In the last hotfix, the developers of Borderlands 3 adjusted a lot of weapons. The Flakker was also affected. But why?
This is what the update brought: Last week, the latest update for Borderlands 3 was implemented. The hotfix adjusted many popular weapons – and didn’t really please the players.
This is how the Flakker was changed: One of the affected weapons was the particularly popular Flakker. The Torgue shotgun fires explosive shotgun shells and could deal a lot of damage. Since the update, it now consumes its entire magazine when firing, and the damage has been reduced by 33%.
This is how Gearbox explains the adjustment
This is why the Flakker was adjusted: As part of the patch notes, Gearbox also explained why the Flakker was adjusted:
Flakker was considerably stronger than other shotguns due to the number of projectiles and the high rate of fire. We initially thought that due to the resulting spread of the projectiles, most explosions would miss their target, but that proved not to be the case, so we reduced the projectile damage and changed the weapon to fire only once per magazine.
This encourages players to make use of other stat bonuses to maximize the weapon’s damage output.
Borderlands 3 Update Patch Notes
Gearbox seems to have simply underestimated the explosive power of the weapon. Already prior to the patch, Combat Designer Grant Kao announced that the Borderlands 3 crew hoped to encourage players to try out new playstyles with some weapon adjustments.
Is the Flakker really dead now?
This is how the community deals with the nerf: The Flakker was considered one of the absolute favorite weapons in the game. Since the patch has been out for a few days, the anger has at least subsided somewhat. The Flakker is still a strong weapon that one should acquire – even if it’s not as powerful as before.
On reddit, a user “Inforgreen3” writes that the Flakker is no longer “overpowered” but just useful. This is a sentiment that many players on reddit agree with. However, it is frustrating when one has searched for a Flakker for a long time. Then one finally holds it in their hands – and suddenly it is not as strong as hoped.
Those looking for new weapons after the patches should find what they are looking for here:
