Best Weapons in Black Ops 6 Zombies

Black Ops 6 marks the return of round-based Zombies, featuring two expertly crafted maps at launch with even more to come throughout various seasons. Players diving into Black Ops 6 Zombies will enjoy hours of content, including engaging main Easter Egg quests, terrifying enemies to face, and a variety of weapons to test on the undead.

Black Ops 6 Zombies includes an arsenal of weapons that players can add to their loadouts, along with various Wonder Weapons that can be crafted or acquired through the Mystery Box. While a player’s weapon choice ultimately comes down to personal preference, some options are definitely better than others. Here are the 10 best weapons currently available to use in Black Ops 6 Zombies.

10 XM4

Excellent & Versatile Starter Weapon

First up is the XM4, the base Assault Rifle that all players have access to from level 4. While not the hardest-hitting weapon on this list, the XM4 boasts a decent fire rate and good damage-per-shot, resulting in a solid TTK that can carry players through many of the early rounds. It also offers reliable handling and mobility, making it a good standard-issue weapon to consider when players are first leveling up.

Though the XM4 doesn’t offer any unique properties once Pack-a-Punched, it does gain a nice damage boost that, again partnered with its fast fire rate, makes it a strong choice for targeting zombie trains when aiming for critical kills. The XM4 is also highly versatile with attachments, allowing it to be built for both speed and handling, or for high magazine capacity and damage.

9 SVD

Powerful Sniper Rifle With a Shotgun Conversion When Pack-a-Punched

The SVD is a solid weapon during the first thirteen rounds or so in Black Ops 6 Zombies, dealing significant critical damage when aimed at the head and sporting a fast fire rate. As far as Sniper Rifles go, it isn’t exactly a bad choice by any means, but Sniper Rifles in their base form are often underwhelming, not quite holding a candle to some of the latter options on this list. However, throw the SVD into the Pack-a-Punch machine, and it gains notable characteristics that make it more akin to a Shotgun.

Once Pack-a-Punched, the SVD transforms into a weapon that, when fired, shoots out a tight spread of pellets, much like weapons in the Shotgun category. It retains its semi-auto fire mode, giving players a weapon similar to the ASG-89. Unlike the ASG-89, however, a Pack-a-Punched SVD’s pellets tighten up considerably when aiming down sights, almost taking the form of a slug round and dealing massive damage to even the toughest elite enemies. This provides players with a truly versatile weapon, one that is only really held back by its heavy reliance on accuracy.

8 LR 7.62

Powerful Explosive Sniper Rifle When Pack-a-Punched

A Sniper Rifle may initially be the last weapon on a player’s mind when it comes to Zombies. However, as proven by the SVD, they can be viable options. Just like the SVD, the LR 7.62, in its base form, is capable of carrying players through the initial rounds, maintaining decent damage until it quickly drops off once rounds hit the double digits. Throw this weapon into the Pack-a-Punch machine, however, and players may find themselves wielding one of the most powerful guns in the game.

Once upgraded at the Pack-a-Punch machine, the LR 7.62 becomes an explosive Sniper Rifle, dishing out a ton of damage to clusters of zombies. The damage output of each shot can reach quite high numbers, effectively taking out Manglers and making short work of trains of zombies, even creating crawlers. Though the fire rate is generally quite slow without the Rapid Fire Mod, the LR 7.62 is an excellent weapon to take into the high rounds of both Terminus and Liberty Falls.

7 GS45

Powerful Explosive Pistol When Pack-a-Punched

Following the LR 7.62 is the GS45, a rather unremarkable weapon that, at first glance, may seem like the most underwhelming option for Zombies. In its base form, the weapon deals fairly mediocre damage, only able to carry players through the first few rounds before becoming completely obsolete. However, like other weapons on this list, this changes entirely once players Pack-a-Punch it.

Once Pack-a-Punched, the GS45 becomes the Sally, a weapon that fans will recognize if they have played previous Call of Duty Zombies experiences. Like the LR 7.62, this version of the GS45 is outfitted with explosive ammunition, laying waste to any enemies in its path. Although it doesn’t deal critical damage, the overall damage is quite high, especially when upgraded in rarity and Pack-a-Punched further. If players equip the Akimbo Stock, they can make the weapon even more powerful by transforming it into the Mustang and Sally when Pack-a-Punched, doubling the explosive damage they can unleash.

6 ASG-89

Fast-Firing Shotgun With Great Damage Potential

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In its base form, the ASG-89 is quite effective for a Shotgun, boasting high damage and a semi-auto fire mode that can easily carry players through the early rounds. It’s a solid weapon, perfect for firing from the hip and dispatching hordes of zombies in the early game. However, its damage range is limited, as expected from a Shotgun, and its effectiveness quickly falls off as players progress to higher rounds.

Once Pack-a-Punched, however, the ASG-89 becomes much stronger for the later rounds. Upgraded, the ASG-89 gains a tighter pellet spread that often results in more consistent damage, along with a bit more versatility at range. Overall damage is also enhanced, giving players a reliable weapon for both standard zombies and elite zombies. Though players may still tend to fire from the hip, the tighter pellet spread makes it beneficial to aim more accurately for even better results.

5 PP-919

Decent Submachine Gun Boasting a Large Magazine

The PP-919 may not be a meta option in Black Ops 6 Multiplayer, but in Zombies, it’s a different story. Submachine Guns generally don’t stand out in this mode — their damage output, while admirable at close range, is often outperformed by other weapons. The PP-919 follows a similar pattern, offering decent damage but nothing exceptional. However, it does come with a sizable magazine, making it a favorable option in early rounds for players who don’t want to reload frequently.

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Where the PP-919 truly shines is after being Pack-a-Punched, which significantly boosts its magazine capacity to 256 rounds. With such a large magazine, players will rarely need to reload, allowing them to take down hordes of zombies with minimal downtime. This makes it especially useful for players who don’t have GobbleGums like Kill Joy, giving them the freedom to hold down the trigger almost as long as they want.

4 C9

Fast Firing Submachine Gun With Excellent DPS

The C9, like most weapons on this list, is an excellent choice for carrying players through the early rounds on nearly any Zombies map. It has a decent fire rate and DPS against low-level zombies, along with impressive mobility and handling attributes, allowing players to weave in and out of zombie trains with ease. These traits remain advantageous in higher rounds as well, but the C9 gains a notable boost once it’s Pack-a-Punched.

When upgraded with the Pack-a-Punch machine, the C9’s fire rate is dramatically increased, rivaling that of weapons like the Kompakt 92. With consistent critical hits, a Pack-a-Punched C9 can quickly eliminate trails of zombies, especially in higher rounds when further upgraded in rarity. Naturally, with such a blistering fire rate, the C9 does burn through its ammo reserve quickly. However, staying near an Ammo Cache helps solve this issue effectively, and it doesn’t cost much essence, only 2,500 Essence to be exact.

3 DRI-11 Beamsmasher

Devastating Laser Weapon With A Unique Secondary Ability

Next up is the DRI-11 Beamsmasher, a powerful Wonder Weapon available on the Terminus map. While obtaining this weapon takes a bit of work initially, especially if players choose to build it, the effort is well worth it. The DRI-11 Beamsmasher is a powerhouse for taking down groups of zombies thanks to its devastating primary laser attack, which can melt through multiple enemies quickly when aimed at the head for critical damage.

The weapon also features a secondary-fire action that, when triggered by pressing the ADS button, slows down incoming enemies, similar to the Paralyzer from Black Ops 2’s Buried map. This secondary feature is ideal for slowing down zombie groups or halting elite zombies like the Amalgam, allowing players to focus on landing critical shots with the primary fire. The DRI-11 Beamsmasher also maintains high damage well into later rounds with only a single Pack-a-Punch upgrade, making it a cost-effective choice. The only main drawback of this weapon is its moderate ammo consumption, which will set players back around 10,000 Essence to replenish when it runs low.

2 Jetgun (Thrustodyne M23)

High-Powered Wonder Weapon With Insta-Killing Abilities

The Jetgun may be the best weapon players can acquire in Black Ops 6 Zombies. Currently buildable on Liberty Falls and obtainable through the mystery box, the Jetgun is a top-tier choice for high-powered weaponry. This weapon features two unique abilities, the first being the ability to pull nearby zombies toward the player with its primary fire mode, killing common enemies instantly in most rounds. While elite enemies like the Mangler are more resilient to the weapon’s primary attack, they can still be taken down relatively quickly if the weapon is Pack-a-Punched accordingly.

Aside from pulling nearby enemies into its grasp, the Jetgun can also reel in nearby Salvage, Power-Ups, and other items — a handy feature for players needing to retrieve an item blocked by an incoming horde of zombies. The Jetgun’s secondary ability is also highly powerful; by pressing the ADS button, players can charge up a blast attack that deals massive damage to any zombies in the surrounding area, at the cost of consuming all remaining ammunition. This attack is perfect for clearing swarms of enemies and swiftly taking out Manglers with ease. To make this weapon even better, its ammunition is unlimited, as it slowly replenishes while the weapon is not in use — making it a must-use weapon to carry players into the high rounds.

1 Ray Gun

Classic Wonder Weapon With a Great Damage Output

This weapon list would be complete without the trusty Ray Gun. The Ray Gun is without a doubt the most recognizable weapon in the game, and it’s easily one of the best. As a Wonder Weapon, the Ray Gun naturally delivers high damage, often one-shotting opponents in the lower rounds and retaining solid power well into higher rounds when Pack-a-Punched. Its projectiles also deal splash damage, allowing it to eliminate multiple zombies when they are grouped close together.

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Like in past games, the Ray Gun is not only effective for taking down regular zombies and elite enemies like Manglers, but also works well for creating crawlers in high rounds by shooting at zombies’ feet. This tactic can provide players with breathing room to complete the main Easter Egg quests at Liberty Falls and Terminus. However, using the Ray Gun up close is risky, as players will also take splash damage unless they have PHD Flopper equipped. When combined with PHD Flopper, the Ray Gun becomes a powerful tool, allowing players to safely shoot at their feet if swarmed, effectively saving themselves when cornered.

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Released

October 25, 2024

OpenCritic Rating

Strong

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