MW3 Ranked Play begins testing 5 previously banned guns

Five weapons previously restricted from Modern Warfare 3’s Ranked Play mode are now available as part of a Weapon Evaluation test, according to Treyarch.

The BP50, Holger 556, and MTZ-556 assault rifles, as well as the HRM-9 and RAM-9 submachine guns, are now available to use in Ranked Play for the next week in a testing period up until April 23.

The Holger 556 and MTZ-556 were banned from the start of Ranked Play, and the BP50, HRM-9, and RAM-9 were added to the game as seasonal drops and banned from the moment they were added to the game.

Previously, MW3 tested different maps in Ranked Play to see how they’d perform before adding them to the mode, and the success of that experiment led Treyarch to run this weapon test in the same vein.

“Once again, your feedback and gameplay data during this Weapon Evaluation will help the Call of Duty League and our teams decide if they are added to the competitive ruleset at a later date,” Treyarch said.

Currently, the Ranked Play meta is the same as the CDL’s, with players using either the MCW assault rifle or Rival-9 SMG. This change could have an impact on pro play as well, considering that if the test does well enough according to player feedback and internal data, the CDL could add these weapons as unrestricted too.

All of these weapons have some potential to make an impact in Ranked Play. The Holger 556 and MTZ-556 were banned by pro players early on as part of a “Gentleman’s Agreement,” and then were officially restricted when CDL play began. The new weapons, though, could be very fun to see in both Ranked Play and CDL play.

The five new weapons are available in Ranked Play right now, but the test will end in just a week, so players looking to try them out should hop in while they can.