“A strong open-area LMG, the M249 is the perfect choice for players willing to trade a slow fire rate for increased accuracy and a high ammo capacity.”
―Official description
The FN Minimi, commonly referred as the M249, is a machine gun featured in all of the Counter-Strike series.
Overview
The M249 is one of the two machine guns in the multiplayer Counter-Strike games. It is available to both teams. Some players may prefer the M249 in public matches but the M249 is rarely used in competitive play due to its very high cost ($5750) for the weapon itself and its ammunition (in the older games). Currently in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, the M249 is cheaper at $5200 instead of $5750; the old price tag of $5750 is taken over to the Negev's (the other machine gun) price.
The M249 is also usable in Deleted Scenes, but only in Building Recon.
Properties
| CS 1.6 and CS:CZ | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Hitbox | Primary Attack | ||
| Unarmored | Armored | ||
| Head | 127 | 93 | |
| Chest & Arm | 31 | 23 | |
| Stomach | 38 | 29 | |
| Leg | 23 | 23 | |
| CS:S | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Hitbox | Primary Attack | ||
| Unarmored | Armored | ||
| Head | 139 | 111 | |
| Chest & Arm | 34 | 27 | |
| Stomach | 43 | 34 | |
| Leg | 26 | 26 | |
| CS:GO | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Hitbox | Primary Attack | ||
| Unarmored | Armored | ||
| Head | 128 | 102 | |
| Chest & Arm | 32 | 25 | |
| Stomach | 40 | 32 | |
| Leg | 24 | 24 | |
The M249 is a heavy weight weapon. While wielded, the player's movement speed is 220 units per second (default speed is 250), meaning they suffer 12% speed reduction. In Global Offensive, the movement speed is 195 which means they have 22% speed reduction.
Advantages
- Large magazine capacity/Large ammo in reserve
- Useful for fighting groups of opponents
- Great for firing through walls
- High damage
- Can instantly kill targets with headshots in Source and Global Offensive
Disadvantages
- Expensive cost for the weapon and ammo
- High recoil when continuously firing this weapon
- Inaccurate at long ranges
- Ammo cannot be shared with other 5.56mm rifles (prior to CS:GO)
- Long reload time
- Heavy weight, especially in Global Offensive
Gameplay
Tactics
- Spray bullets at full auto and strafe when you encounter enemies at close range. It's practically deadly to wield in cramped sections of a map.
- If friendly fire is enabled, do not spray bullets if there are teammates in front of you, because the M249 has a large cone of fire. Some of the bullets may go to the wrong place. This also applies to hostages.
- It's possibly to aim somewhat accurately while on full auto; the bullets will generally go upwards and to the right, making it possible to hit targets at long range by adjusting the crosshair.
- Use this weapon to distract the enemy or to provide your teammates with suppressive fire.
- Contrary to popular belief, this weapon can be effective in long ranges. Burst firing is the most effective tactic at long ranges.
- It is preferable to shoot 2-4 shots in bursts although it is possible to fire single shots as well. Moreover, firing the first shot is very accurate so many players will use this to their advantage and can score a headshot at medium ranges.
- In Source, burst fire and aim for the head is an effective tactic, especially in tight areas.
- Try to train yourself to not get "jumpy" when enemies appear because you will most likely end up "spraying and praying". If this happens, inaccuracy can cause your demise.
- This weapon may not be the best choice for a combat-minded player or for someone who needs to maneuver quickly and frequently. Instead, the M249 is more useful to draw fire from teammates or defend important spots.
- Using the M249 at full-auto while moving is a bad idea, it is ineffective against opponents even at close range.
- An M249 user may be at a disadvantage when facing a sniper at long range. Carefully select a firing location while defending objectives like a bombsite or important hostage areas.
- The M249 will completely shred thin cover. Use it to draw out hiding enemies.
- Shred enemies up with the M249 when they are in a group.
- Switch to your pistol or the knife if you have to run due to the heavy weight of the M249.
- Take cover or traverse to where your teammates are when you need reload due to the long reload time. It is important to reload when your magazine is less than 30 bullets.
- Never spray bullets at your enemies beyond close range (except if you are trying to cover your teammates, but burst fire is still recommended). You may look intimidating but you will be an easy target for your opponent. If you do this, skilled enemy players will get you before you can fight back.
- Should you need to spray bullets at medium to long ranges, aim for the leg and you may score headshots. However, do not attempt this if an assailant has a sniper rifle.
- Use this weapon to provide fire support to your team. Firing at enemies on full auto will discourage enemies from fighting back in the open.
Countertactics
- Avoid players armed with the M249 at close range at all costs!
- If you are having issues in engaging enemy wielders, try to incite panic in inexperienced M249 users. They will most likely spray bullets at you. While it may seem impossible to counter them, this will make the recoil become hard to control and make the gun inaccurate. In some cases, you can finish them off with a single headshot from a powerful and suitable weapon. Find cover if your enemy knows how to manage recoil, though.
- The M249 has a very long reload time. Use this to your advantage.
- Be sure to take cover behind thick walls and away from corners. This weapon can shoot through boxes and doors with ease.
- The movement speed of M249 users is low thus players encountering them can strafe at a higher speed.
- At long range, sniper rifles are an excellent choice to use against users of this weapon.
- If you have to strike an M249 user with your teammates, don't bunch up or your opponent may have the opportunity to score multiple kills.
Comparison to the Negev
Positive
- Higher accurate range (22m vs 18m)
- Higher armor penetration (80% vs 75%)
- Lower spread
- Less expensive ($5200 vs $5700)
Neutral
- Same amount of reserve ammunition (200)
- Same movement speed (195 UPS)
- Same kill award ($300 (Competitive) $150 (Casual))
- Same penetration power (200)
- Same reload time (5.7 sec)
Negative
- Lower rate of fire (750 RPM vs 1000 RPM)
- Smaller magazine size (100 vs 150)
- Lower damage (32 vs 35)
Achievements
- Weapon
|
M249 Expert Kill 500 enemy players with the M249. |
- Weapon Specialist
|
M249 Expert Kill 100 enemies with the M249. |
Appearances
Condition Zero
- Tour of Duty bots
In Tour of Duty, there are 6 bots that use the M249 as their main weapon. They are:
Counter-Terrorists
- Cole: Cost 3 (with the Five-SeveN as a sidearm)
- Lou: Cost 4 (with the Desert Eagle as a sidearm)
- Bear: Cost 5 (with a random sidearm)
Terrorists
- Hammer: Very Hard (with the P228 as a sidearm) (cut)
- Crank: Very Hard (with the Desert Eagle as a sidearm)
- Wolfhound: Expert (with the Dual Elites as a sidearm)
- Tour of Duty challenges
The M249 kill challenge appears in:
| Map | Difficulty | Challenge |
|---|---|---|
 Chateau |
Easy | Kill 2 enemies |
| Normal | Kill 8 enemies | |
| Hard / Expert | Kill 3 enemies without dying |
Deleted Scenes
The M249 appeared only once in Building Recon, next to the M2 Browning Machine Gun after the Tank sequence.
Gallery
Main article: M249/Gallery
Trivia
- The M249 was the only light machine gun available in the Counter-Strike multiplayer series until the Negev was introduced in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
- The database file name for this machine gun is m249.
- The M249 never looks like it needs to be reloaded. There are still rounds on the belt when the ammo count gets to zero. In fact, the player just pulls the ammo belt off of the gun and discards it, while the rounds are still there, and then changes the ammo box. This is to reduce memory, as with the P90, UMP-45, AUG, Krieg 552, and the Krieg 550 Commando.
- Prior to Condition Zero, the world model had no ammo belt on the weapon.
- Moreover, the world and player model lacked a carrying handle.
- However, in Global Offensive, this reload error has been fixed and now properly displays the diminishing bullets when the M249 is running out of ammo.
- In reality, the M249 is capable of shooting 750-1000 rounds per minute whereas in the older games, it can only shoot 600 rounds.
- The rate of fire of the M249 has been progressively increased from the betas of Counter-Strike to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.
- The M249 in Counter-Strike: Source has slightly higher rate of fire and lower spread.
- Despite firing 5.56 NATO in-game, it does not share the ammo used by other rifles using 5.56mm NATO round since it uses boxes of belted ammunition while the other rifles feed from 30 round magazines. To distinguish the game labels, the box ammunition is 5.56 NATO as opposed to 5.56x45 NATO for magazine fed assault rifles.
- Compared to the M60 in Deleted Scenes, the M249 is almost as effective as its bigger caliber counterpart; it deals less damage but has less recoil.
- In Deleted Scenes, the M249 has unique sounds while being equipped.
- The M249 in all of the Counter-Strike series is the Paratrooper version. Due to this, the weapon lacks the stock to enable it to be fired from the shoulder and being fired from the hip is the likely cause of its high recoil. However, the stock is attached in Global Offensive. Thus, Counter-Terrorists fire the M249 from the shoulder.
- The M249's data in Counter-Strike: Source's VGUI buy menu states that its firing rate is around 600 RPM. However, in-game it fires at approximately 750 RPM. This is likely due to Valve reusing the old VGUI data from Counter-Strike 1.6.
- The M249 and its variants are the modified versions of the FN Minimi for the United States Armed Forces.
- Terrorists cannot purchase this machine gun in Assassination maps.
- Prior to Source, bots will always spray bullets, regardless on how their difficulty is set. However, this technique can still be very lethal to you when you are at close proximity.
- In Counter-Strike 1.6 (and older betas), the ammo box was colored black, like the M249 itself. In Condition Zero and later games, the box is now colored green.
- Prior to Source, the third person version of an M249 user shows the gun being reloaded by replacing the ammo belt, but in Source and Global Offensive, the ammo box and ammo belt are seen being replaced.
- Prior to Global Offensive, it was one of the 4 uncut weapons to retain its original name, the others being the Maverick M4A1 Carbine, the Ingram MAC-10 and the Five-SeveN.
External links
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