How to unlock Gilded Camo in MW3
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Best Modern Warfare 3 Rival 9 Loadout

The best SMG in the game.

SMG fans should look no further than the Rival 9 in Modern Warfare 3, which is the best weapon of its category. Maximize your potential with it with the best Modern Warfare 3 Rival 9 loadout.

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Best MW3 Rival 9 loadout
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Best Rival 9 Loadout for MW3

The best Rival 9 loadout in Modern Warfare 3 focuses on increasing its potential for close combat excellence. The multiplayer maps favor assault rifles and other longer-range weapons over SMGs, but it is possible to keep up with them. You’ll want the below attachments on the weapon if you want to do just that:

  • Barrel: Rival-38E Fire Starter Barrel
  • Muzzle: Purifier Muzzle Brake S
  • Underbarrel: FSS Sharkfin 90
  • Rear Grip: Rival Vice Assault Grip
  • Stock: MTZ Marauder Stock

This isn’t too different from the battle royale variant except it focuses more on the recoil control than anything else. The Rival 9 has pretty good handling overall, but there is room for improvement. This makes it a bit easier to control without sacrificing too much of the speed. In the closer quarter multiplayer maps, you definitely want to have a mix of swiftness and accuracy, which this build helps with.

Best Warzone Rival 9 loadout
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Best Rival 9 Loadout for Warzone

Warzone has a very different style for the Rival 9. The huge battle royale maps like Urzikstan make SMGs quite hard to handle in the open areas. However, it is possible to make this a wonderful secondary weapon by tricking it out to work for longer ranges. Here is the best Rival 9 loadout for battle royale:

  • Barrel: Rival-C Clearshot Barrel
  • Muzzle: Monolithic Suppressor S
  • Underbarrel: FSS Sharkfin 90
  • Stock: MTZ Marauder Stock
  • Ammo: 9mm High Grain Rounds

The goal with this particular build is range. This build increases the range at the cost of some recoil control. Fortunately, some of the attachments balance out the recoil so its handling remains pretty good even at longer distances. It will take some more skill and practice to use than the other build, but it can be quite versatile in this loadout.

You will be pretty deadly up close and even at mid-ranges. While you might be tempted to use an optic, I don’t suggest that as it slows this weapon down a bit too much. It won’t overpower most assault rifles, battle rifles, and the like at long-range but it will compete well enough with them in the right hands. You should still pair this with a long-range weapon, such as an assault rifle or marksman rifle, for the best possible results in battle royale.


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Cody Perez
Contributing Writer - Cody has been a huge fan of Destructoid for more than a decade as well as a freelance writer for various publications. Now working for Destructoid, he has the chance to share his passion for Final Fantasy XIV, Pokemon, Call of Duty, and many more games.