What are Call of Duty MW3 Weapon Vaults? If you played Modern Warfare 2 last year, especially at launch, you'd be forgiven for forgetting about this new mechanic as it was woefully underserved. However, with the launch of the upcoming game, Modern Warfare 3 Weapon Vaults are returning.
With so many MW3 guns to use, each with specific strengths and weaknesses when defeating enemies in MW3 multiplayer and MW3 Zombies, it can be a bit overwhelming – and that's not including unlocking all of the MW3 camos. Fortunately, Weapon Vaults may just make that grind a little easier, albeit for a limited number of weapons.
Call of Duty MW3 Weapon Vaults explained
Weapon Vaults in Modern Warfare 3 are better versions of the beloved (or controversial) blueprints. Upon getting a Weapon Vault for a certain gun, you'll unlock every attachment in its progression tree and they'll all be in keeping with the skin's aesthetic. This is unlike blueprints, which only apply the skin's style to a select few attachments.
Since you pay for the Weapon Vaults, it isn't strictly pay-to-win as you can unlock every attachment by leveling up the guns. However, it is certainly pay-to-skip when it comes to grinding. Whether that's beneficial or not depends on how often you find yourself playing Modern Warfare 3.
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Weapon Vaults were introduced in Modern Warfare 2 in 2022, as an exclusive item with the Vault Edition of the game. While it seemed like a great idea, the only gun to receive a Weapon Vault was the starting assault rifle, the M4. After the game's launch, no other Weapon Vaults were released. It was surprising to see it abandoned, as there had been a lot of hype around this mechanic, and thanks to having both cosmetic and gameplay advantages over standard blueprints, it had the potential to be a money spinner.
It seems like Activision is giving players another opportunity to test Weapon Vaults, with the mechanic returning in Modern Warfare 3. So far, it is still exclusive to the premium Vault Edition. However, you get numerous Weapon Vaults this time around, instead of just one like last year.
What guns have Weapon Vaults in Call of Duty MW3?
There are four guns that each have two Weapon Vaults in Call of Duty MW3:
- SVA 545
- AMR9
- Riveter
- Longbow
Each weapon has both Carbon Fate and Crimson Fate variants, making up the two Weapon Vaults. You can see the weapons and their designs below:
In our experience during the game's multiplayer beta and during our Call of Duty MW3 review time, the Weapon Vaults at least let you unlock all of the attachments to mess around with builds quickly, but the actual skins on the guns are disappointing. Compared to some of the early blueprints in the CoD Store, which often totally transform the appearance of a weapon, the Weapon Vaults seem like cheap color changes. Sure, the design of those blueprints doesn't extend to every attachment for that weapon, but we can't help but feel underwhelmed at the aesthetics of MW3's first two Weapon Vaults.
So, is the Vault Edition worth investing in just for these Weapon Vaults? From a gameplay perspective, potentially, they will cut out a lot of attachment grinding. In terms of having a cool gun to run around the MW3 maps with, you're probably better off waiting for a cool blueprint to hit the store or to unlock a gorgeous camo.
That's everything you need to know about the Call of Duty MW3 Weapon Vaults. If you're hoping to win many matches with these, you should look at picking up one of the best Xbox controllers or best PS5 controllers for that competitive edge.