Treyarch Nerfs Aim Assist in Black Ops 7 After Controller Dominance
▼ Summary
– Treyarch is adjusting aim assist in Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 based on beta data showing controller players win more at close range and keyboard-mouse players at long range.
– Changes include modifying aim assist strength across all ranges and rotational aim assist, requiring the right stick to move toward the target for activation.
– The goal is to balance gameplay between controller and keyboard-mouse users by making rotational aim assist less forgiving.
– Raven Software will explore similar aim assist adjustments for Call of Duty: Warzone in Season 01 to align with Black Ops 7 multiplayer.
– Treyarch is also addressing other multiplayer elements like increasing footstep volume and decreasing sliding speed, with more details to be shared soon.
Following the recent multiplayer beta for Call of Duty: Black Ops 7, developer Treyarch has announced a series of gameplay refinements, with a particular focus on rebalancing aim assist for controller users. This adjustment comes directly from player data gathered during the test period, which indicated a performance disparity between input methods at different engagement ranges.
Treyarch’s design director, Matt Scronce, explained the findings in a developer update. The data revealed that players using controllers were securing slightly more victories in close-quarters combat, while keyboard and mouse players held a small advantage in long-range fights. To address this, the development team is planning to modify aim assist strength across all distances. A significant part of this change involves altering how rotational aim assist functions. This feature, which helps automatically track moving targets, will now require players to be actively moving their right thumbstick toward an enemy before the assist engages.
The studio’s official social media account echoed this, confirming the team is scrutinizing both general aim assist strength and the specific mechanics of rotational assist. The goal is to make the tracking system less automatic and more dependent on player input. This represents a notable shift from the previous behavior, where rotational assist could sometimes activate with minimal effort from the player.
These planned adjustments are not limited to Black Ops 7’s standard multiplayer. Raven Software has confirmed it will collaborate with Treyarch to explore implementing similar changes to rotational aim assist in Call of Duty: Warzone, aiming to maintain parity between the titles starting with Season 01.
Aim assist remains one of the most debated topics in the shooter community, often mentioned alongside skill-based matchmaking (SBMM), which Treyarch is also modifying. The fundamental challenge for developers is creating a fair experience between the inherently different control schemes. Controllers, with their thumbsticks, are slower and less precise than a mouse, necessitating some form of assistance. Finding the perfect balance is notoriously difficult; the ideal outcome is often a state where both controller and mouse users feel the playing field is level, even if neither group is entirely satisfied.
This nerf to rotational aim assist could significantly change the feel of gunfights for controller players. Treyarch has indicated that more specific details regarding these and other upcoming changes will be revealed in the near future.
(Source: PCGAMER)
