How to Check and Optimize Your Loadout Inventory in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2

Ready to dominate your next team deathmatch or secure that search and destroy bomb plant? The first step is making sure you have the right gear equipped. Here‘s the quick lowdown on accessing your inventory in MW2 on console:

To view your current multiplayer loadout inventory, press the left D-pad button. This opens the inventory screen displaying all equipped weapons, equipment, perks and field upgrades.

But simply checking your loudout isn‘t enough. You need to make sure it‘s optimized for your preferred game modes and play style. This guide digs deeper into MW2‘s inventory functionality so you can fine-tune your perfect loadout.

Picking the Right Primary Weapon

Your primary weapon has the biggest influence on play style and which engagements you can win. According to tracker.gg, the most popular primaries in MW2 are:

1. Kastov-74u – 32% usage
2. M4 – 27% usage
3. TAQ-56 – 12% usage

However, passionate MW2 expert streamer @OpticTexas argues the Kastov is overrated this season. "The recent nerf to Kastov recoil kicked it out of S-tier for me. M4 has better range and stops power now," he tweeted last week.

When optimizing your primary weapon, consider these key factors:

• Mobility – How fast can you move while ADS?
• Damage Range – What‘s the effective distance before dropoff?
• Recoil – Can you control sustained fire?
• Handling – How fast can you ADS and sprint-to-fire?

Here‘s a comparison of top assault rifle characteristics:

As you can see, there‘s no single dominant gun. The Kastov prioritizes mobility and handling. The M4 excels at range and control. And the TAQ splits the difference while maximizing damage per bullet.

Try out all three in custom games to learn which assault rifle suits your rushing, precise or aggressive playstyle.

Equipping Optimal Lethal and Tactical Gear

Beyond your primary, supportive lethal and tactical equipment can save lives in a pinch.

For lethals, Semtex grenades currently dominate with 65% equip rate. These stickies continue being popular for good reason: they‘re easy to aim while sprinting and explode quickly with high damage.

Thermite has seen a surge to 20% usage after receiving a projectile speed buff in the mid-season patch. Try this lethal instead of Semtex if you often throw equipment across long sight lines.

As for tactical gear, stims maintain a 50% pick rate thanks to the instant heal and repeated usage they offer. This gratifying side effect keeps stim usage high even after the recent nerf increasing the charge delay between uses.

For my money, snapshot grenades might be the most underrated tactical. Equipping snapshot gives you temporary wallhack vision on enemies through structures and smoke. This intel can enable pushing with precision or safely repositioning when your health gets low.

So if you haven‘t already, give snapshot grenades a shot! Pun intended.

Accessing Inventory Mid-Match

Learning what loudout works is half the battle won, but you also need the in-match flexibility to adapt your gear. Say youwant to swap from sniping to shotgun as thehardpoint location changes. Here is how to access inventory:

1. Press left on d-pad
2. Scroll to desired weapon
3. Press X (Xbox) or Square (PlayStation) to select new weapon
4. Equip weapon and/or equipment if prompt appears
5. Exit menu

This mid-match inventory check takes only seconds once you get the button commands down pat. So if enemies start equipping Flak Jacket to counter your lethals or snipers are camping long angles, quickly pivot your loudout via inventory to counter the latest opposition strategy.

Optimizing Perks and Field Upgrades

The last key gear slots that support your preferred playstyle are perks and field upgrades:

Perk 1

• Double Time: 33% – Extra sprint and crouch movement
• Scavenger: 22% – Resupply ammo and lethals from bodies

Perk 2

• Overkill: 51% – Carry two primary weapons
• Radar: 28% – Enemy shots appear on mini-map

Perk 3

• Fast Hands: 32% – Swap weapons faster
• Double Time: 30% – Increased movement speed

Field Upgrades

• Dead Silence: 82% – Masks footsteps
• Battle Rage: 9% – Instantly heal and boost weapon handling

As these usage rates show, mobilty and stealth dominate the current perk meta. Double Time is popular for rushing playstyles while Radar provides passive intel on enemy shooting locations. Dead Silence masks noisy movement in soundwhore lobbies while Battle Rage enables clutch turn-on gunfights even at low health.

I suggest equipping perks that accentuate your primary gun‘s strenghts. For example, use Scavenger to replenish ammo with bullet hose guns or Fast Hands to increase sniper quickscoping potential through faster ADS.

Learn all the tactical perks by experimenting in custom games before enetring ranked. This ensures you experience their distinct benefits. Soon you‘ll gain enough personal experience to pick the perfect perk package to dominate lobbies with your personalized loudout and playstyle.

Closing Tips and Recommended Practices

Here are my key takeaways for optimizing loadout inventory in MW2:

• Choose primary weapons suited to your natural playstyle based on mobility, range, control and handling traits
• Equip lethal and tactical equipment that provides flexibility like Semtex grenades and snapshot grenades
• Access inventory mid-match via the left d-pad to adapt loudout to evolving lobby conditions
• Select perks and field upgrades offering synergy with your loudout‘s strengths like Scavenger for ammo replenish

Learning how to check your inventory only takes 10 seconds. But truly optimizing inventory based on your strengths and opposition takes hours of analyzing stats and test driving loadout performance in custom environments.

As a closing note, loudouts must evolve as the meta changes with new patches and weapon tuning updates. So bookmark resources linked in this guide and revisit as multiplayer balance shifts over the next year. If adaptability is king in MW2, then constantly optimizing your inventory for the current state of play is the winning strategy on the road to that glorious nuke!

Let me know if this guide helps you refine and lock in your ideal loadout down below or @GameMasterGuru on Twitter. Happy grinding toward MW2 mastery!