STG-44

The Sturmgewehr 44, was a German assault rifle developed during World War II. It is featured in Call of Duty, Call of Duty 2: Big Red One, Call of Duty 2, Call of Duty 3, and Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. The StG44 is widely considered to be the world's first true assault rifle.

History
The MP44 was designed in Nazi Germany during the Second World War. The idea was to create a selective-fire rifle with an intermediate sized cartridge, as the bolt-action rifles of the day were considered unnecessarily powerful for the 600 meters or less in which infantry engagements were found to be taking place. Originally Adolf Hitler disapproved of creating the weapon and called it a "Discrace to Germans" (because he thought is looked like an abomination), as he also favored submachine gun production, and ordered that submachine guns be given priority in production and design. However, many thought the new rifle would be a potent weapon, so they continued the project, calling the rifle a submachine gun. After many generals on the eastern front requested more of them, Hitler eventually examined the weapon. He was impressed by its preformance and gave the MP44 the title of Sturmgewehr or "Storm Rifle." The StG44 was used by the Nazis from 1944 to 1945 and was an extremely effective weapon, though hard to mass produce and limited by the total number manufactured and by the number actually issued to field troops. After the War, original MP44s were used in limited numbers by East Germany, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia until the 1980s. And is known as the World's First Assault Rifle.

Call of Duty and Call of Duty:United Offensive
The MP44 is a good support weapon. Combining short, medium and long range powers with a 30-round magazine, the MP44 is a great weapon to have. It kills with three to four shots to the body (one for the head), has good accuracy and a short reload time compared to the other support guns. However, it's only major flaw is it's recoil. Burst firing is essential if the player wants to hit anything with it past short range, or perhaps when in prone position, firing it without ironsight with a one shot burst. It's also not the best for long range, but it can do in a pinch. In close quarters, the MP44 can stand toe-to-toe with even the best SMGs. Overall, it's a very versatile weapon that every team needs to have at least one of in multiplayer.

In United Offensive, the MP44 has a different skin from the one in Call of Duty, but is otherwise the same.

Call of Duty 2
The Call of Duty 2 MP44 is much meaner than it was in Call of Duty. It has much less recoil, making it much more manageable to use, and can kill with two to three chest shots, and it retains the accuracy it originally had. These improvements allow it to be deadly in multiplayer.

Call of Duty 4
In Call of Duty 4, the recoil levels were reverted to the level they were in the original game. The MP44's accuracy and damage are still decent, and it is the only automatic rifle in the game with no aim-sway. However, being the 60 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 to some, but others accustomed to the Call of Duty 2 ironsights (or those that prefer ironsights in general), adjust to it with no problem. Because it is unlocked so late in the game, (level 52 to be specific) Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 players may not be able to use it much before they go prestige.

The MP44 is antiquated compared to modern weapons like the low recoil M4, or high-rate-of-fire LMGs. Some players just use it in order to get the golden AK-47 and then cease to use it; however, it can be a solid weapon that gets the job done. However, in many players opinions, this gun is mainly for nostalgia, as it is simply outclassed by most of the more modern assualt rifles.

Call of Duty: World at War
The MP44 is unlocked at level 37.

Trivia

 * There was a special attachment device for the weapon called the Krummlauf. It was basically a bent barrel with a periscope sighting device attached which allowed soldiers to shoot around corners without exposing themselves to enemy fire. It was also intended for tank crews so as to allow them to engage infantry who were too close to a tank to be engaged with any other weapon. However, this modification was rarely used, as bullets would often break through the curve of the barrel, causing a dangerous explosion of metal and rendering the barrel useless.
 * Another developed, but rarely used device, was the Zielgerät 1229 code-namedVampir. This consisted of a scope and an infrared "spotlight", used as a night-vision device, similar to the ones found on late-model Sdkfz. 251 Half-Tracks. However, this was cumbersome to use and expensive to produce.