10 most overpowered Call of Duty weapons of all-time

In Call of Duty's long and storied history, there has been an unfathomable amount of weapons available in multiplayer across the franchise. Despite this, only a select set of guns have ever been able to attain the reputation of being outrageously overpowered.

While frustrating at the time, these are often the weapons that are remembered most and come up in conversation over and over again. Well, we've put together a list of the top 10 most OP weapons in Call of Duty history, and gone into detail on why each selection was such an unfair powerhouse in its day.

10. DMR 14 - Warzone

Anyone who was playing Warzone at the time of Black Ops Cold War's integration will know just how absurd this weapon was on Verdansk. The gun was so strong, it didn't feel like you could compete for a win unless you were using the DMR-14.

Completely taking over the meta, the rifle had a ridiculous TTK and minimal kickback, and if that wasn't enough, it could dispatch enemies at almost any range. A huge mag size also meant you barely had to aim at your opponents, just spamming bullets in their general direction would usually do the trick.

This may be sat at number 10 on our list but don't be fooled, the DMR-14 was nothing short of broken.

9. BAL-27 - Advanced Warfare 

Advanced Warfare brought plenty of weapons to the franchise but none made more of an impact on the meta than the BAL-27. Specifically, the Obsidian Steel variant was the strongest by far, offering zero recoil and significant mid to long-range damage.

The weapon also has an unbelievably fast ADS time which makes it snappy and easy to lock onto foes. Demands for nerfs were so widespread that the game was even labelled "BAL of Duty" due to how popular the weapon was in multiplayer.

8.  MP7 - Modern Warfare 3 (2011)

The MP7 is a staple Call of Duty weapon that's appeared in a lot of games across the franchise, but none topped the version from MW3 (2011). Submachine Guns are typically designed to thrive at close quarters, so when one starts beaming enemies at mid to long-range, you know there's been a mistake in the balancing.

With low recoil, a high fire rate, and a fast TTK, the MP7 replaced the need to use an AR, as it already did the job better than any of them ever could.

7. FAMAS - Black Ops 1

The FAMAS dominated Black Ops 1's multiplayer and that all came down to the weapon's destructive time-to-kill. Unlike the MW2 (2009) FAMAS, BO1's version was fully automatic but kept the AR's trademark low kickback.

This resulted in an outright broken option that dispatched enemies in milliseconds, even at longer ranges. Nerfs attempted to bring the FAMAS down in power, but it remained meta for the game's entire lifecycle.

6. UMP45 - Modern Warfare 2 (2009)

When you talk about a weapon that could do it all, very few guns set the bar higher than the MW2 (2009) UMP45. The silenced gunfire of this SMG will be instantly recognisable to anyone who played at the time, as it was an audio cue that was heard all too often.

Top-tier damage, impressive mobility, and a surprisingly solid damage range meant this was the only weapon you needed to take over a match. It eclipsed every other option in the category, so it was hard to justify running anything but the UMP45, especially in Search and Destroy.

5. 205 Brecci - Black Ops 3

Black Ops 3's 205 Brecci is a gun countless CoD fans wish they could forget, as it was an absolute menace in multiplayer. Receiving no nerfs from Treyarch despite being a powerhouse, the Brecci could take down foes in two shots consistently.

If that wasn't enough, the tight pellet spread meant hitting headshots was a breeze and with a 1.4x multiplier, you can imagine how quickly opponents disappeared.

4. MP40 - World at War

A true OG of the franchise, the World at War MP40 outclassed every other weapon in the arsenal by a long way. With this in hand, enemies just melted and with plenty of ammo in each mag, taking out more than one enemy without reloading was never an issue.

3. Grenade Launcher - Modern Warfare 2 (2009)

This one feels like we're cheating a little, as the Grenade Launcher from MW2 (2009) is technically an attachment, not a weapon. However, it had to be included as any gun that had the 'noob tube' was just a vehicle to fire out explosives on repeat.

With the Danger Close perk providing even more damage, you only needed to fire the Grenade Launcher in the general direction of a foe and it would instantly kill them. Paired with the restocks from One Man Army, you had a recipe for disaster that countless players abused. 

2. M16A4 - Modern Warfare (2007)

A true OG burst rifle, the M16A4 from CoD4 wiped out enemies in an instant and gained a reputation for being the best weapon in the game. Zero recoil meant that with a single trigger pull, enemies would just disappear at long range.

It's hard to find a burst gun since that's been on the same power level, which is a shame considering how fun they are to use.

1. Akimbo Model 1887s - Modern Warfare 2 (2009)

In reality, there was only one weapon that could take the number one spot, and that's the Akimbo Model 1887s from MW2 (2009). You'd be forgiven for thinking that dual shotguns would only be effective in close-quarter skirmishes but unfortunately, this was not the case at all - far from it.

These menacing guns were capable of deleting enemies from mid to long-range and if that wasn't enough, you didn't even have to be accurate. Competitors would just run around the map, twirling these around whenever they wanted to reload, outgunning every other weapon in the arsenal.

Damage range nerfs did eventually arrive, but not before the Model 1887s established themselves within the community as the most overpowered Call of Duty weapons of all time.

Speaking of powerful weapons, why not check out our list of the best Modern Warfare 3 guns in the current meta, so you can obliterate your foes in multiplayer. Be sure to check out our MW3 homepage for all of the latest news and guides.