Perks have returned in Modern Warfare 3 with a new name, but there is still a recommended set of them to use in multiplayer.
One of the biggest complaints from the Call of Duty community in regard to this past year’s Modern Warfare 2 was over the perk system. A majority of players do not like how the perk system is on a timer and the fact you’re unable to fully customize perks for every loadout. To address those complaints, Modern Warfare 3 has returned to the classic style of perks for multiplayer.
However, this return comes with a slight twist. Perks are now called something entirely different in MW3, but they still retain the same function as normal. In MW3, perks are separated into three different categories: Gloves, Boots, and Gear. This new system might be a little complicated to figure out at first, even if you’re a veteran of the Call of Duty series.
Fortunately, we have put together a guide that goes over how the perk system works in MW3 and the best ones to use for each category.
How the Perk system works in Modern Warfare 3
Before you can fully grasp the best perks to use in multiplayer, you need to understand exactly how the system works in MW3. While the core system is the same as it’s been in previous games, excluding the recent MW2, there are some key changes you should be aware of.
For starters, you can go into all of your individual loadouts and customize the Gloves, Boots, and Gear to your liking. Each category offers a set of perks you can use to customize the play style you want to use for a specific loadout. For example, if you’re an aggressive player, then using perks that promote that style of play will be most advantageous to you.
At the time of writing, we know of every single perk coming to MW3 multiplayer at launch on Nov. 10. This includes six Gloves, six Boots, and 12 pieces of Gear. You can see what perks are in which categories below:
Gloves
- Quick-Grip Gloves - Increased weapon swap speed
- Commando Gloves - Reload while sprinting
- Scavenger Gloves - Resupply ammo and throwing knives from dead players
- Ordnance Gloves - Throw equipment farther. Reset fuse timer on thrown back grenades.
- Marksman Gloves - Reduced sway and flinch while ADS.
- Assault Gloves - While jumping, accuracy and time to ADS is improved.
Boots
- Lightweight Boots - Increases movement and swim speed. Reduces noise while swimming
- Climbing Boots - Increased climbing and mantling speed. Reduces fall damage
- Stalker Boots - Increased strafe and ADS movement speed
- Tactical Pads - Increases slide distance and allows for full ADS while sliding. Increases stance transition speeds and crouched movement speed
- Covert Sneakers - Eliminate footstep sounds
- Running Sneakers - Increases Tac Sprint duration and reduces refresh time.
Gear
- EOD Padding - Reduces damage from non-killstreak explosives and fire
- Tac Mask - Reduces strength of enemy flash, stun, and gas grenades. Immunity to shock, EMP, and Snapshot Grenades
- Mission Control Commlink - Reduce killstreak by 1. Reduce scorestreak cost by 125
- Bone Conduction Headset - Reduces combat noise, allowing improved identification of enemy footsteps and gunshots
- L/R Detector - Warns of hostile laser and radiation sources
- Ghost T/V Camo - While moving, blocks detection by UAVs, enemy radar sources, and Heartbeat Sensors
- Mag Holster - Improved reload speed.
- Blacklight Flashlight - Shows recent enemy footsteps.
- Threat Identification System - While ADS, automatically pings enemy locations in crosshairs.
- Data Jacker - Enemies you kill drop a smartphone. Collecting the smartphone generates a radar ping from that location.
- Signal Jammer - Emits a signal disrupting placed enemy claymores and mines. Warns of nearby enemy equipment.
- Hijacked IFF Strobe - Undetectable by AI targeting systems and thermal optics. Does not highlight in enemy Tactical Cameras or Recon Drones.
With these current perks and the new system in mind, let’s see which ones are the best to use across the board in multiplayer.
Best Perks in Modern Warfare 3
Now that you know every perk you have access to in multiplayer, let’s talk about the best ones to use on your loadouts.
While you are free to mix and match depending on your playstyle, there are certainly perks across the three categories that are simply stronger and more useful than others. Some of the options in the categories are extremely underpowered or can really only be used in specific situations. As such, they aren’t generally advised to be equipped over others that offer benefits from the second you start up a multiplayer match.
Below, you can view our lists of the best overall perks and the best perks to use for certain playstyles in MW3. That way, you have some options based on the types of weapons you’re using or how you want to play in a given match.
Best overall Perks
- Gloves: Scavenger Gloves/Commando Gloves
- Boots: Covert Sneakers/Running Sneakers
- Gear: EOD Padding/Tac Mask
Best Perks for aggressive players
- Gloves: Assault Gloves
- Boots: Covert Sneakers
- Gear: Ghost T/V Camo/Mag Holster
Best Perks for tactical players
- Gloves: Marksman Gloves
- Boots: Stalker Boots
- Gear: Bone Conduction Headset
As you can see, there’s quite a solid mix of options across these three lists. However, some perks, such as Covert Sneakers, EOD Padding, Tac Mask, etc. can be used on virtually any loadout, as they’re all extremely effective. Others, like Stalker Boots or Ghost T/V Camo, are more niche and won’t help you much if you’re playing a certain way or using a specific weapon class.
In the “Best overall Perks” list, I decided to give you a couple of choices depending on what type of player you are. For example, if you’re someone who goes on longer killstreaks, you need the Scavenger Gloves to ensure you don’t run out of ammo. Or if you’re an aggressive player running Dead Silence as a Field Upgrade, you can use the Running Sneakers instead of the Covert Sneakers to get the best of both worlds.
Fortunately, there’s a wide mix of perk options in MW3, so you can absolutely experiment with different combinations and find a set that suits your personal playstyle. We will continue to update this piece with future perks that arrive in MW3 or change the recommended perk sets based on any nerfs or buffs.