Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 and Warzone have finally delivered the long-awaited balancing update. Raven Software and Treyarch have just released a new patch, targeting the overpowered weapon that has been dominating both multiplayer and Battle Royale modes.

Warzone & Black Ops 7 Patch Notes: The Meta Shifts!

The new update, released on 26 February 2026, brings a heavy nerf to the XM4-Burst (the current meta rifle), which had become every player’s nightmare in Battle Royale (BR) mode. According to the developers, this update aims to increase weapon variety and make time-to-kill (TTK) fairer across the board.

Nerfed Weapon: XM4-Burst (Assault Rifle)

Here are the changes for the XM4-Burst, the rifle that could melt opponents at any range in seconds:

• Damage Reduction: Minimum damage at medium and long range has been reduced by 15%.

• Recoil: Vertical recoil between bursts has been increased, making it harder to keep shots on target.

• Headshot Multiplier: The headshot multiplier has been adjusted from 1.4x down to 1.2x.

Buffed Weapons

With the XM4 losing its crown, these weapons are set to rise in the meta:

• C9 (SMG): Improved movement speed and bullet velocity for close-range fights.

• SVD (Sniper): Faster ADS speed allows for more aggressive sniping plays.

General Gameplay Updates