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IronSight

Looking through a Heckler & Koch "Universal Iron Sight" featured on the MP5 submachine gun

Iron sights are aiming aids built into most firearms. Common to all designs is a front element near the muzzle opening, and a rear element at the rear of the barrel or above the weapon's action.

Two common classes of sights include open sights, which use a notch at the rear, and aperture sights, where the user looks through a ring or opening in a rear panel. Leaf sights are another type that feature graduated markings along a folding panel at the rear to assist with long-range targeting.    

Battlefield 2 and Battlefield 2142[]

Battlefield 2 is the first Battlefield game where iron sights are used while aiming a weapon. Many weapons ranging from carbines to pistols are equipped with them. Other weapons are equipped with short-range sights or long-range scopes.

In Battlefield 2142, only pistols use iron sights. Shotguns do not have optics or ironsights.

Battlefield: Bad Company[]

In Battlefield: Bad Company, iron sights could be used on all assault rifles, light machine guns, and pistols. Player characters are not able to use iron sights with short-ranged weapons such as the shotguns and compact assault rifles, instead using the aim feature increased zoom and brought the weapon closer to the player's face; however it would still use the circular crosshair, similar to Battlefield 1942.

Battlefield 1943[]

In Battlefield 1943, only the rifleman's rifle, the scout's pistol and the infantry's recoilless rifle can use iron sights. The submachine guns in the game use the same aiming mechanic as in Battlefield: Bad Company.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2[]

In Battlefield: Bad Company 2, all of the Engineer's, Assault, and Medic's weapons (excluding the MG36 and shotguns) use iron sights. Aiming down the iron sights increases the player's accuracy compared to hipfire. The player can opt to use a 4x Optical Sight or a Red Dot Sight on certain weapons instead.

Battlefield 3[]

All weapons in Battlefield 3 can be used with iron sights. Most weapons use iron sights as their default optic, while sniper rifles have a default scope.

Using the iron sights gives the shortest aim down sight (ADS) time, with only hipfire offering faster response. Equipping a sight or scope increases the time needed to ADS.

Battlefield 4[]

BF4 ironsight

Iron sights appear in Battlefield 4 for all firearms except for the Shorty 12G. They are the default optic attachment for weapons, aside from the default weapons for each kit that have an appropriate sight or scope.

Unlike prior games, all weapons have sway, but the effect is almost unnoticeable when using iron sights.

Canted Ironsights are an attachment that can be used along with scopes. A special sort of iron sight called the Ghost Ring is available for use with all sidearms.


Battlefield Hardline[]

"Use weapon's built-in iron sights."

— Battlelog Description

Iron Sights are an attachment featured in Battlefield Hardline. It is available on all weapons except for the Syndicate Gun and A 8S, unlocked for free.

A special sort of iron sight called the Improved Iron Sights is available for all sidearms.


Battlefield 1[]

All weapons in Battlefield 1 can use iron sights. These are used on weapon variants not mounting some other form of sight (e.g. leaf lens, marksman optic).

The following customization options are available for iron sights:

Icon and name Description
BF1 Custom Iron Sight
Iron Sights
Default for all weapons without an additional scope.
BF1 Custom Buckhorn Sight
Buckhorn Sight
Has improved visibility but decreased view frame. Available on submachine guns except for the Annihilator, SMG 08/18 and Maschinenpistole M1912/P.16, and on self-loading rifles except for the Howell Automatic.
BF1 Custom Peep Sight
Peep Sight
Exclusive to the Automatico M1918. Replaces the V-shaped back sight with a circular back sight.
BF1 Custom Shotgun Rib
Shotgun Rib
Available for shotguns. An iron sight that lacks obstructive side posts but sits closer to the weapon barrel.
BF1 Custom AA Sight
AA Sights
Available on light machine guns, as well as the SMG 08/18, Howell Automatic, and Fedorov-Degtyarev. Have a wide viewing area and come in different variants depending on the weapon:
    • A set of concentric ovals, on guns such as the Lewis Gun or the Huot Automatic;
    • Concentric circles with eight radial beams, on guns such as the BAR M1918 or the MG15 n.A.;
    • A large circular rear sight consisting of two circles and four radial beams, with a pointed front sight. This is exclusive to the Chauchat.
BF1 Custom Radium Sight
Radium Sights
Available for single-action rifles and the Maschinenpistole M1912/P.16. A pair of easy acquisition, radium-illuminated sights.

All iron sights have four customizable zoom levels: BF1 Custom 1.00 Magnification 1.00x, BF1 Custom 1.25 Magnification 1.25x, BF1 Custom 1.50 Magnification 1.50x and BF1 Custom 2.00 Magnification 2.00x. These are specific to each weapon.

Single-Action Rifle variants that use iron sights (i.e. Carbine and Infantry) can operate their action while aiming down sights, similar to the Straight Pull Bolt's effects.

Trivia[]

  • In Battlefield 4, a persistent bug occurs on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 in which the iron sights of most weapons do not render correctly for a few seconds after spawning, making it difficult to aim with until they load. However, this usually only affects the start of a match, as the weapons render almost instantly later in a match; using optics of any kind fixes this.
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