Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 | 5 Reasons Why the Grenade Launcher is Not a Good Attachment

If you can’t beat them, join them, right? No. Just because everyone uses grenade launchers in Modern Warfare 2 doesn’t mean that grenade launchers are the strongest weapon in the game. Here are 5 reasons why grenade launchers are ineffective.

1. Reloading. When you spawn, you already have a tube loaded in your underbarrel which is nice. What happens after you shoot that one grenade? It takes approximately three seconds to load another grenade launcher into your underbarrel. Figuratively, that doesn’t seem bad, but when you start adding in factors such as how many bullets an enemy can pump into you in that three seconds greatly exceeds that one grenade that takes three seconds to reload.
2. Grenade flight time. Unlike bullets which have the capability to break the sound barrier, grenades, don’t. They are nothing more but a grenade shot at a higher velocity. By the time that grenade hits its target (or something), you might find your body full of lead. This leads to reason number 3.
3. Inability to score a high kill ratio. Before you start criticizing, think about this. A grenade fired from a grenade launcher scores a kill. Somebody else could have easily killed you in between the time of firing and reloading. Now if that grenade doesn’t score a kill, it is still likely that somebody still could’ve killed you from the time wasted reloading yet another single-fire grenade into your underbarrel.
4. Safety while you want to die a hero. Say you get ambushed as you turn the corner. The enemy has a submachine gun that is about to unload at you. Being so close to the enemy, you figure the only way to save your kill ration is to shoot between us, taking both of us down together. Instead, by shooting the ground, the “safety” used to protect soldiers restricted you from salvaging a kill from an inevitable death.
5. Limited ammunition. Each soldier spawns with two grenades if they have the grenade launcher underbarrel equipped to their gun. Even if you do manage to fire two grenades, what are you going to do next? Without ammunition, you can’t do anything with the grenade launcher. Sure there’s the One Man Army perk that allows you to reselect your class, giving you full grenade launcher ammo. The time that you take changing your class, however, could have been used to score more kills with a regular weapon, and it leaves your player vulnerable to attacks as well. Scavenger is often thought of a decent alternative as well, though this is untrue due to several reasons. Firstly, you need to have your grenade launcher mode selected while you resupply, or else you will resupply bullets instead. This leaves you prone to attacks if you don’t have any grenades left. Secondly, after resupplying, you still need to reload, which is three seconds that is wasted and leaves you prone to enemies. Thirdly and finally, if there are no resupplies, then you are in trouble.

It wouldn't be surprising if you don’t agree to any of this and still believe grenade launchers are almighty. I’ll answer some very common questions about grenade launchers, and you can judge if those answers support or diminishes the strengths of grenade launchers.

Q: Well, if you don’t use a grenade launcher, what would you recommend as an attachment then?
A: Why not an underbarrel shotgun? Grenade launchers aren’t effective at close range, and a regular gun can cover long distance. Underbarrel shotguns would cover for the short-range weakness assault rifles have. You can also attach heartbeat sensors, red dot sights, or anything else that might support your gun or aim.

Q: What if I only use grenade launchers to room-clear?
A: That’s perfectly fine, as long as you switch to your primary right after so you can instantly respond to any returned fire.

Q: I get plenty of kills from using grenade launchers. Doesn’t that contradict with this article?
A: This depends on how much you rely on your grenade launchers. If you know someone’s hiding behind a window, of course a grenade would be deadly. If you walk around (corners especially) the map with your grenade launcher ready at all times, you’ll find that you really aren’t ready for everything they might throw at you.

In short, grenade launchers shouldn’t be relied on very much. If you do use a grenade launcher very much, you can find yourself scoring some kills, but usually more deaths as well.