagle in the other games, and has less visual recoil.

Campaign
The Desert Eagle appears throughout the campaign as both a starting sidearm and a weapon found on top of ammo crates. It has the lowest ammunition capacity out of the handguns and highest recoil, but makes up for this with its power.

Multiplayer
The Desert Eagle appears as a locked weapon and requires 500 kills with any pistol to unlock. The Desert Eagle can be used early in multiplayer should the player play One in the Chamber, Sharpshooter or Gun Game. Retaining all of its qualities from singleplayer, the Desert Eagle can down opponents with one shot. (More than one if they're equipped with the Body Armor Perk and/or damage multiplier has been set to low).

Gold Desert Eagle
"Gold plated semi-automatic with high power. Effective at close range."

- Sidearm description



Gold Camouflage can be used in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare upon reaching level 55 and in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 multiplayer via modding. The gold Desert Eagle has exactly the same stats as the normal Desert Eagle, with the only difference being the color and the removed TacLight in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2. The golden color makes the Gold Desert Eagle generally preferred over the regular Desert Eagle by players. The Gold Desert Eagle is the only golden weapon which does not require any expert challenges to be completed.

The files for Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Modern Warfare 3 contain all the data for the Gold Desert Eagle, though it is inaccessible in those games. Its implementation is almost entirely complete, and it can be used normally in game with a hack such as a Class Editor. This near-complete implementation suggests it was going to be a last-level reward like it was in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, but it was displaced by the AK-47 fairly late in development.

General

 * The Desert Eagle, USP .45, M9 and M1911 are the only pistols to feature in all three main installments of the Modern Warfare series.
 * The USP .45 and the Desert Eagle are the only usable pistols in all three titles.
 * The Desert Eagle has a separate Gold-Plated version in every Modern Warfare game to date. However, the Golden Desert Eagle in Call of Duty 4 is the only one that can be equipped without modding.

Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare

 * On Infinity Ward's website, the Desert Eagle was voted favorite handgun of the game.
 * The ammo name for the Desert Eagle in the game files is .357 Magnum.
 * Should the player prestige in Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, when the last decision about prestiging is made and the player goes to prestige, the firing sound of the Desert Eagle is heard.
 * It is the only pistol to be able to have a camouflage.
 * In the mission "Crew Expendable", it's possible to pick up two Desert Eagles and use them interchangeably without sharing ammo between them.
 * During dramatic moments involving a pistol, such as Al-Asad's execution and when Victor Zakhaev commits suicide, the Desert Eagle's firing sound is used, even when other pistols are used.
 * The Desert Eagle is the only sidearm to have a camouflage.
 * This pistol is commonly used in conjunction with Last Stand and a modded controller to score multiple kills before dying. However, said method is rare and frowned upon when it does happen.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

 * When Shepherd shoots Roach and Ghost, the first shot uses the sound file of the Desert Eagle, even though he uses a .44 Magnum.
 * In "Exodus", a Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 single-tone Desert Eagle can be found next to the dead High Value Individual, but it cannot be picked up.
 * Dunn has the Call of Duty 4 modeled Desert Eagle as a sidearm, it can be seen in his holster in various missions, and he is seen checking it during the first mission of the game.
 * In campaign and Special Ops, the Desert Eagle's maximum ammunition is doubled when equipped with Akimbo. While in multiplayer this is the case for all Akimbo-capable weapons, in singleplayer this is characteristic is apparently unique to the Desert Eagle.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3

 * The Desert Eagle has a new firing sound, while its old one is now used for the .44 Magnum.
 * The Wii version, however, still retains the firing sounds from the previous games.
 * Price uses a Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2-styled Desert Eagle to kill Waraabe.
 * The Desert Eagle's rear iron sights were originally green, but in the final release of the game they are orange. This can be seen in a pre-release screenshot for Modern Warfare 3.
 * All variations of the Desert Eagle are seen in the game. The original variation, in a two tone finish akin to Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare and Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is seen, but cannot be used in "Down the Rabbit Hole", the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 version is used by Captain Price, but is not usable, and the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 version is the only usable variation.
 * It is possible to obtain a Desert Eagle with a Suppressor and a Desert Eagle Custom via modding.
 * On the multiplayer map Lockdown, it is possible to see a teddy bear with two golden Desert Eagles in a window sill. It can only be seen through spectating, through Theater, or by using the Recon Drone kill streak reward.
 * In the campaign, the Desert Eagle is seen being used by all members of Team Metal except for Frost.
 * On the side of the pistol, it reads "©Desert Hawk Pistol Magnum Research Inc. Minneapolis, MN".

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3: Defiance

 * This is the first Nintendo DS game to include the Desert Eagle.
 * When reloading the Desert Eagle, the player inserts an extremely short magazine into the gun, about one third of the size of the Desert Eagle's handle.