Review: Nerf Mega Bigshock (grey trigger)

Every Nerf series needs a Jolt variant or repaint. The Elite and ZS lines got basically straight repaints, while the Rebelle line got a bunch of reshells. Now the Mega line has its Jolt in the form of the Bigshock.

The box is fairly ordinary, outside of the MEGA banner down the right. Not much of interest though.

Everything out of the box, just like a Jolt.

All loaded up.

The Bigshock is pretty much exactly what it advertises - an enlarged Jolt meant for firing Megas. It bears many similarities to the Jolt (a few comparison pics are below). The large red/grey shell is a big addition to the blaster, which without the shell is very, very plain (again, see below).

The Bigshock has a small aperture just above the barrel that acts as an iron sight. It's too small to properly use, and as with Nerf blasters the iron sights are pretty useless anyway.

However the iron sight is but a side thought. Its true purpose is to act as a dart holder, and it does that well. The stored dart is quite secure, the front grips the head of the dart and two ridges further back provide sufficient friction on the body to keep the dart from moving.

Naturally the stored dart blocks the iron sight.

Interestingly (and rather annoyingly), the Bigshock is not marketed as an "Elite" blaster as all the other Megas are, but a mere N-Strike blaster instead. This combined with the grey trigger (even the North American ones including my one, for which all other blasters have orange triggers) make for some ominous signs for the Bigshock's performance.

The handle of the Bigshock is quite substantial to account for the surprisingly large plunger tube. The extra red/grey shell provides a solid grip surface on the back of the grip, which makes it quote comfortable. The Bigshock doesn't fully escape from the Jolt's ergonomic shortfalls however...

The Bigshock retains the Jolt's sharp front edges, which conceal the trigger/catch mechanism. They cut into your hand especially when gripped tightly or when priming strong springs. It's a bit of a shame considering how good the back of the grip is, I reckon it could have been covered with a little more plastic in the shell.

The Bigshock, being a Jolt variant, primes by a basic priming rod in the bottom of the grip.

With the shell, the Bigshock completely dwarfs the Jolt.

This picture illustrates particularly how much bigger the handle is on the Bigshock, and also the extent to which the shell covers up the base body to form a more comfortable handle.

The Bigshock clearly has a significantly longer prime than the Jolt, thanks to its larger plunger tube and handle.

From behind, which even further emphasises the size difference between the giant Bigshock and the tiny Jolt. Note again how the Bigshock's shell forms the back of the handle.

Here's the Bigshock with the shell removed.

Even without the shell, the Bigshock is significantly bigger than the Jolt, however this picture better illustrates how much larger the shell-less bigshock is compared to the Jolt.

Let's talk about the Bigshock's performance. Now the Bigshock has caused a little controversy, thanks mostly to its grey trigger and partly to its N-Strike badge. N-Strike blasters have been making a return recently with some blasters classed as N-Strike and not Elite, and getting N-Strike level ranges. Additionally, grey triggers are a sign of reduced power for most blasters. So does the Bigshock live up to its Mega siblings or does it disappoint like an N-Strike blaster?
Ranges are decent, but not fantastic. The mega darts fly very, very erratically so one shot may yield 15m, while the next may nosedive at 9m. Based on my experience, I'd have to say the average range of the Bigshock is around 13m, ignoring nosedivers. Naturally as a Mega dart blaster the Bigshock gets extra points in the power category. Its inconsistency however leads perfectly into the next category.
Accuracy is absolutely horrendous. I usually judge blasters on how frequently/consistently they'd hit a human target at 8-9m, which is simulated by firing them through a door at 8-9m. In about 80% of the test shots I took with various Mega darts, the darts would veer off and hit the door frame, the walls, basically do anything besides go through the door.
ROF is pretty standard for a single shot, though the Bigshock is helped by its convenient dart holder just above the barrel. 1 dart every 2 or 3 seconds is pretty standard for it.

Being a Jolt variant, the Bigshock is the smallest blaster of its line (Mega), and so serves the purpose of being a backup/last resort blaster. It doesn't perform as well as the others in its line, but it fires Megas well enough to be usable.
Unfortunately for the Bigshock, because it fires Megas, its overall size ends up similar to that of a Triad, so realistically the only reason to add the Bigshock to your loadout is if Megas have special power in your games (e.g. damaging zombies resistant/immune to darts), as you'd otherwise survive much better taking a Triad instead.

The Bigshock retails for 8USD. I got mine for 10CAD, and it's only recently become available in TRU for 14AUD (on discount from 20). Considering the Bigshock is just an upsized Jolt, the retail of 8USD/10CAD is reasonable, while TRU's price of 14AUD is a little high when a Jolt retails for ~5AUD. Since TRU is known to be overpriced (and is currently the only Aussie retailer stocking Bigshocks), I'll use the US/Canadian RRPs for the Value for Money category, giving it a pretty solid score.

The Bigshock is a pretty fun blaster to use. After all, shooting oversized foam projectiles can only be made more hilariously silly and fun by using even larger projectiles. It fires with enough power to not feel excessively weak, and fires with quite a nice pop.
If you have a little spare money to spend on something fun and silly, I'd say the Bigshock is certainly a reasonable choice, but not if you live in Australia - I feel that 14AUD is a little high and I would recommend waiting for the price to drop further/other retailers to pick it up for cheaper.

Power: 6.5/7
Accuracy: 1/5
Value for Money: 4/5
Usability: 3.5/5
Rate of Fire: 1/5
Overall: 2.9/5

Personal Rating: 2.5/5 - a big Jolt with heaps of power to spare, and a pretty cool looking shell. Shame it still has the Jolt flaw of the front of the handle cutting into your hand. The terrible Mega dart accuracy is also a problem, as is its significant bulk.