Highlights
- The Resident Evil shotgun is a powerful weapon that can easily take down Crimson Head zombies, making the game much easier to play.
- The Gears of War sawed-off shotgun may have lacked range and style, but its instant kill capabilities made it a popular choice among players.
- The Fallout 3 Combat Shotgun, coupled with the Bloody Mess perk, is a deadly weapon that turns enemies into mush with just a shot or two.
CQB, up close and personal, see the whites of their eyes. All these happen when using gaming and humanity's most deadly weapon. The shotgun can blast opponents away in an instant in a bloody mess of limbs and blood. Whichever player brings one of these to a gunfight isn't there just to win. They're there to dominate their opponent.
Bringing death and despair with the use of extreme prejudice in the form of a shotgun brings a tear to the eye of the wielder. Not for any pity or empathy for those they've slain, but because they might not be able to do it again. But saying all this, what is gaming's best shotgun?
10 Resident Evil (2002): The Shotgun
Typically, the first weapon that players get their hands on, the awesome power of the Resident Evil shotgun is not to be underestimated. Boasting insane damage against all foes, this weapon can carry the player throughout their horrifying journey through the creepy Spencer mansion and underground laboratory.
Whether playing as Jill or Chris, the shotgun isn't too difficult to gain. Jill gets the added bonus of not needing the broken shotgun to replace the real thing to prevent themselves from getting squashed. Once the weapon is obtained, the fun can begin. The ease at which this weapon deals with Crimson Head zombies in the game makes the playthrough a cakewalk. Easily helping the player difficult one of gaming's classic horror titles.
9 Gears of War: Sawed-Off
Really taking the "Double-barrelled" aspect to heart, the sawed-off shotgun from the Gears of War franchise was a hotly debated topic when it debuted in Gears of War 3 back in 2011. An instant kill that required very little in the way of aiming, the apparent lack of skill required to use it made many Gnasher lovers mad.
The sawed-off users, though, didn't care and continued to obliterate any and all who dared get into the very short range of them. Lacking in range and style, the sawed-off made up for it with the bloody messes that it continually made right up until it was removed two games later and never seen again. The world just wasn't ready for something so awesome.
8 Fallout 3 (2008): Combat Shotgun
Though the player may spend more time fixing this weapon because of Fallout's frustrating repair system, the Combat Shotgun from Fallout 3 is still a ferocious piece of military hardware. Getting one of these bad boys early on turns Super Mutants and Mirelurks to mush.
With its round drum holding a large amount of ammo, high damage, and decent accuracy and range, the Combat Shotgun is a deadly weapon. Coupled with the Bloody Mess perk, the true potential of this devastating shotgun is revealed. The explosive nature of enemies blowing apart after just a shot or two with this shotgun brings joy to all who use it.
7 Mass Effect: Andromeda (2017): Dhan
BioWare's venture into a new galaxy in Mass Effect: Andromeda brought players to new, unique worlds, allowed them to interact with new species and gave them new companions with interesting personalities. None of this was as great as the introduction of one of the most overpowered shotguns in gaming.
The Dhan, a Kett semi-automatic shotgun, is an absolute beast of a weapon. With devastating damage and sturdy accuracy, the Dhan completely trivializes the game on insanity. Activate Barrier, dash into enemies with Charge, and use Energy Drain to get that missing shield back and start blasting. Any and all enemies Ryder encounters throughout the sixty-hour plus campaign becomes mincemeat when encountering this monstrous shotgun.
6 Halo: Reach (2010): M45 Shotgun
One of gaming's most iconic franchises had to have their own entry on this list. It was tough as all the Halo shotguns could have been added to this list because of all their sheer, awesome power. However, the Halo: Reach variant holds itself above the competition. Possessing more damage, accuracy, and a cooler set of red lights, instead of the earlier variants blue, which elevates the weapon to an all-time great.
Playing Infection on Reflection, Sword Base, Powerhouse, or Boardwalk and equipping the M45 Shotgun makes for some amazing game montage moments. Killionaires were frequent during the glory days of Halo: Reach Infection.
5 Gears of War: Gnasher
Another one from Microsoft's most iconic and successful franchises, it would be remiss to not include the go-to weapon from the Gears of War series: The Gnasher. Defeating opponents in Gears multiplayer, from the heyday of Gears 1 and 2, all the way up to the more recent Gears 5, the Gnasher remains the best weapon at creating a geyser of blood and guts.
With incredible damage, and a small and rugged design, the Gnasher brought pain to the Locust in the campaign and every gamer in the multiplayer since its inception in 2006. Just make sure to only use it for close encounters as the Gnasher's range drops off considerably. But with enough practice and wall-bouncing experience, the Gnasher can prove its worth in this list.
4 Wolfenstein: The New Order (2014): Automatic Shotgun
The Automatic Shotgun, or Schockhammer 60 is, as it states in the name, an automatic shotgun that possesses extreme speed and damage to enact a quick and bloody death to the Nazi regime in Wolfenstein: The New Order. With ammo being spent at a rapid pace, and accuracy rarely noticed, the automatic shotgun carves apart all enemy types. From the lowly soldier, up to the Panzerhund (mechanized dogs) and Heavy Robots.
There's only one thing better than using the automatic shotgun in Wolfenstein, and that's using two! The true potential of this weapon is realized when learning of its dual-wielding capabilities. A weapon combination to rival the greatest in gaming.
3 Unreal Tournament (1999): Flak Cannon
Not much is left to be said about the lethality of the Flak Cannon from Unreal Tournament. It is a weapon of mass destruction. Dealing incredible damage with the added benefit of not needing to be too thoughtful about where the player is aiming. The two modes in which this weapon can be fired allow for more dynamic encounters if the player is quick on their feet.
The standard firing mode shoots out flak particles that can ricochet off walls, bouncing around until they hit something. This is very useful in arena shooters, where player encounters are fast, up close, and pretty chaotic - an environment the Flak Cannon thrives in. The secondary firing mode is the grenade launcher, adding range and higher levels of damage to an already insanely powerful and fun weapon to use, truly earning its place on this list.
2 DOOM Eternal (2020): Super Shotgun
The Super Shotgun has been an iconic weapon in DOOM since its inception back in 1993. It has many iterations and, in each, it is one of the deadliest weapons to use against the demon hordes.
The DOOM Eternal super shotgun has the added benefit of modern mechanics, and the addition of the Meat Hook showcases this. Being able to grapple and fling the player towards enemies to give them a killing shot is as satisfying as it is awesome. The super shotgun just misses out on top spot, but is an incredible weapon that won't be forgotten.
1 Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 (2009): Model 1887 (Akimbo)
The Model 1887 Akimbo (dual-wield) is the undisputed greatest shotgun of all time, a weapon so iconic it filled the lobby of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 for the longest time. Their impeccable range and incredible damage were so good/bad that Infinity Ward were forced to nerf them into oblivion.
But if the player was particularly skilled, and dropped to a single Model 1887 they could circumvent this nerf and still beat many other unaffected weapons in the game. The cool flipping animation, reminiscent of Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 2, adds to the weapon's cool factor. In a world of thermal sights, Nukes, Claymores, and AC-130s, sometimes all it takes to win is an old 19th-century shotgun.