Fortnite’s new Shotgun challenges players to play differently

When it comes to weapons in Fortnite, shotguns are the undisputed kings. In a game where you can rapidly build, edit, move, attack, protect and evade in combat, players may only have a fraction of a second to land a shot on their opponents.

For these reasons, shotguns have taken over as the go-to weapon of avid players as they can easily do over 100 damage when aimed well and possibly over 200 on head shots.

Colloquially referred to as 'one pumps', taking someone out with a shotgun is one of the best ways to end a fight quickly with with minimal risk to yourself.

Shotguns play well with building and editing in Fortnite:

Not my box when i have the charge shotgun #fortnite pic.twitter.com/gFKT8wSIu7

— Jca (@jca_rn) June 17, 2020

Building and build-fighting are vital skills to have in order to perform well in Fortnite. A typical build fight involves someone placing a wall, quickly editing it to form an opening, swapping to their shotgun of choice, firing off a shot, and rapidly editing the wall back to its default state in order to protect themselves.

This sequence of events is so common in Fortnite that it has almost become a prerequisite to know how to do it in order to win a fight against even moderately-skilled opponents.

The Charge Shotgun flips the script:

The charge shotgun encourages the Fortnite community to play the game differently. With its low capacity and long reload times, the charge shotgun appears to be weaker than the tactical shotgun overall.

However, the charge shotgun allows players to charge up their shot for more damage, up to three seconds, allowing players to easily land shots over 100 damage even from mid-range. This, however, is the weapon’s biggest weakness as well. The lengthy charge time means that players are not able to build fights nearly as effectively while using this weapon to its maximum potential.

Should you use a Charge Shotgun in Fortnite?

Weapon Vote Time! #1What do you prefer?Charge Shotgun or Tactical Shotgun?#Fortnite #Fortnitequiz pic.twitter.com/Qu4Wc1D3UO

— NiteNews • FN Leaks & News🦈 (@NiteNews_) June 17, 2020

Remember the sequence of plays mentioned above? All of those actions, when done optimally, take place within a fraction of a second. The speed with which you can attack and defend is actually the core strength of that play.

Being unable to do that would make almost any weapon in Fornite lose its efficacy. Fortunately, the charge shotgun can be used without charging, but the low clip and long reload make it an awkward choice of weapon in the game.

Perhaps in time the Fortnite community will discover other uses for it.