Deciding what loadout to use in Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 3 can be a hard decision to make when there is such a variety of weapons to choose from. We decided to look into the statistical differences between all the weapons currently available in the game, so we could compare them and see how they hold up against each other.
Deciding what loadout to use in Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 3 can be a hard decision to make when there is such a variety of weapons to choose from. Do you want more fire rate? Are you looking to deal more damage? Or do you want a weapon with a larger magazine?
To answer these questions, we decided to look into the statistical differences between all the weapons currently available in the game, so we could compare them and see how they hold up against each other.
Reload Speed, Damage Per Second (DPS), Magazine Size, and Fire Rate. These are the basic statistics we are going to be using to compare the weapons.
All the weapons have been divided into their respective weapon classes next to their most comparable counterparts in order to get the most accurate comparisons possible.
We would also like to mention that our comparisons will be done on the Legendary versions or the next highest rarity available of each gun only, Mythics are not included, but if you find this article helpful and would like to see another version where we compare the statistics of the weapons' lowest rarities or Mythic versions, please let us know!
The weapon categories we will be using are as follows:
Let’s get started with the ARs.
We decided to put the DMR and E-11 Blaster Rifle into the Assault Rifle category as we believe that is the category they most resemble.
Whenever a new season of Fortnite is released, guns are Vaulted, and new ones come in. After a couple days of playing with the new and improved Loot Pool, the Fortnite community usually come up with a unanimous decision of what they believe are the best guns to use in the game.
Well, Chapter 3 Season 3 has been out for some time now and the general idea of the public is that the best AR to use at the moment is the Striker Burst Rifle as it outclasses every AR in most situations. The DMR seems like it is the second most viable option if you know how to use it properly, and the Hammer Assault Rifle comes in at third place as an all-around balanced weapon.
But looking at the weapons statistics it is confusing as to why the DMR and Striker Burst Rifle are so strong in-game.
The Striker Burst Rifle has the slowest reload speed out of any AR, and the DMR is tied for second slowest with the Ranger Assault Rifle. They both have the slowest Fire Rates, Smallest Magazine Sizes and the lowest DPS, making them the two worst AR’s statistically right now.
Obviously, the statistics of a weapon doesn’t always reflect how it performs in game, but statistically speaking it is confusing as to why these weapons are the fan favourite ARs at the moment.
The Hammer Assault Rifle holds the best weapon stats in every category besides Magazine Size, and the E-11 Blaster Rifle and Ranger Assault Rifle are looking pretty average overall but surprisingly still better statistically than both the Striker Burst Rifle and DMR.
So why is it that the Striker Burst Rifle and DMR are the best guns in the game right now? We’re guessing it’s because both weapons have scoped attachments making the weapons more accurate, which maybe makes the stats of the weapons suit the playstyle of the game more. What do you think?
There is a smaller selection of only two weapons to choose from in the SMG category and, by looking at the statistics, they are quite similar in the ways that they operate.
The Combat SMG beats out the Stinger SMG in every category by only a small amount besides the Fire Rate where they are equal at 12. Meaning that statistically the Combat SMG should be the better Submachine Gun in getting eliminations.
The Stinger SMG does have some advantages over the Combat SMG that was not mentioned in the table above, though. It has a lower recoil and does not lose structure damage at range. Meaning if you struggle with your aim, you may find the Stinger SMG easier to use in destroying builds and hitting your opponents with more shots.
But if you don’t have any trouble handling the recoil of the weapon, we think it’s safe to say that the Combat SMG is the go-to Submachine Gun as it seems to stay true to its stats, seeming to perform better overall in game.
The Shotgun category is filled with three weapons, the Striker Pump Shotgun, Auto Shotgun, and Two-Shot Shotgun.
At first glance of the Striker Pump Shotgun's stats, it seems that it isn’t such a powerful weapon, but everyone knows that when using and playing against it in game it is an absolute monster, especially when paired with the high Fire Rate SMGs.
The reason for this is because of the high damage it can do to a player with one shot. It’s true that the DPS and Fire Rate of the weapon is slow, but if you manage to land a shot, it has the chance of hitting your opponent for a whopping 126 damage which leaves the player’s life vulnerable to only a couple of SMG hits.
If you manage to land your first shot with the Striker Pump Shotgun, you’ll put yourself in a good position to win most gunfights, but its slow Fire Rate is its most negative feature. Missing that shot in your first engagement means you have to wait almost two times longer to take your next shot compared to the Auto Shotgun and Two-Shot Shotgun, where you almost get two shots off in the same amount of time as the Striker gets one.
If you find yourself missing your shots with the Striker Pump Shotgun, then you should try the Auto or Two-Shot Shotgun. Both weapons have a Magazine Size of 8, and an almost identical Fire Rate.
The DPS of the Auto Shotgun is significantly higher than all Shotguns in the Loot Pool and has the best average stats overall.
We would recommend using the Striker Pump Shotgun over everything if you are confident in your aiming abilities, but if you struggle with accuracy then go for the Auto Shotgun as it is better than the Two-Shot Shotgun statistically and seems to be generally the easiest Shotgun to use in game.
There is only one Sniper Rifle available to use at the moment and that weapon is the Heavy Sniper.
The Heavy Sniper has a fairly quick Reload Speed of 3.6s which is ideal for utilizing one of its main traits of destroying players Builds with ease and dealing high damage to vehicles in a short amount of time.
It is the Sniper that deals the most damage out of any other Sniper Rifle that has ever been in Fortnite with a damage of 132, but unfortunately is still not capable of knocking a player who has full health and shield.
This weapon is ideal for dealing a high amount of damage to a player before going into a gunfight and helps tremendously in disrupting a player's building patterns. The basic stats of the weapon are all low due to its intended slow-paced behaviour.
The final weapons we will be comparing are Pistols, a class of weapon that most people don’t usually pick up or use, but we’re here to compare them anyways.
The two Pistols available at the moment are the Revolver and Sidearm Pistol. The Sidearm Pistol outclasses the Revolver in every category possible, leaving the Revolver pretty much useless.
It is possible that the Revolver could become useful at some point, but only if the ARs got a decent-sized nerf, there’s really no point in rocking a long-ranged Pistol when you can do deal more damage with an AR, they hold more bullets and have a significantly higher Fire Rate. There’s no need for this weapon to be in the game while there’s so many ARs available.
The Sidearm Pistol on the other hand can be a decent substitute for an SMG if you don’t happen to find one. It has a similar DPS to both the Combat and Stinger SMG, and even though its Magazine Size is halved compared to them it has its quick Reload Speed to make up for it.
Both Pistols have their unique purposes, the Revolver for long ranged engagements and the Sidearm Pistol for close ones. You will definitely manage to get more of a use out of the Sidearm Pistol compared to the Revolver, but both weapons can be used in their own unique ways.
We hope our research on the statistics of Season 3’s weapons was interesting and maybe even provided you with some new information.
Epic Games is constantly changing the Loot Pool of Fortnite, so there’s definitely room for another statistical comparison in the near future. We appreciate you supporting us and thank you for reading!
