I interpret points 5 and 6 slightly differently. In particular, new players are not put off by the faster entry point. Personally, I wouldn't be interested in a game where everyone has the meta weapon and I have to grind for two months to get an equivalent one. That's why I think the current setup is ideal and shouldn't be changed. Unless, of course, you want to remain a niche game.
What should be changed is the weapon balance. If I don't stand a chance in close combat with an MP7 compared to other weapons, that's imbalanced. Could you remove or properly adjust it? It's way too weak.
The main problem right now is the network code.
Death delay occurs even when you're already taking cover.
– "Magic bullet": You fall down in half a second even if you fired first.
And that's with a ping of 17 ms and no packet loss!
It's difficult to comment on the weapons because with this network code, you'd have to guess.