Fortnite January 13 update patch notes: Stinger SMG nerf, Auto Shotgun buff

❘ Published: 2022-01-13T20:11:33

Epic Games

A Fortnite January 13 update has landed with some balance changes to popular weapons like the MK-Seven Assault Rifle and the Auto Shotgun outlined in the patch notes.

Ever since the Fortnite island got turned upside down for Chapter 3, Epic Games have been fine-tuning its new weapons and items that have revamped the title for many players.

At the turn of the new era, Epic introduced game-changing items like Spider-Man’s Web Slingers and The Foundation’s MK-Seven rifle to shake up the battle royale.

As the season rolls on, the devs are rolling back the effectiveness of some weapons that have proven to be a bit too strong in the loot pool.

Stinger nerfed

The Stinger has been really strong since it debuted in Fortnite Chapter 3.

The damage to the Stinger SMG has been decreased with the popular weapon copping a nerf so soon after the Season 3 update.

This will marginally reduce its damage from 18/19/20/21/22 to 16/17/18/19/20 across its common, uncommon, rare, epic, and legendary rarities, respectively.

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The gun’s ability to shred builds remains intact, even at range. While this is a slight nerf to keep the SMG in check, it should still be a popular choice to include in players’ loadouts.

We've made several balance changes to the following items.

✅ Decreased Stinger SMG damage
✅ Slightly decreased MK-Seven Assault Rifle damage
✅ Increased Auto Shotgun reload speed

We'll continue to evaluate this as the season evolves, and appreciate your continued feedback! pic.twitter.com/fgEM4Gl72l

— Fortnite Status (@FortniteStatus) January 13, 2022

Auto Shotgun reload buff

Since introducing the Auto Shotgun at the start of the season, the devs have tinkered with it a bit to find a happy balance in its stats.

This time around decreased the tie it takes to reload it from 8.8s/8.4s/8s/7.6s/7.2s to a market improvement with 6.2s/6s/5.7s/5.4s/5.1s across rarities.

The change comes after a previous patch made it slightly quicker to pull out the Auto Shotgun by 0.2 seconds. The Auto Shotgun balances a quick spray of high-damage pellets with the time it takes to reload it.

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Now that Epic dialed back the reload time, this could entice players to try out the weapon for late-game builds when the action starts to get faster.

Take a look below to see the rest of the Fortnite January 13 update patch notes that are already live in the game.