The Apex Legends Global Series finished its first round robin, bringing the greatest competition together for the first two weeks of the 2024 season. Through the initial 72 matches, pros have overwhelmingly used one particular weapon, which has triple the playtime of any other weapon.
According to Apex Legends Status, the 30-30 Repeater leads all four Pro Leagues globally in cumulative play time. The 30-30 averages over 38 hours as the actively equipped weapon, compared to previously dominant weapons like the Nemesis or R-99 which topped the 2023 meta. Even though other weapons outperform the marksman rifle in raw stats, the 30-30 finds greater utility value than viewers may realize.
When looking at direct damage comparisons, the 30-30 is outpaced in its own category by the G7 Scout, which boasts a superior DPS and TTK thanks to its higher fire rate, projectile speed, magazine size and reload time. On paper, pros should be using the G7 Scout more for its immediate value, but it failed to break into the top five weapons for cumulative play time in the first round robin for all regions.
Some pros may prefer the G7 over the 30-30 as a matter of opinion and weapon feel, but the 30-30 carries more value in a fight than its initial stats suggest. The 30-30 has not received any notable buffs leading up to the 2024 Pro League season, and even got a hipfire spread nerf in the season 19 launch patch, but found itself occupying a certain niche: use of the Skullpiercer hop-up.
The Wingman was explicitly used for its Skullpiercer hop-up, which multiplied headshot damage by 0.35. It gave the pistol the fastest TTK in the entire game for non-supply drop weapons, able to down enemies in a maximum of three shots that hit for 95 damage with the Skullpiercer, even against Red armor. The reclassification to Sniper ammo also helped inventory management, as the Wingman did not compete with any of the other meta-dominating weapons, such as the Nemesis or R-99.
However, season 19 rotated the Wingman into the care package rotation, leaving the 30-30 as the next best weapon to take its place with a similar fire rate, mid-range scopes for greater range, and dealing up to 79 damage at full charge with the Skullpiercer. The 30-30’s additional charging trait while aiming down sights gives it the highest non-care package weapon damage in a single shot outside of the sniper rifles, which are unpopular picks in the current meta.
This allows for teams with multiple 30-30s to set up an ambush and easily burst down an unsuspecting enemy with coordinated shots from all three players, an important play in the current meta as Conduit’s introduction and ALGS popularity makes it easier to recover from any non-lethal poke damage when crossing open ground. That burst potential brings unique value to the 30-30 over the G7 with its faster fire rate but weaker shots, which many pros clued in on as soon as the Pro League Qualifiers this year.
Additionally, the 30-30 also does not compete with the most popular meta weapons due to its heavy ammo classification. The Flatline and Hemlok fail to break into the top five in all regions for cumulative play time, while the CAR SMG can use light or heavy ammo, leaving the 30-30 as the only popular exclusively heavy weapon in the game.
The G7 must compete with the R-99, CAR SMG, and the occasional R-301 for ammo, causing problems if all three members of a squad are running any combination of light weapons. The G7 also requires more bullets to find value than the 30-30. Pros can carry five full magazines of 30-30 shots with only one heavy ammo stack if they have a Purple or Gold extended mag, leaving inventory space open for grenades or extra ammo devoted to their secondary weapon. That’s usually an R-99 or CAR, both of which burn through ammo quickly in a fight.
The debate between which marksman weapon continues on between the casual and competitive community, but the Pro League stats don’t lie: The 30-30 Repeater leads in all regions and for good reasons before, during, and after a fight.
