Unlock the SR338 Sniper Rifle - Battlefield 4 Gun Review

The SR338 is a semi-automatic sniper rifle available only to the recon class.  It is an often ignored weapon, because statistically it fits into an awkward spot between DMR's and Sniper Rifles of Battlefield 4.  I like to call it a super DMR.

How to Unlock the SR338

 To unlock the SR338 you need to have the Naval Strike DLC and complete the Always Deadly assignment.  Luckily, this is one of the more straightforward and easy assignments.  All you need to do is obtain three sniper rifle ribbons and get 5 C4 kills on Naval Strike maps.

Hiding in the rocks with the SR338 sniper rifle (supper dmr) in Battlefield 4.

SR338 Review

In the real world there is little difference between the accuracy, and power of a match grade semi-automatic rifle and a bolt action sniper rifle if both rifles are chambered for the same cartridge.  In Battlefield 4 however, they have to balance things out and no one would choose a super powerful bolt action rifle over a super powerful semi-automatic.  Therefore, the SR338 does less damage than all the bolt action weapons.    

 Currently in Battlelog you will see the SR338 does 88 damage, and if that were accurate, holy crap this would be a great gun.  However, if you want accurate stats got to symthic.com and you will see the rifle only does 50 max damage.  That’s plenty of damage, but it means two body shots at ranges of 150 meters or less, and if your foe is using the defensive perk it is now three body shots, or a head shot and a body shot, which is not very impressive compared to a one shot one kill at any range to the head with a slow firing bolt action.  My biggest gripe about this gun is losing a fire fight and seeing that my opponent has 10 or less health left.  Expect to get a lot of “assist counts as kill” with this weapon. 



Now let’s compare the SR338 to my favorite DMR, the MK 11 MOD 0.  The MK 11 does 45 damage, which means it is not going to bring down players with the defensive perk in two body shots, but it will take the same number of shots to bring down those that are, as the SR338.  The main difference between the two rifles in terms of power is the range at where the max damage drops of.  For the SR338 it is 150 m, and the MK11 it is 45m, so the SR338 is going to have better damage potential at range. 

The other major difference is the magazine size with the SR338 having a capacity of 10 +1 and the MK 11 and most other DMR’s having 20 +1.  While this may seem like a massive difference, it is not that big a factor if you are playing at the edges of combat.  The extra distance gives the chance to reload tactically.  I use DMR’s a lot and I am usually reloading after firing 5-8 shots, not more than 10.  The SR338 has a short reload of 2.3 seconds and a long reload of 2.6 seconds.  Its long reload is as fast or faster than any of the other sniper rifles.  As with DMRs, and sniper rifles it is nice to have a good secondary weapon in close quarters. 

Perhaps the deciding factor between a DMR and the SR338 would be the weapons attachments.  Since the SR338 lies within the sniper rifles, it can be equipped with high magnification scopes, all the way out to 40x whereas the DMR is maxed out at 4.  The other weapon accessory that is available is the rangefinder.  DMR’s on the other hand have the target detector (if you unlock it) and the flip up magnifier. 

 With range finder, high magnification scopes, and better damage model the SR338 wins over any DMR at long range.  However, if you’re concerned about long range than most of the bolt action rifles are a superior choice.  Much like the regular SCAR H in the assault class the SR338 is something of a misfit. If do run with the SR338 in Battlefield 4, you will have a great gun. It will give more versatility of either the sniper rifle, or the DMR, but it may not be what you really want.