The MP40 (Maschinenpistole 40) is a sub-machine gun featured in all World War II installments of the Call of Duty series, as well as a brief appearance in Call of Duty: Black Ops in the Zombie maps Kino der Toten and Call of the Dead, as well as the single player level "Project Nova".
Call of Duty and United Offensive
Singleplayer
The MP40 is one of the most common weapons in the game, and by default has abundant ammunition. It does high damage, though this tapers off in United Offensive, along with high magazine capacity and very little recoil and an adequate rate of fire, except that unlike other machine-guns, the MP40 doesn't have a semi-automatic firing mode. This makes for a very versatile weapon in singleplayer, as it only takes two body shots to bring down an enemy, although in UO, it takes upwards of 5 rounds. Its high damage and rate of fire makes it the best spray-and-pray gun in the game, as it can clean an entire room with only one magazine.
Multiplayer
In multiplayer, the MP40 is still relatively powerful, as it takes just three bullets to kill one enemy, or upwards of seven at long range in UO, and with its fairly good accuracy and high magazine capacity, it is more than capable of offing upwards of ten opponents per magazine.
Call of Duty: Finest Hour
The MP40 is a stable submachine gun found on all fronts. It is the first automatic weapon encountered by the player in the level "Not One Step Back". It does decent damage and has controllable recoil, compared to some other submachine guns. On the last level of the game, Wehrmacht troops carry often up to 1,000 rounds or more with them. Anywhere elsewhere in the game each soldier has 96 at the most part except for the first mission, where one can be found with no more than 319 rounds in it. The most a player can hold at once is 32 rounds in the magazine and 160 rounds of reserve ammunition, but with a glitch the player can have up to 38,000 rounds, if not more. It's iron sights were used for the Call of Duty: World at War version.
Call of Duty 2
Singleplayer
The Call of Duty 2 MP40 has been slightly changed from the older versions. While its damage and rate of fire are the same, its recoil has been significantly increased. This makes it much harder to control, so burst firing a target that isn't in close quarters is essential if the player wants to hit an enemy. It takes two rounds to kill an enemy in singleplayer, the same as the older installments. Also, its range is somewhat decreased.
Multiplayer
It is still quite powerful at close range, still requiring only three rounds to kill one enemy. However, due to damage dropoff over range, it can take ten rounds, 1/3rd of a magazine, to kill one enemy, making it significantly unreliable at range, especially with the higher recoil taken into account.
Call of Duty 2: Big Red One
The MP40 appears the same as its previous games. It is used by the Germans in almost every level except on the level The Great Crusade and An Easy Detail where it is replaced by the MP44. It is also not seen in mission featuring the French or Italian militaries. It is a very easy weapon to use, and ammo is never a problem, for almost all german soldiers use it on most levels. At close and medium range, the MP40 kills in 2-3 shots, and 4-5 at long range. Its iron sights are very clear, and it can also be single-fired, if the user has an adequite trigger-finger.
Call of Duty 3
In Call of Duty 3, the MP40 is very similar to the other games, and is one the most common weapons available, as a large amount of German soldiers carry the MP40. It does have a shocking recoil, but soon back to position after the recoil. Though not as powerful as the Thompson, the MP40 is a good option for someone who is out of ammo.
Call of Duty: Roads to Victory
In Call of Duty: Roads to Victory, the MP40 is widely used by German soldiers until the British campaign, when it is largely replaced by the STG-44.
Call of Duty: World at War
Singleplayer
The MP40 is commonly used by the German soldiers in Call of Duty: World at War, during the Russian campaign. It is common to switch to the MP40 in campaign since the Russian PPSh-41 eats up ammunition extremely fast, and many allies have to be killed to obtain a usable amount of ammo (though this is not the case in "Heart of the Reich", as the majority of allies will be wielding the PPSh-41 during the main assault on the four Flak 88s, making ammo much more readily available in this part). In any case, ammo for the MP40 is widely available in campaign. It is a reliable sidearm to the Mosin-Nagant Rifle, due to the stated reason that ammunition is easily found, and that it also is powerful in close quarters.
Multiplayer
The MP40 is unlocked at level 10, and statistically the most powerful SMG in the game, in terms of damage per round. Stopping Power and Steady Aim make the MP40 incredibly powerful in close quarters, as it is very accurate while hipfiring. The low fire-rate is somewhat balanced by the large-capacity magazine and high power. These traits make the MP40 one of the most popular weapons in multiplayer. The lower rate of fire sometimes allows users to manage their ammo supply efficiently. The widespread use of the MP40 makes ammunition a non-issue, so Bandolier becomes the least beneficial perk with this weapon.
Many players take advantage of the high power of the MP40, and use tier 2 perks that are less common. However, Juggernaut with the MP40 is a common sight because when Juggernaut is used, the user becomes incredibly powerful in close quarters - the MP40 is able to kill in two hits at close range without Stopping Power, and the user will take less damage from enemy weapons. This combination is common, mainly because the perk and weapon are available in the early levels, although this is generally frowned upon by the gaming community.
The weapon performs well in short-to-medium range combat, as the recoil makes firing at range difficult - however, users can easily burst-fire at range. The recoil is somewhat more controllable than that of other SMGs due to the MP40's lower rate of fire. It is also one of the few weapons that is commonly used with all its attachments - most are generally used with just one. The Dual Magazines attachment is most commonly used as it allows close to ten seconds of fire, and coupled with Steady Aim, many players just spray and pray instead of aiming down the sights to neutralize targets. Double Tap is sometimes used to combat the low fire rate - but doing so increases the recoil. This is less effective at range as Stopping Power kills faster with the MP40 at longer ranges, and using less rounds. Double Tap is greater in effectiveness at close range.
It is possible to fire single rounds at a time from the MP40 by gently pressing and releasing the fire button (not holding it down). This is possible thanks to the MP40's low rate of fire, and if used in this manner will allow the MP40 to take out targets with a few quick single-fire taps from a long distance as if it were a rifle. It should be noted, however, that this capability is lost with the Double Tap perk.
The MP40 with a Silencer, Bomb Squad, Camouflage, and Dead Silence is a very powerful stealth class, and is less looked down upon than an MP40 with Juggernaut. This is most common in Search and Destroy, as stealth is less of an issue in other game modes.
In Hardcore, the MP40 with Stopping Power is a one shot kill at any range, unless the enemy is using Juggernaut or Second Chance, or the target is hit through a surface. Without Stopping Power, only a headshot at long range will kill in one shot. Outside of Hardcore, Stopping Power is only beneficial at long range where the MP40's minimum damage of 29 is increased to 40 (making it just as powerful as a non-Perked Thompson or Type 100 at close range). At close range, the MP40's damage is increased to a whopping 70, but it is important to note that this increase in power does not actually reduce the number of bullets it takes to kill an opponent, because in regular modes players are given 100 health, which means that whether an MP40 has stopping power or not it will still require at least two bullets to take down an opponent in close quarters. This is actually true even in the case of headshots, which do 98 damage on an opponent, just barely missing the threshold of a one shot kill.
It is not recommended to have Dual Magazines as the large ammunition capacity, low rate of fire, and high damage allow for the use of a different attachment, unless one is using Double Tap, or in the case of some players, hip-firing the gun and spraying it. The low penetration of the MP40 is a problems to some users as this means that the target has to be more exposed, whilst with the Thompson, the penetration is higher, and a target taking cover can be killed much quicker than with the MP40.
Due to its high hipfire accuracy, and therefore its CQB compatibility, the MP40 is often effective in most encounters.
Nazi Zombies
The MP40 appears in all Nazi Zombie levels, being available off the wall in all maps except for Nacht der Untoten, and from the Mystery Box in every map. As usual, it is comparable to the Thompson, but with higher damage and a larger magazine at the cost of a lower rate of fire. Like the Thompson, it is a powerful weapon in the early to mid rounds. In the later rounds, players will frequently run out of ammo. However, its recoil is significantly reduced compared to the campaign or multiplayer version.
When placing it in the Pack-a-Punch Machine in the Nazi Zombies map Der Riese its name becomes "The Afterburner", and its magazine capacity and damage is doubled. Even after the upgrade, players will often run out of ammo in the middle of the round, leaving them vulnerable. The ability to buy ammo and upgraded ammo off the wall is often a huge advantage over guns that do not have this feature, as ammo becomes a problem with all weapons in later rounds.
Weapon Attachments
Call of Duty: World at War (DS)
The MP-40 appears in the Nintendo DS version of Call of Duty: World at War as one of the five sub machine-guns in game. Just like the console versions, it has the lowest rate of fire of all automatic weapons and a 32 round magazine, but that is where the similarities end. First of all, the MP-40 has the lowest damage output of all weapons in game, as opposed to one of the highest. Secondly, it has the lowest recoil of all weapons, having nearly none. Lastly, the rate of fire is so low that even a mediocre player could fire a semiautomatic weapon faster than it. Despite the seemingly bad qualities, it excels at long range combat, where accuracy triumphs power.
Singleplayer
In single player, the MP-40 is the most commonly found weapon in the British and Russian campaigns. It is wielded by every German soldier, until the level "Missed Delivery", where enemies with STG-44s can be found. Unlike its multiplayer variant, it is a decent weapon to use, killing foes with three shots at any range, though its use is limited to long ranges. As mentioned before, the MP-40 best used at long range, but can be effective in close quarters in one on one engagements. Due to the less advanced game engine, the player is given enough time to aim for the enemy's head and kill them before they, themselves, are killed.
Multiplayer
In multiplayer, the MP-40 maintains the same stats as in singleplayer but with higher rate of fire, however it is still best treated as a long range weapon, as its low power and low rate of fire make it terrible in close encounters, unless one is attacking an unsuspecting enemy or is aiming for the head. Due to these factors, it is seen much less than the console versions.
However, if the enemy is surprised, it will easily dominate them. And, as with all submachine guns, they lose much power at a distance, though with the MP40's low rate of fire, recoil is not much of a problem.
Call of Duty: World at War: Final Fronts
Singleplayer
The MP40 appears in all Winter Offensive Campaigns of Call of Duty: World at War Final Fronts
Call of Duty: Black Ops
Campaign
The MP40 appears exclusively in the campaign mission "Project Nova" and is sporting a new appearance, as it is covered in snow and a new outer chrome-like plating. It is almost the same as in Call of Duty: World at War, except for a different firing sound, similar to how it was in CoD2.
Zombies
The MP40 appears in the Zombies maps Kino der Toten, Call of the Dead, Verrückt, Shi No Numa, and Der Riese. It has a re-used model from Call of Duty: World at War. It can be bought from the wall for 1000 points and its ammunition costs 500 points. If kept past round 10, it is advisable to go for headshots, as the MP40 will kill the zombies much faster and headshots will conserve ammo a bit more. The MP40 can be upgraded via the Pack-a-Punch Machine to become "The Afterburner", with a doubled magazine capacity and increase to damage and rate of fire. With or without the upgrade, the MP40 has a lower rate of fire than the Cold War era SMGs, making Double Tap Root Beer worthy of consideration. But the MP40 deals superior damage per round than any other SMG, which helps mitigate the lower rate of fire. Indeed, if ammunition supplies are an issue then the lower rate of fire may even be seen as a blessing. This gun also benefits greatly from reload canceling, as it does not take very long for the magazine to be loaded.
Trivia
Call of Duty 2
- There is a distinct fingerprint on the curve below the iron sights.
- The third person model shows the stock folded, but the first person view shows the stock open.
- The MP40 has the same reload sounds as the M3 Grease Gun.
Call of Duty 3
- Sometimes it is possible to see through the weapon when firing it whilst looking down the ironsights (look closely at the closest part of the gun to the player).
- The Call of Duty 3 reload animation is a little more different than other Call of Duty games. The first thing the player does is that they pull back the charging handle, then take and put another magazine in, then pushes the handle forward again.
Call of Duty: World at War
- The MP40 has a similar reloading animation to its Call of Duty 2 variant. Other weapons that have this are the M1A1 Carbine, the STG-44, the Thompson, and the Colt M1911.
- When using an MP40 with an Aperture Sight and Bandolier, the player starts with 32 less rounds than they would without using aperture sights.
- The Wii version of Call of Duty: World at War, the MP40's fire rate is slightly less than in the other consoles' versions.
- "MP40" can be seen engraved near the stock.
- The MP40 is modeled off the Call of Duty 2 version.
- The MP40's Create-a-Class picture and pick-up icon shows its stock extended, even though its gameplay model always shows the stock folded.
Call of Duty: World at War (DS)
- The MP40 shares the same audio files for the reloading sound of the BAR.
- Also, in the campaign, an MP40 used by the enemy has a faster rate of fire than one used by the player.
- Every time the player picks up an MP40 it will always have a full magazine, no matter how much the enemy soldier was shooting.
- The rate of fire of the MP40 is higher in multiplayer than in singleplayer.
Call of Duty: Black Ops
- The weapon appears to be a test weapon of the Care Package. It is featured in the killstreak's code, but cannot be acquired during gameplay. The weapons "mp40_mp", "mp40_drop_mp" and "mp40_blinged_mp" do not work when acquired using "give all" console command.
- It is also possible that the MP40 in Kino der Toten is a reference to the movie, Inglourious Basterds. In the movie, the main characters used a MP40 in a theater to kill Nazis.
- It is possible to get this weapon in "Five" using console commands on PC.
- In Kino der Toten, the Pack-a-Punch camouflage on the MP40 is more reddish than it is on other weapons.
- The MP40, along with the M1911 and the Bowie Knife, are the only non-Wonder Weapons from Zombies in World at War to appear in Black Ops (excluding Classic Maps).
- The MP40 and the M1911 are the only WWII weapons to appear in Call of the Dead, as the Bowie Knife is replaced by the Sickle.
- The MP40 shares reloading sounds with the Kiparis.
- The MP40 appears as the primary gun on an arcade version of World at War in the Annihilation map Drive-in.
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