Mechanical vs Primal weapons in Fortnite Season 6: Which should you lean towards?

Fortnite Season 6 is off to a great start, and despite snipers being vaulted, players can enjoy some primal warfare with new weapon types and craftable bows.

Here are all the new weapons and their stats!NOTES:- Makeshift shotgun damage should be multiplied by 7 pellets, then by 1.25 if you want to get headshot value- Primal & Mythic shotguns damage should be multiplied by 5 pellets, then by 1.25 if you want to get headshot value pic.twitter.com/6Y70Dbi6JY

— HYPEX (@HYPEX) March 17, 2021

While the difference between Mechanical and Primal weapons is not vast, there are a few key points to keep in mind when choosing either. These points are purely based on the availability of loot found in-game.

Using loot from wildlife and technology untouched by the pulse, craft your own weapons anywhere. craft high-damage primal weapons like the primal rifle, high-precision familiar weapons like the revolver, and powerful bows like the flame and metal bow. pic.twitter.com/JFQ8iMv9H1

— Fortnite News (@FortniteBR) March 16, 2021

Fortnite Season 6 - Mechanical vs Primal Weapons

Shotguns

Shotguns are amazing when it comes to close-range engagements. The mechanical variant goes up to the gold tier, while the primal goes up to mythic. Primal shotguns are extremely dangerous up close, and they have a decent range. While aiming down sights, they still do a decent amount of damage from a distance.

Blue and green mechanical pumps lose the fight when compared to blue and green primal shotguns. In fact, in Fortnite Season 6, the weapons perform even worse than lower-tier primal guns.

The rarer the shotgun, the more it leans towards the mechanical pump. However, the reality is that the mythic primal shotgun is in a class of its own and can't really be compared to others. Players should always choose a mystic primal shotgun over a gold shotgun in Fortnite Season 6.

The pump shotgun is back in the *NEW* Fortnite chapter 2 season 6! #FortniteSeason6 #Fortnite pic.twitter.com/qMtQBA2It2

— Gopex - Your Fortnite News 🚀 (@ItzGopex) March 16, 2021

While the choice is mostly based on playstyle, green or blue primal shotguns will be much better than green or blue pumps during the early game.

Primal shotguns have an increased rate of fire, deal more damage, and have quicker take-down speed. Despite Epic buffing the mechanical shotgun's body damage a little, the max damage output has been reduced slightly.

Primal is undeniably better in the earlier stages, but the pump is better towards the game's later stages. Playstyle and situational engagement will ultimately determine which one works better.

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SMGs

Both primal and mechanical SMGs have similar damage output and accuracy. Since both variants are very close in comparison to Fortnite Season 6, it comes down to finding high-tier SMGs early in the game

We wanna see your Rapid Fire SMG feats from this week. Post them in the replies! pic.twitter.com/ih28vFs04Y

— Fortnite (@FortniteGame) March 7, 2021

Primal smgs are a bit less accurate but have higher fire rates when compared to the P90. However, since the difference between both types is nearly negligible, it solely comes down to how an individual player uses the weapon in fights.

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Bows

The strongest bow is the mechanical shockwave bow. It offers the best utility, mobility and can be used aggressively. While other bows may be good in certain situations, the number one bow to look for or craft in-game is undoubtedly the shockwave bow.

The Shockwave Bow is so fun! 🕊 pic.twitter.com/7U3hiXHXbc

— Merl (@Merl) March 16, 2021

Players who are expert marksmen can still opt for the regular bow, but aiming down is harder when compared to a regular sniper. This ultimately makes it harder to take headshots. It's unclear when snipers will be unvaulted in Fortnite Season 6.

Assault Rifles

The Primal assault rifle, green or blue tier, beats the mechanical when it comes to close-range combat. Compared to the mechanical variant, the Primal assault rifle has a higher DPS as it shoots faster.

two assault rifles and a dream #Fortnite #FortniteSeason8 #smallstreamers #twitch #gamergirl #console #Australian pic.twitter.com/S0LfASm2cj

— Maddie (@SilvA_BuIleT) March 4, 2019

However, Primal assault rifles in Fortnite Season 6 lack ADS accuracy, which makes them ineffective at long range. This could be an issue for players who are used to keeping a distance while engaging.

Despite being less accurate when aiming down and long distances, the Primal assault rifle makes up for this by shooting faster than its mechanical counterpart.

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Conclusion

Epic Games wants its players to stick to Fortnite Season 6's primal theme. Although the mechanical variants of the weapons are good, the primal's seem to be just a bit better in nearly every stage.

Casual players should pick up green or blue tiers of primal weapons as soon as possible to get an edge.