Battle Rage is an overpowered nightmare in MW3 beta—and that’s how Sledgehammer likes it

Battle Rage has entered a new phase in Call of Duty after transferring from a Field Upgrade to the Tactical slot for Modern Warfare 3. Not only does the ability get used more frequently now, but the early footage from the MW3 beta shows that it’s completely broken, turning the process of getting frags into a chore.

When Battle Rage is active, which is noted by red bloodshot effects on your screen edges or by a flashing Battle Rage icon if you’re shooting an opponent, the user receives an “adrenaline rush,” resulting in faster health regeneration, higher tactical equipment resistances, and a constantly refreshed tactical sprint.

That’s what the in-game text for the equipment says, but that undersells how tremendously overpowered and broken Battle Rage is. Players also get an increase to their maximum health when popping Battle Rage, and the health regeneration is so powerful that players are healing faster than the damage they take while actively being shot. Combine this with the increased time-to-kill in MW3 and opposing players seemingly just won’t die.

A number of creators have shared some absurd clips from the MW3 beta today. Scump noted on his stream that every fight felt like “Battle Rage vs. Battle Rage” before unloading an entire pistol clip into an up-close enraged enemy who refused to go down. CouRage was stunned when an already injured opponent shook off almost an entire AR mag and still killed him.

But what’s the most surprising about the current stage of Battle Rage is that it appears to be the properly tuned version “in-line with” the Sledgehammer vision. That’s what the developers said at the conclusion of the CoD Next event on Oct. 5, saying Battle Rage would be tuned properly for the next day and the start of the beta on PlayStation.

Well, it’s the next day and either the tuning didn’t get properly implemented or Sledgehammer’s vision for Call of Duty features turning players into bullet sponges thanks to Battle Rage. Players participating in the PS5 beta say that virtually everyone is using it, and with new equipment vests, some players are able to Battle Rage twice during one life in respawn modes.