The Best Shotguns in Warzone

Image: Infinity Ward Raven Software via HGG

Human Made

I've been playing video games pretty much nonstop ever since I got my first 360. I love arena shooters, MMOs, and MOBAs, but I'll pretty much try any kind of game.

Reviewed by Benjamin Barr

Shotguns are a type of weapon that most Call of Duty players have strong opinions about. Either you love them or you hate them. Though with that being said, seeing a shotgun in Warzone 2 isn’t a common sight when compared to other games like Modern Warfare 2. This is largely due to the long-ranged nature of battle royales, but they are still an option.

If you’re going to use a shotgun in Warzone 2, it’s important to know which are worth picking up and which should be left behind in Al Mazrah. In this article, we’ll look at all four shotguns currently available and rank them from worst to best!

Are Shotguns Good in Warzone 2?

In all honesty, shotguns are not that great in Warzone 2. This is no fault of the weapons themselves, though. It’s rare for shotguns to be really strong in battle royale games, so it’s not a surprise that that’s the case here. However, that’s not to say they’re useless. If you’re someone that likes to remain indoors, you might be able to find great uses for them.

If you’re going to use a shotgun in Warzone 2, you should prioritize ones that have a good combination of firing rate and range. Since you won’t always be close enough to one-shot, firing rate is going to be important here. So will range, naturally. Here’s each shotgun in Warzone 2 ranked!

4/4

Bryson 890

The Bryson 890 only has one strength — it has a magazine. This means it can be reloaded much quicker than other shotguns (or about the same speed as the Lockwood, but it’s a double-barrel, so that’s to be expected). Other than that, though, the Bryson 890 is worse than the already bad Bryson 800 in almost every way. It has a slower fire rate in exchange for its faster reload speed, which is just sad in this situation. Since the reload speed isn’t as important in Warzone 2 as in MW2, we can’t factor it in too much. Which sucks, considering it’s the only reason to ever use the 890.

The Bryson 890 is an unfortunate weapon. It looks really cool and seems like it would be strong when looking at it, but it doesn’t pack nearly the punch that it should. You might be able to get some use out of it, but it’s only worth it if you just like the weapon a lot. (Also, the pictured version is a blueprint, not the base version of the weapon.)

3/4

Bryson 800

We’re ranking the Bryson 800 just above the 890 because it has a better firing rate. That being said, though, it still doesn’t offer much more than its predecessor. Since the Bryson 800 is a pump shotgun with no magazine, it takes forever to reload (almost 9 seconds). This is going to be annoying in any game, but on the bright side, Warzone does offer decent safety while reloading a lot of the time. As long as you manage not to fire off all eight rounds, it should be fine for a brief encounter.

If your only options are either the Bryson 800 or 890, we recommend just using something else. Even the best shotguns are only so useful in Warzone 2, but the Brysons are pretty much saved for those with a death wish. Or people who really love the Gulag, but not the rest of the game.

2/4

Lockwood 300

The Lockwood 300 is a double-barrel shotgun, which means it has obvious pros and cons. One good thing about this, and the reason it’s second on the list, is its rate of fire. It actually beats the Expedite 12 (semi-auto shotgun) in terms of firing rate, but since it only has two shots, it’s harder to use. Miss one shot and your chances might be over, especially if you’re up against more than one person (which you probably will be).

The Lockwood shotgun is one of the better ones for Warzone, since it can be rapidly fired and holds up at further ranges than most. For one-on-one engagements, the Lockwood 300 is the best shotgun in the game. For group fights, though, it’s just about second.

1/4

Expedite 12

The Expedite 12 is the best shotgun for Warzone 2. Its semi-auto nature allows it a much higher firing rate than most other shotguns, which is incredibly important here. Since you won’t be right on top of enemies as often as you would probably like with a shotgun, being able to fire multiple rounds at a slight range is about the best you’ll be able to do in most situations.

While the Expedite 12 is the best shotgun pick, we want to stress that shotguns (even this one), are still not very good in Warzone 2. There just aren’t enough situations where shotguns can be used to their strengths, unlike Modern Warfare 2, where shotguns are fantastic. If you want to try them out for yourself, you might have some luck with them. But pretty much any other weapon type would be better.

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We hope you enjoyed this article ranking each shotgun in Warzone 2 and found it informative! Do you agree with our rankings? Let us know in the comments below, and be sure to subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news, guides, and articles on everything gaming related.

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