CSGO’s meta is always changing, and this update is no different. Recently, Valve released an update with changes to the M4A1-S. Find out how the rifle was affected and decide whether to keep using it.
For the past year, the M4A1-S has been the primary choice for both casual and professional players. The increased body damage, the $200 price difference, and the silencer left its big brother, the M4A4, essentially unused in the game. However, the updates introduced by Valve may change the meta for a new one. Here are some key changes, to help you figure out which CT rifle to use!
The change was a culmination of many buffs that the weapon had received. First, the M4A1-S had its price reduced to $2900, from the regular $3100. This was already the tipping point when players started switching to the now-cheaper weapon, as it essentially had the same, if not better, base statistics. Then the magazine size changed from 25 bullets, 100 in reserve, to 20 bullets, with 80 in reserve.
In the most recent official update release notes, Valve announced that they have “Reduced the M4A1-S range modifier from 0.99 to 0.94.”. While the numbers may seem small, it is a huge difference. The M4A1-S might be useless at long ranges because the distance after which the damage significantly drops was minimized. The buff may be the final straw for people to start using the gun’s silencer-less counterpart, the M4A4.
With the M4A1-S dealing less damage now, there are fewer scenarios in which it out-classes the M4A4. The community on Twitter has been quick to notice some weird angles in maps where the newly updated weapon becomes either inefficient or hard to use. For example, in the positions below, the M4A1-S may take up to five bullets to kill an enemy at long range.
Image credit: @LionCS_
One of the most absurd examples is if you’re holding B Site Apartments from the B Platform. It will take five bullets for you to kill a person standing at the entrance to the Apartments with bodyshots. Meanwhile, the M4A4, while having better long-range damage, also has the ten extra bullets that may come in clutch if, say, you were to miss a part of your spray. This shows how much effect the damage drop-off has.
A common strategy before the nerf was the two-tap, one shot to the head and another to the chest, effectively killing the enemy. Now, in mid-to-long-range scenarios, that isn’t doable with the silenced weapon. As such, unless you’re playing and specifically picking close-range fights, the M4A4 might be the better option damage-wise.
Currently, in some specific distances, the M4A4 has the capability of a headshot plus one body shot kill. An example of this is fighting in Inferno Middle. With the M4A1-S, you could kill an enemy player with a headshot and two body shots. Meanwhile, the M4A4 needs only one headshot and one body shot, outclassing the M4A1-S.
The M4A4 boasts a vast 30-round magazine, and this advantages it has over the M4A1-S’s 20 rounds. Due to the nerfed weapon now taking up to five shots to kill, it doesn’t leave a lot of space to readjust to get the kill. In other words, if you start spraying at someone, you are committing to it. Even more so, killing a person takes a quarter of your magazine. For some players, the magazine size change is unbearable, as it leaves little room for mistakes and can cost some crucial kills.
The only way the M4A1-S can compensate for this is by having the silencer and better recoil control and fire rate over its bigger brother, which does make a difference.
Most players have chosen to switch between the M4s on some maps. And this is one of the ways to get the best of both worlds. For example, if you primarily play A Site on Mirage, you might want to opt for the M4A4 because you will take more long-range duels in Connector, A Ramp, and Palace. But on Inferno, if you’re a B player, you might choose the M4A1-S. This is because taking B Site for the Terrorists relies a lot more on the smoke grenades, and with the silenced weapon, you can spray without tracers. This way, you’re not revealing your location to the enemy, and the M4A1-S gives you more flexibility.
However, the choice isn’t always obvious, and it can change either due to your preferred positions or your playstyle.
The difference between the Counter-Terrorist and Terrorist meta is based on three weapons: the AK-47 and both the M4s. Previously, the M4A1-S just had a lot of good factors. It could spam through smoke grenades without tracers and have fair duels compared with the AK-47.
Now the M4A1-S isn’t as powerful as before, and it’s definitely safe to say that CT sides have become weaker. CT players who use the M4A1-S may be pushed to take more close-range fights. But the M4A1-S costs $200 less, so it makes more sense, for example, for the team AWPer to buy the M4A1-S, as it can help them save up for the sniper rifle quicker.
Here are the main details summarized about the M4A1-S:
Here’s the same for the M4A4:
In the end, it comes down to which positions you play on the CT side, whether the duels you’re taking are long or short, and how you can best utilize both of the weapons’ strengths and flaws.
