PUBG's meta hasn't moved much since the release of the 1.0 Patch released around the end of December. With the addition of new attachments and recoil balance changes heavily favouring weapons that you spray with instead of the tapping weapons, we thought it was about time to examine all of the SMGs and LMGs that are currently in the game (as of PUBG 1.0 Patch #13) to try and find out why they're so good now. With that being said, let's get into it!

SMGs

Let's go over the general changes to this type of weapon first. The patch notes go as followed:

• SMGs

• Increased limb shots modifier (it’s now 120%).
• Slightly increased the damage of the Micro UZI, UMP9, and Vector.
• Decreased vertical recoil on all SMGs.
• Decreased recoil and scope sway when moving while aiming down sights (ADS).
• Increased ADS transition speed.

All of the problems with SMGs seem to be fixed (on paper), so let's find out!

Micro UZI

The Micro UZI has been notorious for emptying its magazines so quickly that you spend more time reloading than firing at enemies. With this patch, this SMG has been polished to perfection since the vertical recoil and damage on certain limbs being low were the only problems that this weapon had. You should still refrain from using this at distances greater than 50 meters due to the insane bullet drop and the inability to tap with this weapon, but it's one of the best weapons to breach compounds with.

Vector

The Vector is still a weapon that requires three or more attachments to be anywhere near its peak potential but when it is, it's an absolute beast. With the recoil being changed, there's absolutely no vertical recoil left with the appropriate grip and the bullets just go straight forward like a laser even at distances around 100 meters. It's a really good weapon but I still wouldn't use it over the other SMGs since you need an extended magazine to make this weapon viable and the magazine still remains very small at 25 bullets.

Tommy Gun

This weapon - the Tommy Gun - just isn't viable. The weapon has a large magazine compared to the Vector and uses the same ammunition (.45 ACP) but the horizontal sway and the vertical recoil are still too much to deal with. The damage per bullet is the highest out of all the SMGs but you need to hit the enemy with it first. I've had experiences where I spray on an enemy that's 20 meters away and all 30 of my bullets miss due to the horizontal sway that this weapon has since it got removed from the airdrop crate. Avoid using this weapon and don't even bother wasting time to practice it since there's only so much you can do with this SMG compared to the other SMGs.

UMP9

The UMP9 is currently one of the best weapons due to its stability while spraying, the effective range of the bullets, and the accuracy that it shoots with. The damage still isn't that high but, with an extendable magazine, you can still use the 40 bullets per magazine and, since the firing speed of the UMP9 is relatively low compared to the Vector and Micro UZI, it's easier to prioritize the right target and spend less time reloading. A large number of professional players are actually using this in both scrims and tournament games with great effect. Don't bother using a Compensator on this weapon anymore, since a grip should be enough. I prefer to use the 3x Scope on this weapon or the Holographic/Red Dot Sight since it gives the most vision at a range that's perfect for the UMP9.

The image above shows that the Half Grip is the best for spraying, but keep in mind that it isn't good when you're trying to tap. These recoil spray patterns have been done without any muzzle attachments but show that the UMP9 has a stable spray pattern with any grip. All credit goes to Wackyjacky101.

LMGs

LMGs have always been a niche in PUBG but the developers of PUBG have buffed them heavily, so let's go over the general changes.

Other guns

• Slightlyincreased the damage of the DP28 and M249
• Restricted big scopes (8x and up) for use with LMGs (DP28, M249)

These are reasonable buffs for the LMGs. Let's examine the weapons individually.

DP28

In my opinion, the DP28 is the weapon that was buffed the least out of all the weapons that we have mentioned. It still has an insane amount of recoil and is a lot less stable than the M249 while having half the number of bullets per magazine as well. The damage buff of two damage is nice, but you'll still require three or more bullets to kill someone with level one armour or above and the limb modifier hasn't been touched concerning the LMGs. This weapon is definitely viable but requires a lot of practice and doesn't have any attachment slots to ease the learning curve or make the spray pattern less messy.

M249

The M249 is currently one of the best weapons in the game as of PUBG's 1.0 Patch #12 due to the changes made to the way recoil behaves. This weapon has 100 bullets per magazine, shoots like a laser, and still has normal damage for each bullet that you hit (45 damage). I personally hated this weapon before it got buffed and now I have completely changed my mind since it's able to obliterate vehicles which you are seeing used more often for rotations, especially when you get in higher-level lobbies. Currently, there isn't a better weapon to get in the airdrop crate and, even though you can't put an 8x scope on it anymore, the 6x scope is definitely good enough to get you a kill up to 300 meters.

Conclusion

The UMP9 and M249 definitely came out on top here, leaving the other weapons in the dust. These changes will definitely bring more variety when it comes to gear setups in higher-level gameplay which will definitely improve the viewing experience as well. Keep in mind that the ARs got nerfed all-around and more balance changes will be dropping over the course of the next few months. Have fun trying out the new balance changes affecting almost all of the weapons in PUBG!

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