Each team has one automatic sniper-rifle.
The CTs have the SCAR 20 and the Terrorists have the G3SG1.
They both cost the same and have the same magazine and spare ammo quantities.
But what are the differences between them?
Simple!
Let's compare these stats.
Oh.
Well that's useful.
Let's delve into them in more depth.
This is a very special spot.
That far wall is 8,192 units away, which is the cut-off for the longest range weapons
in CS:GO.
This means that if I fire HERE, there will be no mark.
Step forward just a tiny bit and BOOM, hole in the wall.
All snipers and rifles have a range of 8,192, all pistols 4,096, SMGs slightly less again
and shotguns the least.
I can't think of any competitive level where you'll have to fire more than about 4,000
units but on surf maps and other FAKE levels, autosnipers have both the range and the spamminess
to defeat distant enemies.
But they're both equal in this regard.
Let's compare accuracy.
Firing 80 shots, each 1 second apart at a distance of 4,096 units, this was the result
for both the G3SG1 and the Scar20.
The accuracy according to the game's internal workings says that they should both be the
same.
But this was with just the first level of scope zoom.
Perhaps two will improve it!
No, seems to make no difference.
What about crouching down?
Crouching does make a difference- quite a considerable one, in fact.
If you're scoping long distances with the autosniper, you might as well crouch, completing
the transformation into a noob, but at the same time also giving you an advantage.
Who'd have thought it.
And finally, noscope.
The lack of a crosshair is the main reason why I don't consider these to be comparable
to the likes of the M4A1 and AK47, but once you see the inaccuracy at 2,000 units you'll
see why they're impractical in this mode.
Even if you painted a crosshair onto the screen, it wouldn't mean much and would more than
likely miss the target.
It appears that noscopes are more about luck than skill.
I fired every bullet available to these guns into the wall, and take it from me- you won't
run out of ammo with these weapons.
A surprisingly large number of bullets from both weapons went to the exact same places
and left the exact same decals but I can assure you that it's just coincidence.
Neither weapon seems to outshine the other in this test.
You could argue for either weapon here but the stats behind the scenes say that they're
the same.
One area that is different is the Flinch Velocity.
This is how much enemies will slow down when shot.
But how to test this?
Who would be willing to be REPEATEDLY SHOT?!
Fortunately Comacchio the sky-diver, fly-eater, mountain-streaker, barrel-diver and pizza
wearer was online and was more than up for the challenge.
The G3SG1 first.
And now for the SCAR-20.
In Comacchio's words: 'Yeah that slows me down wayyyyy more'.
Here are the figures on-screen.
Although I tested with the legs, it appears that a body shot will slow them down EVEN
MORE!
The CT's SCAR-20 is better at this, which I guess complements the CT's more defensive
play-style.
However, if you're shooting them then you'll be wanting to do more than just to slow them
down.
It does mean that if you only shoot them once, they'll behave more like sitting ducks after
the first shot which will allow for you- and other people- to deliver additional blows.
This makes the SCAR-20 a devastating weapon in FAKE gamemodes like zombiemode, where it's
more about slowing the enemy down than anything else.
Which nicely brings us onto damage, which is identical.
The rule is that it takes 2 hits to kill an enemy with either weapon, unless it's a headshot
which is insta-kill.
I tested this at both long and close-range and it holds true.
When it comes to the pattern, the G3SG1 is slightly more precise.
This only applies when in full-auto mode and the difference is slight as you can see in
these comparisons.
When spraying, the G3SG1 has an inaccuracy rating of 30 instead of the SCAR-20's 31.
In practice however, this is hard to show- the patterns simply look different.
These are done without spread so the pattern is easier to see.
The G3SG1's bullets gradually trail up and to the right, while the SCAR-20 shoots up
and then dances about for a bit.
Once you've mastered the pattern the difference should be negligible.
Although it doesn't look as though scoping offers any advantage, once I include the random
spread as well you can see that it really does.
This is how it will perform in-game, but it's worth remembering that the bullets will not
shoot up further if you spray without the scope- in fact, the opposite almost appears
to be the case.
Whilst we're onto the topic of accuracy, it's worth noting that you won't be accurate the
moment you scope.
If you fire immediately, your accuracy will be poor.
Wait a second and it will be perfect.
Somewhere in the middle... results somewhere in the middle.
Conclusion: it's best to be scoped in before the enemy appears on-screen, or to resist
the urge to fire immediately.
It will pay off.
The ONLY OTHER difference that I know of between these two weapons is the reload time.
The SCAR-20 takes just 3.11 seconds, faster than any other sniper and less than even some
rifles and SMGs.
The G3SG1, on the other hand, takes 4.65 seconds, which is only faster than the heavy machine-guns!
You can see the difference in the reload animation.
The Terrorist seems to take reloading at a very leisurely pace.
This in my opinion is the largest difference between the weapons, but you still have to
remember that you get 20 shots before you have to reload.
This may make a difference in deathmatch mode more than it does in standard play.
Both can fire underwater despite the wiki implying otherwise.
You have the same running speed with both weapons, limiting you to 150 units a second
or 215 units when unscoped, which is the same as wielding an AK47 and faster than the AWP.
In conclusion, there are minor differences between the weapons but they are bought so
infrequently that you'll rarely be in a situation where you can pick between them.
They are similar or identical in all of the important areas, so the only real determiner
for which one you should get is which team you'll be on.
But if I had to choose, I'd pick the SCAR-20 which, although slightly more inaccurate when
spraying, slows enemies down with leg shots and takes less time to reload.
Its sound is less unique which may not alert enemies to the weapon as much as the Terrorist's
G3SG1.
The autosniper in general is a defensive weapon, meaning that it favours CT in defuse mode
and T-side in hostage rescue scenarios.
It is great at mowing down large numbers of enemies and it's probably because of that
that it's considered a 'noob weapon'.
Don't listen to the haters!
It has a place in CS:GO and its high cost restricts its usage in most situations.
Once again, a special thanks to Slothsquadron and Black Retina for the excellent weapon
stats spreadsheet which you can view yourself in the description of this video.
In addition to this, Slothsquadron has reviewed this video in great depth and has found so
many flaws in my initial findings that I'm not sure whether to punch or to kiss him.
Perhaps both!
Have fun.