Epic Games
Just when it seemed like the Fortnite Shotgun meta was in a decent position, Season 5 threw a wrench into things when the controversial decision was made to get rid of the Pump Shotgun entirely.
While we now have the Charge, Tactical, and Lever-Action Shotgun in the game to fill the void, there’s still a very vocal part of the playerbase that would give anything just to have the Pump Shotgun back.
After Epic employees started to become more active on Reddit in responding to fans, some of them took the opportunity to ask Epic about the Pump Shotgun.
The employee gave an answer, but it’s likely not going to be one that Pump Shotgun fans will want to hear.
Is the Pump Coming Back?
Epic Games employee gstaffEpic, who has been very active on Reddit as of late, confirms that the team does read the feedback regarding certain items, but does say they probably don’t interact with the community enough.
As for the Pump Shotgun, the employee says that loot pools change and weapon vaultings will continue in the future.
“Loot pools change,” wrote the employee. “Vaultings and unvaultings will continue, but we also love the pump.”
This shouldn’t be all that surprising considering the Pump Shotgun is one of the first weapons to ever appear in Fortnite, and for a long time it was one of the most deadly.
It’s most likely not gone for good, but the team is more than likely just experimenting with what life would be without it. For a time, it was by far the most used gun when it came to eliminations, but that’s not the whole story since most players do get finished off by close range weapons.
Wait For Season 6
Epic Games
It’s not likely that Epic will bring the Pump back this season as changes like that would typically be saved for a major update.
Since Season 5 vaulted the shotgun, perhaps Season 6 could be the one that brings it back. On the other hand, players have begun to adjust to a life without the Pump, so maybe it’s not as pressing as it was at the start of the season.
To their credit, the Lever-Action Shotgun is a lot of fun to use and it’d be tough to see it go for good. Many guns in Fortnite have disappeared for good, but thanks to the Unvaulted LTM, we get to see many of them come back.
For some people, that’s enough, but we’re sure many players will want to see several of the vaulted guns and items return outside of just the Pump Shotgun.
Only time will tell what Epic has in store for us.