Fortnite Season 4: Pump Shotgun Returns, how does it hold up?

Fortnite Season 4 has featured multiple returning weapons, as well as the Tactical Shotgun being vaulted for the first time ever. However, these returning weapons have been altered, and some of them feel very different as a result. The Pump Shotgun was often seen as one of the strongest weapons in Fortnite, but does that hold up in Fortnite Season 4?

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What made the Pump Shotgun so strong in Fortnite?

The Pump Shotgun is back in all its rarities! #Fortnite pic.twitter.com/qWNShNAwId

— Fortnite INF Leaks (@InfLeaks) August 27, 2020

Depending on when you played, the Pump Shotgun was strong for different reasons. One of the earliest developments with the Pump Shotgun was the use of double-pumping. This is when you wield two pump shotguns and alternate them to cancel the long cooldown time between shots. When done well, double-pumping gives you a faster fire rate and twice the ammo pool before needing to reload.

This benefited the Pump Shotgun immensely, and Fortnite Season 4 does support this. Part of what made it so powerful was that pump shotguns could hit for at or over 100 damage on body shots, and wielding two meant that you could eliminate a player before they could even respond.

The other reason Pump Shotguns were so strong was their high headshot multiplier. With a 2x multiplier, Pump Shotguns could hit for 200 on headshots, eliminating even a fully shielded opponent.

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Pump Shotguns are weak in Fortnite Season 4, and that’s okay

The Pump Shotgun is Unvaulted! #FortniteSeason4 #Fortnite double pump maybe? pic.twitter.com/Hv5L9OgUhn

— VadeSnipez (@VadeSnipezz) August 27, 2020

The current version of the Pump Shotgun is the same as from Fortnite Chapter 2 Season 1, meaning that they will be generally slow, one-hit wonders. That said, this season did mention the return of double-pumping, which might give them a new edge.

In Fortnite Season 4 by the numbers the lowest rarity version (common) hits for just 70 damage, and has a high reload time. The pump shotgun doesn’t reach 100 damage until Epic rarity, so while Epic and Legendary Pump Shotguns in Fortnite Season 4 will feel strong on their own, the lower rarity ones will definitely feel a bit anemic.

It seems like Pump Shotguns in Fortnite Season 4 were designed with double-pumping in mind. One thing we don’t know is whether or not Pump Shotguns will retain their 2x headshot multiplier in this season.

If they do, the high rarity version will absolutely see play for their ability to instantly eliminate any player, but if not then they may see play as a single hit before swapping to a faster weapon.