The DPS number lies a little — on purpose
Paper DPS is damage per projectile × shots per second. By that math the Orb Launcher sits on top at 120 DPS (8 × 15) and the Sniper is a hair behind at 110 (100 × 1.1). That ranking is real, but it hides the part that actually matters in a swarm:
- The Orb Launcher’s projectile has an explosion radius, so one shot damages several crabs. Its effective DPS against a group is far above 120.
- The Sniper fires one 100-damage round every ~0.9 seconds and only carries 6 in the mag. Its ceiling is higher, its floor is lower.
- The Dual Shotguns look worst on paper at 7 DPS, but “two clawed” means it fires from both claws at once, and at point-blank that spread deletes anything in front of you.
Build a weapon around its stat block, not its rank. Below, each gun gets the upgrade types that compound with what it already does well.
The 17 weapons, built
Orb Launcher (120 DPS) — the beginner gun that is also the best
Highest fire rate in the game (15/s) plus an explosion. Lean into Elemental (Arcane Blast, Arcane procs) and Luck (Arc Shot’s arc procs) so every shot chains. Speed upgrades like Aerial Shot (+50% damage per level while airborne) stack hard because you are already sliding and shooting. This is the one gun where “more of everything” actually works.
Sniper (110 DPS) — glass cannon, built for crits
One shot, 100 damage, 6 rounds. Pair Damage (Eagle Eye, High Caliber, Full Metal Jacket) with Critical (Sharpshooter, Critical Thinking) so the rare hit lands huge. The weakness is uptime: grab a mag or reload perk or you will spend the run reloading. Not a beginner gun despite the high number.
Seagle (100 DPS) — the safe all-rounder
25 damage at 4/s with a 12-round mag. It wants Damage stacking and Critical to push single hits, and it is forgiving enough to carry a run without perfect aim. The default pick if you don’t want to think.
Burst Pistol (75 DPS) — burst fire, scales with rate
5 damage × 15 burst shots. Damage and Speed both help; Luck procs multiply the burst. Pairs well with any crit line.
Auto Rifle (55 DPS) — the ammo hog
40-round mag, steady 11/s. It lives or dies on uptime, so Economy/Skill perks that refill or ignore ammo (All You Can Eat) matter more here than raw damage.
Marksman Rifle (53 DPS) — sniper-lite
15 damage at 3.5/s, 16-round mag. A middle ground: Damage + Critical like the Sniper, but with enough ammo to not panic.
Minigun (50 DPS) — spin-up, huge mag
200-round mag at 25/s. Pure sustained DPS; wants Damage and Luck procs because you will be holding the trigger constantly. Movement perks keep you alive while you channel.
Arcane Wand (40 DPS) — explosion-on-hit
20 damage at 2/s but a 550 explosion radius. Elemental and Luck turn those explosions into cascades. Slow on paper, brutal in a pack.
Laser Cannons (32 DPS) — two-clawed beam
Both claws fire, 16/s each. Damage and Critical double-dip because both claws crit. Strong in co-op where someone else holds aggro.
Crossbow (30 DPS) — fast reload, single bolt
12 damage at 2.5/s, 0.66s reload (fastest in the game). Damage + Critical; the quick reload means you are never empty.
Dual Pistols (30 DPS) — two-clawed sidearms
Both claws fire, 6/s. Like Laser Cannons but lower per-claw damage; Damage and Luck carry it.
Rocket Launcher (26 DPS) — 1250 explosion radius
35 damage, 0.75/s, but a massive blast. One shot clears a screen of crabs. Damage and explosive perks (Big Grenade, Bomb Explosion) make each rocket a wipe. Terrible against one far target, godlike against a swarm.
Cluster Launcher (24 DPS) — 500 radius split
8 damage at 3/s, 500 explosion. Elemental/Luck for the cluster procs. Crowd-control king.
Blade Launcher (20 DPS) — melee-range projectile
Low DPS but the projectiles are big and fast. Damage + Critical; niche, fun, not meta.
Auto Shotgun (16 DPS) — close-range spread
4 damage × 4/s with spread. Needs Damage and point-blank play. Two-clawed shotguns do this better.
Flamethrower (12 DPS) — continuous burn
1 damage at 12/s but a constant stream with 45-round capacity. Elemental burn stacking is its only real scaling; otherwise a meme gun.
Dual Shotguns (7 DPS on paper) — point-blank delete
Both claws, 1.2/s. On paper worst, in a face the spread deletes anything. Damage + Critical at close range only. A panic-button sidegrade, not a main.
The one rule that beats every build
Pick upgrades that trigger on something you already do every second. A Damage perk helps any gun, but an Elemental or Luck proc on the Orb Launcher fires 15 times a second — that is 15 chances per second to chain, versus one big hit on the Sniper. Synergy with your fire rate beats raw stats every time.
Related guides
- Best Weapons Tier List — all 17 guns ranked by fit, not just paper DPS.
- Weapon Database — every weapon with its full stat block.
- Best Upgrades Tier List — which of the 146 upgrades compound.
- Build Guide — how to combine a weapon, its mods and upgrades into one trigger.