Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War brought back one of the most iconic scorestreaks in franchise history, as the RC-XD returned within the game. While the streak has performed admirably in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, a recent nerf has changed that — though it seems like this nerf is already being reverted.
Despite the patch notes making no mention of such a change, fans quickly discovered that Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s RC-XD was nerfed as part of Season 2 Reloaded. In a clip that quickly made the rounds on Reddit, testing showed that a player could have an RC-XD parked right against their feet yet still survive the explosion. If the Flak Jacket perk is equipped, the streak is no longer a one-hit kill in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War multiplayer.
This unmentioned change quickly frustrated players, as it was the latest example of Flak Jacket proving to be overpowered. Since launch, the perk has been shown protecting against direct impact RPG shots, War Machine rounds, grenades, and other explosive items. While it seemed like the RC-XD was safe from this powerful perk’s protection, the scorestreak’s hidden nerf has changed that. According to Treyarch, though, this will fortunately not last much longer, as Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War's next patch will address the complaints.
Unfortunately, this does not mean that the heavily requested Flak Jacket nerf is happening. Instead, Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War fans will simply be seeing the RC-XD returning to its original state. In a reply to the clip that shows the player surviving, Treyarch community manager FoxhoundFPS confirmed that the studio will be “adjusting the RC-XD again.” Saying that its damage will be increased to what it was prior to the nerf, FoxhoundFPS assures fans that the player from the clip will die once the changes take effect.
FoxhoundFPS also provides some insight into the buff, confirming that Treyarch is shooting for a patch sometime next week that will return the RC-XD lethality to “historical values.” The community manager also confirms that the nerf was never meant to be kept a secret. While Treyarch has made unmentioned changes to Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War’s knife and XP earn rates in the past, the developer simply forgot to mention the change in the Season 2 Reloaded notes.
Treyarch wasting no time to communicate with players about the RC-XD problems is a good sign. While it will always be less powerful than the high-tier Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War scorestreaks, it should at least do its job properly once the next patch arrives.
Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.