Duplicate attachment and Unable to reload (attach ammo to) Automatgevär (AG4, AG5, Experimental AG4)

Support and Bug Reports
1

Platform:

PC

Description:

Sometimes a weapon seems to have a “duplicate” attachment.

Also, quite some people have encountered the issue that they are suddenly unable to “reload” the Automatgevär 4, Automatgevär 5 or Experimental Automatgevär 4.

The only easy way to fix these bugs (until now, that is) is to drop the weapon on the floor and to pick it back up.

It all seems to happen fairly randomly. However, there actually seems to be method to madness (or, logic to lunacy, if you prefer :wink:) and both problems seem to be strongly related.

See below for extensive information.

Steps To Reproduce:

See below.

Images / Videos:

See below.

Host or Client:

Both? (Solo)

Players in your game:

1

Specifications:

CPU: Ryzen 7 1700
Motherboard: Asus ROG Crosshair VI
RAM: 16GB, G.Skill FlareX, 3200MT/s, CL14
Graphics: MSI Radeon R9 380 Gaming 4GB
PSU: Corsair HX750i, 750W

Disclaimers:

This issue is 100% reproducible on my machine/installation. It is, however, entirely possible that this behaviour is different for other people.

I have not been able to reproduce the reload bug with any other “vanilla” weapon. However, this bug report suggests that there are issues with the Alpine Unrest DLC weapons as well. More information may be added as soon as I get one of them.

1. Main symptoms

1.1 Duplicate attachment bug

  1. The REMOVE ATTACHMENT option (of the weapons menu) shows one of the attachments twice.

  2. Both duplicate attachments cannot be detached. One can be detached but when the remaining duplicate is detached, the attachment jumps to another inventory slot and automatically “re-attaches” the first one.

1.2 Reload bug

  1. There is a duplicate attachment.

  2. When you drag an ammo stack onto the weapon:

    • it disappears from the inventory (but it is actually not attached; see the ammo attachment icon of the weapon card).
    • when you exit the inventory, the ammo counter still indicates 00/0000 and you can’t shoot.
    • when you re-enter the inventory, the ammo stack has re-appeared in the same slot as it was before.

  3. When you try to attach the ammo stack via the ATTACH menu: it refuses to attach and stays in the inventory slot.

  4. Sometimes the weapon automatically reloads when new ammo is picked up.

2. Causes

The duplicate attachment bug (and which one it is) may seem to be rather random but it’s actually not. So, in order to understand the “causes” (and the “workarounds”), a small analytical summary is needed:

  • The attachments are listed from bottom to top according to the order in which they have been attached. The first one added is listed at the bottom; the last one listed at the top.
  • It is -always- the bottom attachment that gets “duplicated” (the “first” attachment). Unless it was the ammo in which case nothing gets duplicated.
  • When attachments are replaced, they get shuffled around according to the order in which that happens. The attachment gets removed from the list, the remaining list is “concatenated” and the new attachment gets added to the end of the list (the top).

2.1 Conditions for the “Duplicate attachment bug”

  1. There are 2 or more attachments attached to the weapon (including the ammo).

  2. Ammo is -not- the first attachment (it does not matter at which position it is exactly).

  3. The entire supply of ammo is emptied out by shooting (until the ammo counter says 00/0000).

Note 1: If any one of these conditions is -not- met, the issue does -not- occur.

Note 2: This bug applies to -all- weapons.

2.2 Conditions for the “Reload bug”

  1. The conditions for the Duplicate attachment bug are met.

  2. The maximum of 5 attachments is attached to the weapon:

    • Ammo
    • Extended Magazine
    • Scope
    • Vision Module
    • Silencer or Barrel Extension

Note 1: If any one of these conditions is -not- met, the reload issue does -not- occur.

Note 2: This most likely explains why the AI-76 (and possibly all other vanilla weapons) does not seem to suffer from this bug (at least not that I could reproduce): they can’t have 5 attachments.

3. Temporary solutions / semi-workarounds for the reload bug

Unfortunately, there is no (real) solution to the problem other than the developers fixing it. However, there are several “workarounds” that can alleviate the annoyance somewhat should it happen during a fight.

3.1 Option 1 - Prevent the bug from happening completely

Do not attach all 5 attachments. This is obviously not desirable but it seems to prevent the bug from happening completely.

Note: If you have any attachment(s) other than ammo, you’ll -still- get the “duplicate” attachment bug if you empty out your supply to 000/0000. You will also not be able to detach “both” duplicates. However, you will be able to attach ammo directly.

3.2 Option 2 - Prevent the bug from happening once.

This option will prevent the bug from happening the first time you empty out your supply of a specific ammo type.

  1. Remove all the attachments.
  2. Attach the Ammo.
  3. Attach the other attachments any way you like. However, see Note 3 below.

Or:

  1. Remove the bottom attachment.
  2. Re-attach the attachment.
  3. Repeat until the ammo is at the bottom.

When you empty out your ammo:

  1. Attach the other type of ammo.

Note 1: Do not switch any ammo for that Automatgevär if there is anything more attached than the ammo! Not even ammo of the same type (to top of the stack of ammo in the gun). If you do that, the ammo switches position in the list and you’ll end up with Option 3 and still get the bug.

Note 2: If you run out of ammo the second time, you’ll end up with Option 3. Unless you repeat the process of course. However, you’ll obviously need fresh ammo first.

Note 3: Read Option 3 for a smart order of remaining attachments (but with the ammo attached first, obviously).

3.3 Option 3 - Minimise the hassle during a battle

  1. Remove all the attachments.
  2. Attach either the Extended Magazine, Silencer or Barrel Extension first. Also see Note 3 below.
  3. Attach the remaining attachments any way you like.

Or:

  1. Remove the bottom attachment.
  2. Re-attach the attachment.
  3. Repeat until either the Extended Magazine, Silencer or Barrel Extension is at the bottom. Also see Note 3 below.

When you empty out your ammo:

  1. Detach one of the “duplicate” attachments. Also: see note 2 below.
  2. Attach the other type of ammo.
  3. The detached attachment should automatically re-attach itself to the weapon and disappear from the inventory.

You should be able to be back in the fight within 5 seconds.

Note 1: Obviously, you need 1 free inventory slot in order to be able to detach the “duplicate” attachment.

However, it is a lot less annoying compared to the alternatives. If you don’t have a free slot, you can quickly drop something not-so-valuable. At least, as opposed to dropping the weapon on the ground to fix the issue, you don’t risk losing the weapon and the attachments.

Note 2: Technically, you can remove any attachment. The ammo will still attach. However, if you remove any attachment other than one of the duplicates, the attachment will not automatically re-attach and you will -not- be able to re-attach it manually.

Note 3: This is actually a result of Note 2 but nevertheless: If you first add a Scope with a Vision Module it won’t work. If you detach either the Scope (and therefore also the Vision Module) or the Vision Module then you will -not- be able to re-attach the Vision Module. It displays the same behaviour as the ammo. You cannot use it and it will have returned to the inventory. Also: when you run out of ammo the second time, you’ll have 3 duplicate Scopes as attachment.

3.4 Option 4 (not really useful)

This only works if you have 1 (partial) stack of ammo left in the inventory. Besides, it would be much faster to detach the duplicate attachment anyways. So it’s not particularly useful and only for completionists reasons.

  1. Drop the stack on the floor.
  2. Pick it up again. It should attach automatically.

4. Ghost ammo! (and more symptoms)

For the following summary I will use FMJ and AP for clarity. It does not matter with which type you start so you can swap them.

  • When you run out of FMJ and you loot some FMJ from any container (Ammo box, Backpack, Plundra), it will “attach” automatically. However, the stack of FMJ will end up in the inventory and not “in” the gun. It is, however, somehow “magically attached” to the weapon. You can shoot and the stack in the inventory counts down as you shoot.

    Also:

    • If the Ammo was attached first: You will be able to manually attach either ammo type to the gun and the stack disappears from the inventory. Also: the ammo will -not- be listed in the attachments until you attach any ammo manually.
    • If the Ammo was -not- attached first: You will -not- be able to manually attach either ammo type to the gun and the stack stays in the inventory. Also, there is still a duplicate attachment and the ammo will -not- be listed in the attachments. Detaching the duplicate attachment and attaching the ammo fixes it (and automatically re-attaches the other attachment).

    When you pick up a -full- stack (240) of FMJ (from the Plundra), strange things happen -if- the stack is left in the inventory slot. When you fire the gun, you will see the clip counter go down as usual, but the remaining supply counter will go -up- from (STACK_SIZE - MAGAZINE_SIZE) up to STACK_SIZE.

    • Automatgevär 4 with Green Extended Magazine (29): It counts from 29/0211 to 000/0240 for 8 full clips. After reloading the counter resets to 29/0211 and behaves normally again down to 000/0000.
      This gives 203 free bullets.

    • Automatgevär 4 with Golden Extended Magazine (35): It counts from 35/0205 to 000/0240 for 5 full clips. The 6th clip will stop counting back up at 7/0233 and then continues to 000/0233. After reloading the counter resets to 35/0198 and behaves normally again down to 000/0000.
      This gives 203 free bullets.

    • For the Automatgevär 5 with Blue Extended Magazine (41): It counts from 41/0199 to 000/0240 for 1 full clip. The 2nd clip will stop counting back up at 24/0216 and then continues to 000/0216. After reloading (41/0175) the ammo counter behaves normally again down to 000/0000.
      This gives 58 free bullets.

    • For the Automatgevär 5 with Golden Extended Magazine (45): It counts from 45/0195 to 000/0240 for 1 full clip. The 2nd clip will stop counting back up at 32/0208 and then continues to 000/0208. After reloading (45/0163) the ammo counter behaves normally again down to 000/0000.
      This gives 58 free bullets.

  • When you run out of FMJ and you loot AP from any container while you still have AP in your inventory, it will -not- attach automatically and you will still not be able to attach it yourself. You will have to remove one of the duplicates in order to do so.

5. Conclusion

Headache. Quite … intense … headache. :crazy_face:

Obviously something goes wrong with the attachment list (or the inventory system in general).

When the ammo is not the first attachment in the list (and when it runs out) then it is not removed properly. In stead, it seems to be moved to the first position in the list and it “copies the identity” of the original first attachment. This looks like one hell of a pointer/reference issue, if you ask me.

Also, considering the weird attachment of an Ammo Pack in @Zesiir’s bug report (which I have not been able to reproduce with the Automatgevär), this may even be related to the disappearing weapons bug: maybe such a weapon gets attached to another weapon somehow.

If it happens to anyone, I would suggest having a look at the attachments of all other weapons. And don’t forget to take a screenshot! :wink:

Edit: Disappearing weapons do -not- attach to other weapons. The detailed explanation can be found in my other bug report:
Inventory issues: Disappearing weapons, Inventory shuffling bugs and Crash to desktop.

6. Demonstration Video’s

Elaborate Demo - Ammo Attached first

Elaborate Demo - Ammo attached last

Quick Demo - Ammo Attached first

Quick Demo - Ammo attached last

I detached the bottom duplicate out of a habit. It would be a tad faster to remove the top duplicate since that one is already below the mouse cursor (on PC that is).

Ghost Ammo Demo

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2

Pretty spot-on analysis, I must say. And thanks for linking to my report. I saw the stream from wednesday yesterday and @Avalanche_Pontus mentioned a revamp of the entire inventory system (he’s more than welcome to come and clear it up, cheers), so I think the devs definitely know something’s not right.

The more in-depth information about this glitch we can provide, the better.

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Holy sheissen, Sir. Heck of a lot of work! Much appreciated!! :heart:

Seems to me you nailed it. I did not run into any of these bugs so far. But with your description I was instantly able to reproduce the duplicate attachment bug.

Excellent job! :+1:

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@Zesiir You’re welcome. :slight_smile:

There are definitely several problems (bugs) with the inventory system. Although, I don’t think the current -concept- in itself is bad. I actually like it, generally speaking.

The only obvious things (and mentioned a million times already) is ammo not automatically adding to the stack in the gun first and not being able to see/switch the ammo type quickly without entering the inventory. Although both also make it somewhat more realistic.

And what I would personally like to see (I think) is dedicated hot slots (which you can bind to a key) in order to use them immediately. Consume health pack, throw grenade, that sort of thing. Although, that would obviously have quite an impact on game play (and probably game balance).

In fact, it would be great if the the key binding system would be more flexible in general. So you can at least bind every action too other keys. With the standard WASD movement keys, the stretch to the ‘7’ key is a bit inconvenient, even for my flexible guitar fingers.

:joy:

Thanks man. It was a heck of a lot of work, indeed.

The most challenging was actually to get the information in a somewhat logical format. It’s one thing to understand what’s going on yourself but it’s another thing to explain it somewhat logically to others (and to be thorough about it).

5

Yeah, I use that for the binoculars. Which I only use when I have plenty of time. A dedicated keybind for that would be great though.

A little more on topic: I would also vote for automatic ammo switch in case you run out.

You did a great job there, too!

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Thanks again.

I’m divided about that. I think the option of being able to switch ammo manually outside the inventory would be convenient enough. Call me crazy, but I kind of like the "oh, scheiße :wink: "-experience of running out of ammo in the middle of a hectic fight. It adds quite nicely to the tension :upside_down_face:

I usually like control (and predictability) but in case of GZ, I absolutely love how things can turn into a massive fuster cluck within a couple of seconds. :slight_smile:

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Thank you, I thought I was going mad not be able to attach the ammo (in the middle of a fire fight).

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Happened today on PS4 for Client with AK5. Only solution was to exit game and reload it again. Dropping weapon didn’t help. Happened three times during two hours session. Maybe it’s a conflict of some sort because the machine Gun uses the same ammo?

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I just encountered this bug. This is an excellent write-up.
Should be enough the devs can fix it. In the meantime, I know what to do.
THANK YOU!

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10

Thankyou , a lot of effort , excellent work :+1:

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Thanks for a great post !

I recently met this bug too. Im using XB1. If m not all wrong this bug came, atleast for me, after the last update. That got me asking, I wonder if they (dev team) are working on the “top asked feature” autostacking (?).
It would be awsome, atleast for amo.

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@Rebus, @D8_ASI, @TherotcoD, @Dolconist and others.

You’re all welcome!

I’m just happy to see that you take advantage of this information in order to make your GenZ lives a bit easier. :smile:

Multiple times! :crazy_face: It’s basically the definition of bug hunting :wink:

Interesting. I haven’t seen that happening on PC.

It may indeed have been introduced with the Alpine update (considering the weird ammo pack attachment on the machine gun in aforementioned bug report from @Zesiir). But it may also be PS4 (or console in general) specific.

Who knows? There is all sorts of “funny stuff” happening regarding the inventory system.

Which bug? There are two! :slight_smile:

I started playing this game in August and both bugs have been present since then. I even vaguely remember the “reload bug” happening on an SMG once (in my “beginning”). But I haven’t been able to reproduce that so it may be a quirk in my memory, have some rare very specific conditions or it got fixed.

I’m not sure about the attach-ammo/reload-bug but (if memory serves) the duplicate attachment has been mentioned on the forums quite some time before I started to play. So, it has possibly (or probably) even been present from the moment the game launched.

About the auto stacking: It would indeed be convenient. However it would also be less realistic. I’m actually not really sure what I prefer. There is something to say for both mechanics (and a lot more :wink: ).

Maybe it could be implemented as a skill in a skill tree (just a thought).

As you can see in @Zesiir’s response above, the devs supposedly mentioned a revamp of the inventory system. I personally haven’t seen any information about that besides aforementioned response. However, I have also been quite preoccupied lately and I haven’t had much time to stay (even at least somewhat) up to date.

It remains to be seen what exactly a “revamp” will encompass. I personally hope they don’t turn it into some generic thirteen-in-a-dozen system. Even though reorganising the inventory can become quite tedious at times it also has some relaxing elements to it. Unless your leg is being humped by a Runner (or Hunter), of course :joy:

1 Like