I have a shotgun and I like to use it. It's a Sweeper with an extended clip and optics vary. Sometimes I use buckshot and other times I'll use slugs but I know each has its place. However, I feel like some days neither one is working well at all. Today I was using buckshot indoors at ~5m ranges and getting one or two hit markers and dying constantly. Afterwards I checked where I died and where the enemy was and figured that I should have done more damage than a few bars of shield, and I checked my pellet spread too and it seemed about normal. But what's odd is that the other day I was engaging at similar ranges with the same setup and actually killing people. 5 meters, buckshot, one or two shots to take someone down. Am I just getting kills through luck? It seems like my performance varies so much from day to day. Later today in the same play session I was dying every time a Terran looked at me (no really, they were turning around and I died as they looked at me), and I can't hipfire my Gauss Compact at the ranges I was engaging at there. By the time I bring up the sights I'm dead. But that's a slightly different problem that could be solved with better positioning. So is there something I can do to get more consistent performance? I don't like bringing one loadout for a specific situation and have it completely fail when I used it the day before and it worked just fine.
Your problem lies in Client Side Hit Detection. Or as I like to call it. Random Damage. I have been using my pandora auto-shotgun with success but sometimes I will be firing and see the kill register after I am already dead. Ha Ha! Vengeance baby!
I only use TR's AS16 shotgun when i'm on my LA. If you're not at point blank range and able to dump 4-5 shots into your target, you're better off with the TRAC5
PS2 doesn't have any built-in metrics for network performance (ping/packetloss). I suspect these might be a real factor in how the game plays. Not in the "everybody is warping" level of lag. But in less obvious stuff like "I die as soon as they look at me". This happens to me all the time. I play on Clear 4G wireless. My ping times are in the 100-150 range. Terribad for an fps. PS2 seems to handle it smoothly, but I suspect the penalty comes in with stuff like 2-hit-deaths. I try to focus my fights around high alpha weapons like shotgun, smg and sniper. If I get into a mid-range carbine duel, I lose 90% of them. PS2 also desperately needs a headshot notification on your death screen. That way if you die in 2 shots before you could even react, at least you will know why. I think headshots produce a ton of w-t-f moments for the victims, but PS2 doesn't adequately inform them of their fate.
I know that stuff too well... I use the shotgun on LA only... or in Biolabs on Engineer. What shall I say in the last 2 days I played Sweeper only (and never with buckshot) to get my Aurax and I have to say that sometimes i can shoot 10 times on a standing enemy without killing him, but then again I just shoot randomly at a fleeing Medic and 2 Shot him at 20m range... I think it has something to do with hit detection and the nature of Buckshot. I shot something around 100 rounds into a wall to see the patterns of the bullets... do this with one or two mags and you will see why you sometimes get a hitmarker without damage. (Try different ranges and **** to see where the gun operates best)
I get that with my Slug Mauler S6 too. It feels like sometimes I shoot forever at someone and then bam, they turn around and kill me and then the kill popup shows them with almost full shields, and other times I just do really good with the shotgun and get some nice kill streaks and headshot kills without even trying.
Random fails at hit detection for whatever reason are a pain no matter what weapon you use. It is just more noticeable on shotguns.
I didn't care for the shotgun much, but tried it out and ran around with it a while due to people in the Outfit going on about it being so spectacular. Having WAY better success after switching back to the default gun/fwd grip/close range scope which works well at close or long range. I guess its whatever style you prefer to play though.
I love the shotgun but find that I need to use slugs no matter the range. since VS has no bullet drop I use the semi-auto and the x4 scope for mid-range sniping. Three taps and most foes drop. On the other hand , I can still be up close in a biolab and 4-5 rounds put most down. You just have to remember to make sure you keep your clip full and be quick about swapping to side-arm.
The OP has my like simply for critically questioning what is wrong and his playstyle instead of simply blaming the game and others first like most do.
I love shotguns both in PS and BF, but in both cases they seem to be impacted much more by than than the standard guns. So get extend mag and keep shooting until they are down, relying on two good shots to kill them will be the end of you.
Thanks for the responses. If my internet connection really is the problem here (it's decent but not the best), maybe the problem is made worse when I'm hosting the Skype call for my squad. I'm not sure if all the VoiP traffic actually runs through the call host in Skype, but it makes some sense that it would affect PS2 if that's the case. At least I can prepare myself and spam mines and vehicles instead of relying on guns when I host calls. Trust me, I unload everything I can. As an engineer I don't care about wasted ammo. But I had heard something that firing super fast with the shotgun can cause problems and spacing the shots out a tiny bit helps. I just click as fast as I can
Really shouldnt use shotties on any other class except LAs. And no, do not spam click to shoot, seems to bug out hit detection pretty for some reason.
not true, it all depends on play style. Do you strafe allot ? Theres a video on youtube, forgot which one that shows that while strafing with a shotgun your shots will land on the side of your crosshair. what this means: lets say you are strafing left your shots will land on the right of your crosshair. i suggest you don't strafe too much. just strafe to get into position ( more accurate than turning the mouse)
It's less your particular net connection(unless it's seriously, seriously rubbish) and more the game's occasionally shoddy netcode and hit detection. I've got 50MB cable broadband, my ping usually never goes over 40ms unless my ISP are having network issues, yet I still sometimes empty an entire mag of ammo into someone only to have them turn around and kill me, and the killscreen shows them with 80% shields.
You need to get in ~5m to actually kill someone fast enough and LA is the only class with the mobility to do it consistently. Unless you are using slugs but then they are not shotguns, but closer to close to midrange battlerifles. I guess you could be sitting in a room where you never have to fight in any longer ranges, but special situations are special.
I can't say I strafe all that much. Well, I don't ADAD and instead try to strafe in one direction towards cover. Most of the time I'm not alive long enough for strafing to matter but I'll keep that tip in mind. And I only use buckshot in buildings so my shotgun is a battle rifle everywhere else.
I would suggest teamspeak for your voice chat needs - it 'eats' less without any real sound quality loss.
I absolutely love the shotgun when I play engineer. It fits my play style a lot better than the carbine, though that is the key. You need to find weapons and certs that fit your play style. Some people love the shotgun, like me, and some people have play styles that emphasize using weapons like the carbine or submachinegun.