Are Shotguns Bad Game Design

Icon weapon Winchester.png

Shotguns (SG) are a type of weapon in BATTLEGROUNDS.

Powerhouse guns utilizing shells to wreak havoc.

Summary

Shotguns are weapons designed to fire shell cartridges that are different from normal bullet cartridges. Shells are usually loaded with a kind of pellets that can vary in size depending on the desired application. The shell is loaded with a wad that acts as a wall, pushing the pellets or payload out of the shell cartridge. This means that most rifles used for shooting shotgun shells uses normal barrels without rifling which makes them less effective for shooting bullets designed for rifled barrels.

In real-life there are different types of shot that are loaded into a shell depending on application. The most common are: small pellets for clay pigeons and pest removal, buck shot for larger targets and law enforcement applications, slug for rifled barrels that acts as one projectile, bean bags for less than lethal applications and flechette nails that penetrate tissue.

Because of the spread of the pellets, the shotgun is less useful over larger distances, as the traveling projectiles tend to travel away from the center of the predicted bullet path eventually covering the area much like a cone shape. With an adjustment of the barrel using a choke, the rifle can direct most of the pellets in a more narrow path, making the shotgun more effective even at medium ranges.

Update history

Update #33 (Season 4 - Update 4.3)

Improved shotgun consistency.
- Hit probability increased, especially in medium shotgun range.
- Damage drop-off over distance increased.
- Minimum per pellet damage within effective range of each shotgun increased to 4.
  - Except the Sawed-Off, which is 3.
  - All shotguns fire 9 pellets total per round.
Adjusted shotgun balance.
- All shotgun pellets now use more realistic ballistic curves (speed decrease over time).
- All shotguns had their recoil effects updated.
- Damage multiplier changes
  - Headshot: From 1.5 to 1.2
  - Torso: From 1.0 to 0.9

Data

Note: Since PUBG Corp doesn't release the official weapon values of guns, no website has 100% accurate statistics for weapons. Each website relies on hundreds of spreadsheets and each website has different numbers. Most websites recorded their data via private matches and some don't include the feet/range. No one knows if the tests were consistent when recording the data. In short, no one has the exact numbers, but this data is close to the real values.

Click here for an explanation of these stats.

Guides

Shotguns are a big part of our Best Loadouts for PLAYERUNKNOWN's BATTLEGROUNDS, so if you use these weapons a lot, make sure to check out that page. For more tips and tricks, make sure to also check out our How to Play Guide for PLAYERUNKNOWN's BATTLEGROUNDS.

Achievement Name	Picture	Description	Platform
CQB Novice		Kill 10 players with a shotgun, a submachine gun, and/or a pistol.
CQB Expert		Kill 50 players with a shotgun, a submachine gun, and/or a pistol.
CQB Master		Kill 200 players with a shotgun, a submachine gun, and/or a pistol.