The Real Reason You Keep Missing Shots In Call Of Duty: Vanguard

Since the release of "Call of Duty: Vanguard" last week, players have been complaining online that they are missing shots they shouldn't be missing — and there's a good reason for that. As explained by YouTuber TrueGameData, "Call of Duty: Vanguard" appears to have ADS bloom in it, despite no mention of the effect anywhere in the game. Bloom is a bullet spread effect that essentially causes weapons to become less accurate over time while aiming down sights in first-person shooting. Because of this, players' bullets aren't always hitting where players want them to, which in turn causes a great deal of frustration.

As noted by Eurogamer, the inclusion of bloom has been controversial among the "Call of Duty" community, for a few different reasons. For one thing, bloom has not been present in a mainline "Call of Duty" title since "Call of Duty: WWII," which was also made by "Vanguard" dev Sledgehammer. The other main problem is that, without some sort of in-game indicator or tutorial regarding bloom, players probably won't know why they are missing shots they shouldn't be.

As noted by TrueGameData, bloom is ultimately a "realistic effect ... because guns aren't always perfectly accurate with where the reticle is." However, this is one realistic touch that the "Call of Duty" community hasn't been wild about. 

Following a series of tests by TrueGameData, it seems as though bloom affects weapons like SMGs and Assualt Rifles the most, especially at long range. While it might make sense that these weapons aren't as accurate from that range, at least from a realistic standpoint, this design choice has led to plenty of fan complaints. 

Reddit user JamesPTW13 wrote, "BUT it doesn't make for good GAMEPLAY... It's not meant to be that realistic. COD is an arcade shooter."

Many fans of "Call of Duty: Vanguard" feel that bloom is in place as a way to balance the game, but some have argued that Sledgehammer has implemented it incorrectly. Reddit user Redfern23 wrote, "This isn't to stop SMGs beaming at range, this is to add more [randomly generated] 'realism' and narrow the skill gap even further than they already have.

It's unclear if Sledgehammer Games will respond to fan feedback by lessening the effect or removing it entirely. It's also unknown if this mechanic will make its way into "Call of Duty: Warzone" when the two games integrate in the near future. This is just the latest example of how "Call of Duty: Vanguard" has gotten off to a rocky start.