"Right now we are adding flinch": Devs confirm sniper nerf in upcoming XDefiant update

Snipers in XDefiant have been a topic of controversy among players for a while now. Ubisoft's brand-new 6v6 arena shooter has seen massive success amongst FPS enthusiasts, and despite its fair share of net code issues and other related problems, players have hailed the game as a much-needed breath of fresh air.

However, snipers in the game have been hailed by the majority of the community as one of the most unbalanced items. On that note, an XDefiant developer made a statement, saying:

"Right now we are adding flinch so if you are taking hits you can't just turn, point, click and delete people. Should be in an upcoming patch."

That said, this article explores how snipers have been a constant hindrance in XDefiant players' gameplay experience.

NOTE: Parts of this article are subjective and reflect the writer's opinions.

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Sniper nerfs announced for upcoming XDefiant update

In a recent post by @EntitaBelva on X, Mark Rubin, the Executive Producer for XDefiant, made a statement, saying that snipers will be seeing a preliminary nerf in an upcoming update.

The original post from @EntitaBelva was targeted toward the developers, asking when a potential nerf can be expected for the overpowered sniper class in the game. Mark's reply implies that the game's developers are constantly taking player feedback regarding their brand-new 6v6 shooter.

Numerous posts online have showcased how overpowered snipers are in the game. With the potential to one-shot anyone on the map, the community feels that sniper players rob everyone's share of fun by abusing this one-shot mechanic.

While the game offers aim-disruptive features, such as screen-shake and other environmental clutter, snipers are exempted from these additions while other weapon classes suffer the brunt of it. Paired with the ability to one-shot all players, and with no aim-flinch or aim-cone hindering their aim-down-sight mechanic, the sniper weapon class is the undisputed meta-tier weapon in XDF.

Read more along the lines of: "My only gripe with this game are the snipers": Players frustrated with overpowered snipers in XDefiant

Many players, such as @Davies1984Gamer, think that the mere addition of something like aim-flinch would automatically offset the power of sniper rifles in the game:

Others, such as @EvenResponsibility57 believe that having a one-shot mechanic should only be reserved for an extremely skill-ceiling. They believe that one-shot headshots will always be fair play, and the risk-to-reward for achieving such outcomes is justified in such scenarios.

Comment byu/Jaytrox7893 from discussion inXDefiant

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Are sniper nerfs in XDefiant justified?

We believe that the addition of an aim-flinch would be the perfect level nerf to test the waters concerning balancing snipers in XDefiant. Being in pre-season, it is too early to issue out hard nerfs for a weapon. In our opinion, the developers are on the right track as they listen to community feedback and issue soft balance changes to improve the game's weapon-balancing status.

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