Warzone bug gives players perfect idea for possible Riot Shields counter

Call of Duty: Warzone players have come up with the perfect way to counter annoying Riot Shields. And it’s all thanks to a bug, which helped the game’s fans realize that two negatives can make a positive.

In a first-person shooter, a Riot Shield sounds like a dumb idea. You can’t shoot or throw grenades at anyone while holding it up and you have to slowly crouch around for it to protect your legs. 

But Riot Shields are impenetrable in Warzone and that makes them uncomfortably effective. Most players have lived the nightmare of getting stunned by a Riot Shield user, before being approached and killed by melee.

Reddit’s ‘guberNailer’ came face to face with that nightmare while standing on Verdansk’s train. The player grabbed an M82 sniper rifle out of a chest and figured they’d try to snipe the Riot Shield user. A moment later, a new game concept was born.

Warzone bug lets players snipe through Riot Shield

.50 Cal Goes Through Riot Shields Now or What? byu/guberNailer inCODWarzone

As you can see in the clip, guberNailer looks for alternative options after trying to gun through the Riot Shield. Picking up an M82, they intuitively try a snipe and boom, somehow they kill their foe.

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It’s unclear exactly why this worked, as the shield usually protects whichever spot it’s covering (including the back of your head). So it could be a bug or some bizarre timing with the enemy moving around.

Regardless, it gave people an idea. In the replies, people quickly got to thinking. GuberNailer asked if “.50 cal goes through Riot Shields now” and the top comments believe it should.

What if Warzone let big snipers shoot through Riot Shields?

Activision

The HDR has fallen out of its once massive favor since it’s so heavy.

Unlike the Kar98k and the Swiss K31, snipers like the M82, HDR, and AX-50 are substantially heavier and slower to wield. That immobility is balanced by increased lethality, theoretically.

As such, the game’s fans think it would be reasonable for those hefty snipers — and the armor-piercing ZRG — to shoot through Riot Shields. This is an interesting idea, as it could increase their viability while continuing to be balanced since they’re so slow to use. 

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This idea doesn’t seem to have made it to the developers just yet, as Raven Software haven’t replied. But it’s definitely intriguing and could be a fun way to bring some more counterplay opportunities to some of the game’s more niche loadouts.