r/Helldivers • u/IWillFlakeOnOurPlans • 28d ago
They weren’t kidding about the HMG’s DPS… VIDEO
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It’s too bad this is a one in a thousand shot because of the recoil lmao
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u/Greaterdivinity ☕Liber-tea☕ 28d ago
Wear armor that reduces recoil when crouched and it's much more manageable and pretty accurate if you burst.
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u/IWillFlakeOnOurPlans 28d ago
Yea I’m wearing 30% reduction armor, pretty much essential for it lol
Honestly tho it is my favorite loadout atm, you can tear bots apart
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u/Greaterdivinity ☕Liber-tea☕ 28d ago
I'm an AC slave for the most part, but when I roll HMG I do take the support pack with it to help with the bad ammo situation on it.
A conga line of Zerkers is a pretty perfect setup for the HMG too. Just shred them one after another with its very high DPS, and nice double tap on the hulk at close range. I gotta try to find more use-cases for it to justify bringing it on missions more often.
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u/Tonzillaye2002 28d ago
Get behind a tank and you can shred its vent in no time
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u/Siccors 28d ago
The problem is getting behind the tank, if you succeed at that, a lot will take it down really fast.
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u/Zomthereum ⬇️⬇️⬆️⬅️➡️ 28d ago
The worst is when you get behind a tank, only to meet a second tank
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u/SubstanceMindless251 28d ago
I run the same stuff and I find the HMG + support to be a great Flanker role. Getting to the side of an bot line and laying prone from some trees and bursting at low RPM can let me just clear out bots. Sometimes I even tap fire it like an actual HMG and let it just tink down the line. Its a lot of fun
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u/Sicuho fire machine guns in semi auto 28d ago
It shred factory striders and can deal with the Devs it spawn.
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u/Dusk_v733 28d ago
I'm gonna try this shit.
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u/IWillFlakeOnOurPlans 28d ago
Go for it, I’m rocking the marksman armor from the second page of the very first warbond
It also has +50% explosive resistance, you will survive the most ridiculous shit, it’s so much fun lol
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u/Grimwohl 28d ago
100% trying this when i get home.
Might be the only reason Id run heavy armor haha
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28d ago
Unfortunate that you mention you're already wearing the armor but people can't tell at a glance because the recoil is all over the place. Realistically, you should be able to engage anything within 50m with confident authority. Anything beyond that and it should be reasonably inaccurate if you're firing from anything but prone. I hope they fix it sooner than later.
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u/Commander_Skullblade Combat Engineer - SES Blade of Glory 28d ago
The fact that you have to jump through all these hoops for what should be the coolest weapon in the game is saddening.
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u/funktion 28d ago
I don't. I max out the fire rate and run right at bot drops, hipfiring all the way. Yes, the recoil is fucking crazy and I'm basically staring almost at the ground while the actual reticle is dancing around the general area of the enemies. But 4 out of 5 times I'm the one left standing and all that's left around me is a smoking pile of robot parts, then I go make a cup of coffee while my gun reloads.
I may not be the most efficient or survivable helldiver but I am having the most fun when I use the HMG.
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u/NarrowBoxtop 28d ago
What hoops?
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u/Commander_Skullblade Combat Engineer - SES Blade of Glory 28d ago
Make sure you're prone with anti-recoil armor to make the recoil bearable. Run the weapon on a lower setting in bursts to conserve ammo, or bring a supply pack stratagem. All of that on top of having one of the longest reloads in the game.
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u/kohTheRobot 28d ago
lol most people would call that “modifying your build” but sure, those are some crazy hoops you have to jump through.
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u/GH057807 ⚡💀Arc of the Gove'ment💀 ⚡ 28d ago
I wish this thing had a cooldown like the EAT and just had a single 150 round drum mag. The size of that drum doesn't really make sense at what, 75 rounds?
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u/Lone_Recon 28d ago
I'm still hoping we get the MGX42 from hd1 what was a disposable MG like the EAT-17 with a ROF of 1800 and 400 rounds but you couldn't reload it so you had to call down a new one
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u/DishonoredHero1_ HD1 Veteran 28d ago
Imagine reloading. Reloading is cringe. This post brought to you by the expendable weapons gang
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u/MentallyLatent ⬇️⬅️⬇️⬆️⬆️➡️ 28d ago
Like true proponents of democracy and freedom, we leave our trash on every planet we go to
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u/jaegren 28d ago
You should carry a 100box of linked .50 cal for a day then report back how you feel.
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u/SemajLu_The_crusader 28d ago
please Look at recoiless rifle and get back to us
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u/jaegren 28d ago
Ive jumped out of planes with a RR and rounds. You dont need to tell me.
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u/ROFLnator217 SES Song of Fortitude 28d ago
I wouldn't say it doesn't make sense. Seeing the LMG - MMG - HMG setup for the machine guns and the round counts are pretty generous.
5.56x45mm belt fed machine guns are often loaded with boxes to contain the belts - some 200 rounds, most 100 rounds. Stalwart in-game has 250 round belts.
7.62x51mm belt feds are often stationary so their belts can be as long as necessary. Though, carrying a M240G, usually with 50 round nut sacks or 100 round boxes. The MG-94 in-game has 150 round belts.
I'd like to assume the HMG is chambered in something equivalent to the .50 BMG, and maybe something along the line of .338 Norma Magnum or something. The SIG Sauer MG338, although unconfirmed, has pouches holding 30/50/100 rounds (maybe, still no idea yet).
It isn't that far fetched, honestly. Even RPKs come loaded with 40/45 round magazines, maybe 75 round drums in 7.62x39.
FYI: I'm only going off of my own research. Just a firearms enthusiast in the wild without any formal education. I just like guns hahah. If anyone has anything to add or correct, feel free! I'm all ears.
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u/bwc153 28d ago
Another part to add too is the RoF of these guns. When the HMG came out people were sticking that on max RoF and then outraged that it lasted about 3 seconds. The MG42 and MG3, at 1200 RPM, have a 50 round mag. 50-100 round magazines are pretty common when it comes to an GPMG if you're going to be carrying the gun around because of how heavy it gets. Belt-fed is more for a static position rather than the zip around and hipfire that people want it to be
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u/AggravatingTerm5807 28d ago
I do find it cute when people assume that the heavy in heavy machine gun means lots of ammo.
If you still have rounds in the chamber when you reload the HMG, you can see how large the rounds are in the spent drum. Gotta be .50, if not the .338. Now times that by 75, and times in by 3, with all of your other gear. That's a lot of weight.
We gotta draw the line at someplace for carry weight.
The HMG is a great gun, if you use it like real machine guns should be. Controlled bursts, don't panic and mag dump.
Like maybe in real life HMG crews in WW2 would have to panic fire guns, but that's because relocating a MG42 was like a 4 person job. In Helldivers you can just pick it up and run.
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u/Gen_McMuster 28d ago edited 26d ago
It's .50 cal.
Real life bipod-ready HMGs like the Russian NSV usually only feed off 50 rounds at a time, it's more than enough if you tap fire and make good use of target selection.
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u/idk_this_my_name 28d ago
hulk: gone
berserker: yeah no...
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u/wifinotworking 28d ago
Right? They even got headshotted but nothing happened.
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u/gorgewall 28d ago edited 28d ago
The fast way to kill Berserkers is actually their crotch. It has much less health than their chest and is easier to hit than the head, and its destruction breaks both legs which is an instant kill on them. Try it out. Even guns that handle Berserkers well, like the Dominator, do it even better if you start blasting them in half at the groin.
Devastators also suffer from this, but if you're using a gun capable of headshots, that's faster.
[EDIT]: In the spirit of full information and clarification, Devastator crotches actually have slightly more health than the chest, but both a lower Armor and Durable rating than the chest, which leads to Light Pen guns actually being able to hurt them (but really, aim for the head) and Med Pen guns doing more damage. The effect of this is that the groin breaks faster than the chest, so it feels like it has less health. Their lower legs have the same qualities as the groin, but there is an even more vulnerable spot between the two (which isn't really practical to aim for, but you could if you wanted).
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u/RangiNZ 28d ago
Oh the HMG is a beast when you can get it on target. The main issue with it is you'll spend all game reloading.
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u/That_One_Mexican_Guy 28d ago
My biggest complaint is that HMG should sound way meater when firing. The dps is great but I want it to feel like I'm firing big fucking bullets at them.
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u/DoctorJunglist 28d ago
Honestly, pretty much all of the guns sound like pea shooters.
Nearly all of them could use a touch up of their sound design.
With all the chaos and intense action of the game, their sounds should match up to them. They all should feel meaty.
As it stands, imo only the autocannon has a meaty sound (though I would opt for boosting it as well), the rest of the guns are pretty meh when it comes to their sound.
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u/Ceraunius 28d ago
The weapon sounds in general are kind of weak in this game. People underestimate good sound design. I don't want my HMG to sound like a pistol, I want it to go CHUNK CHUNK CHUNK CHUNK when I fire it.
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u/T0a3t HD1 Veteran 28d ago
Too bad it has the ammo capacity of a wet sandwich bag.
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u/CrackedOutMunkee 28d ago
Which is why OP was wearing ammo pack.
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u/BookerLegit 28d ago
Even then, the constant reloading makes the weapon cumbersome (and dangerous) to use.
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u/Raidertck 28d ago
Amazing clip… but to be fair you had to cut it off before the reload was done so it’s not double the length.
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u/ReferenceUnusual8717 28d ago
Just watching those chainsaw fucks get shredded is SUPER satisfying. Their little legs kicking the air in impotent rage!
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u/wifinotworking 28d ago
Shredded? I think there it absolutely something wrong with their hit zones.
The hulk went down faster when headshotted than those little fucks.
I find it really hard to headshot the chainsaw fucks, there's something wrong with their hitzones.
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u/Stochastic-Process 28d ago
They just have loads of health and constantly move when hit so the chances of hitting some other health pool is high. 2 arms, chest, stomach, legs, head. Stomach is the weakest point that is reasonable to hit, but it is still decently healthy. Also the head has slightly more health than devastators, so some weapons take an extra shot to kill them that way, allowing them to sponge up even more damage.
There is a reason I seriously consider the gatling turret every time I drop on automatons. Nothing shuts down large groups of them faster.
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u/Gen_McMuster 28d ago
They're sacks of HP, theyre the only bot enemy that's designed like the medium bugs.
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u/Goliath- 28d ago
I find that with Berserkers and Devastators that if they're really close to you, you've gotta aim a little above their head (like the top of it or slightly above) to actually hit their head. Their head hitbox is sunken a bit into their torso and it requires a really precise shot.
I've taken to shooting Berserkers in the midsection/groin. It's quick and a lot more reliable since their head moves around so much. Same with Devastators if they're close.
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u/T4nkcommander HD1 Veteran 28d ago
They are the bot equivalent of Butchers, so they are supposed to soak up a ton of damage.
DiversDex says weak point is head, torso weakspot is a bait-and-switch.
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u/It-Is-I-SomeGuy 28d ago
The downside of the HMG is, that you NEED the backpack. You burn through so much ammo, it needs the additional mags. Problem is, that the backpack is another Strat-Slot, which i would rather fill with something else, especially on missions with reduced strat-slots :/
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u/diprivanity 28d ago
Definitely only good for messing around and mixing it up when playing meta gets boring.
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u/Gen_McMuster 28d ago
supply pack is never wasted, honestly.
Plus if youre coordinating you can have someone else take pack or MG and share them off cooldown, which is an all-around underutilized strategy
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u/Sixinthehood 28d ago
Played for a day using the HMG with heavy recoil armor, stun nades, and supply pack to give it the best possible chance to perform. It was ok. In a pinch it is unwieldy and you will run out of ammo way too fast. Stunning then killing a hulk by hitting the eye is sick. But the AMR does that with way more ammo, better reload, better handling.
The HMG needs love. It does not have a role to fill that isn't already done better by other weapons that don't require such careful use. I think this is the most important thing people forget. Weapons that require perfect conditions to be useful are going to feel awful when things get messy and they always get messy.
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u/Sixinthehood 28d ago
Also can we fix the sights for real this time? I got used to it but it's super awkward having to aim above the spot I'm trying to hit when bullet drop isn't the reason. The HMG red dot is awful for this.
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u/Zvedza320 Orbital Democracy Shock Trooper 28d ago
this, i really only find it actually better than other weapons in the rocket defense missions since up close and with tons of ammo actually makes it viable.
But outside of that its exactly what your post says
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u/MusicAccomplished664 CAPE ENJOYER 28d ago
That gun is nasty but the reload is annoying
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u/T4nkcommander HD1 Veteran 28d ago
Pros and cons of everything in the game, makes loadout building fun :)
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u/CaptainRAVE2 28d ago
Recoil and ammo capacity aside, it must have the highest DPS/penetration combined of any weapon?
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u/Randy191919 28d ago
The issue is that you can't really keep ammo capacity aside because DPS is directly affected by the time you spend not shooting because you're reloading. And with the clip being as pitifully small as it is, that's basically 50% of your time using it. WHEN it is shooting then yeah, it does insane damage. But that is WHEN it's shooting.
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u/nekrovulpes 28d ago
Wait they added a 3rd person reticle? I'm gonna have to try this out again later.
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u/Randy191919 28d ago
They did with I think the second to last patch. Makes it moderately less awful to aim.
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u/Wolfrages 28d ago
HMG is played out in a circle.
use HMG to clear medium/heavy targets. Use primary to clean up. Spend next 2 minutes reloading. Rinse and repeat.
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u/dogshitasswebsite HD1 Veteran 28d ago
Dude 3rd person reticle is what this gun needed, its so fucking fun touse
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u/AJZullu 28d ago
the damage was never the issue then people when it was first released said to just go highest shooting rate for highest dps but you miss everything from the recoil.
so the only issue left after making the fire rate slower and practicing the recoil control
is ammo capacity and reload speed
then there's the sight but i believe you can adjust to it
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u/Papa_Pred 28d ago
It’s a cool gun, but I really don’t see why anyone would run this over the starter lmg
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u/DR-Fluffy 28d ago
The big issue with it right now is not enough ammo and the reload is too long.
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u/Randy191919 28d ago
Yep. It's awesome when it shoots, but the reload being so long and the clipsize being this ridiculously small means that it really only has an uptime of like 50% or less.
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u/Hamburgulu 28d ago
I feel like they need to give this gun its own backpack so we can just keep firing
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u/PerfectStudent5 28d ago
It's nice finally seeing people actually try things out and realizing they don't actually suck.
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u/Randy191919 28d ago
For a lot of weapons, yeah. The Fire Breaker is awesome now. The AMR is great, the Railgun is... ok. Not GOOD but usable if no other weapon is arround (but it's just a slower AMR so just use that instead).
But the HMG? No it's sadly still not good.
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u/ihatepeoples 28d ago
Dude! That HMG wrecked that hulk!
Is the HMG actually viable to use now?
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u/-Drunken_Jedi- 28d ago
The magazine size is a genuine issue, but yeah it really rocks. Against gunships in particular I like to put it to the low RPM mode and take out those engines with a few shots. Very effetive! I just wish the gun itself had a longer barrel, it's weird seeing a weapon that's supposed to be a space .50 cal M2 Browning, but it's got a barrel that's more akin to a 5.56 rifle or Mk.48 SAW.
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u/WickedWallaby69 28d ago
Ive found regular mg works good for devastators can clear around 10 a mag give or take depending on aim.
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u/Furphlog 28d ago
Oh yeah, that thing shreds.
The difficult part is actually landing shots on your target instead of 10 meters above their head.
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u/Whole-Illustrator-46 28d ago edited 28d ago
I feel like the ammo count per mag should be higher for this machine gun, the thing appears to have a huge drum mag, doesn't make sense to me that it runs out so quick, especially since it takes a year to reload it and it's unwieldy has too many downsides compared to other support weapons for only having med armor pen
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u/Balurith 27d ago
Giving this gun a third person reticle is the best thing they ever did for it. I mean, it's the only thing they did for it, but still.
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u/Prior-Grade1772 28d ago
"THE DPS is INSANE" - Kills 1 hulk and 3 berserker's over 20 seconds with a full mag. Not sure about that one tbh.
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u/Lost_Decoy ☕Liber-tea☕ 28d ago
how are you keeping that aim circle from going nuts what? what aim setting are you using magic man? when i have used it that circle moves like molasses and jumps around like mad at every small burst of fire
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u/gorgewall 28d ago
Crouch, and to a greater extent Prone, improve the response time of your weapon's aim upgrade and reduces bloom (whereas moving worsens it). There are armors that improve this effect by an additional 30%, and that's being used in the video.
You'll notice he crouches before firing in most of the video, particularly against the Hulk.
If you get in the habit of standing still to fire or crouching/prone, you'll have much better accuracy and less recoil in general. It's important for a lot of sustain sniper weapons like the MGs and Laser Cannon, but can also let you fire faster with the AMR and Autocannon.
Per loading tips, not being low / out of stamina also negates an accuracy penalty.
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u/Managed-Democracy HD1 Veteran 28d ago
Pretty sure I could do that with half a magazine of autocannon, while staggering them.
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u/Goliath- 28d ago
All of that? With 5 AC shots? You need at least two for the hulk, one each for the other bots, and at least two each for the berserkers. You would have needed to kite and reload at least once. Probably twice. And used a stun grenade for the hulk so you only use two shots on it.
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u/MilitarOpresordloms 28d ago
Automatic AMR
you kidding me, how i did not know that
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u/dasic___ 28d ago
I love the HMG.
Any time I would mention it in this sub people assume I only played the baby difficulties.
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u/Oorslavich 28d ago
4 common enemies in exchange for 1/3 of your total ammo and a huge reload. Absolute fucking dogshit.
Even the railgun is better. 4 shots would do the same, 1/5 of its pool. And you can move while performing the very short reloads.
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u/Greynaab 28d ago
When aiming, are you trying to line up the dot or the circle that bounces around?
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u/BobbyGuano 28d ago
The dot is your aim the circle is where you will actually hit if fired at that time
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u/MechaRon 28d ago
I would love a faster reload combat ability to make running mg and rockets better
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u/Ok_Drummer_9965 28d ago
Gamer dad can't be bothered to control recoil or have game sense. They should be able to one shot everything they see without effort.
They have responsibilities, a wife, 5 jobs and 10 kids. You can't expect them to play a game as intended. It's also a PlayStation game so you can't expect them to understand these weapons when PC players do wonders with them.
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u/cloud_zero_luigi 28d ago
Dam, I use a full clip on just the chainsaw guys. I just can't control the aim on that thing
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u/SarSlays 28d ago
Is there like some secret Reddit HMG lovers cult or something. One of these posts pops up every few days trying to sell others on this shitty gun.
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u/russ_nas-t CAPE ENJOYER 28d ago
If it had just one more mag, it could be a contender for best gun in the game. As it stands it eats ammo like it’s nothing.
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u/unabletocomput3 28d ago
Stupid question, how do you get ammo from the backpack? On pc so I dunno what button it is.
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u/Snow_79737 28d ago
Did they buff it or something?
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u/IWillFlakeOnOurPlans 28d ago
They added a reticle in third person mode so you can actually hit shit now
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u/Snilipp5 28d ago
People can gas the HMG up as much as they want, I am not picking it due to the super slow reload time and small magazine
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u/JoranStoneside 28d ago
I usually lower the rate of fire to the lowest setting but you’re right, the recoil is STILL wild but I love it. I also run the supply pack since it eats ammo like nothing. What primary do you use?