Review: Nerf Mega Hotshock

The Hotshock is one of the smallest and simplest additions to the Mega line, being of the classic pull-back single shot format that sees an incarnation in almost every Nerf line. As someone not very interested in the Mega line or single shot blasters, I gave it a pass until MHvZ introduced Mega zombies. As they are a rare, special unit, I only needed a basic Mega blaster to combat them, so I picked up a Hotshock from BigW.

The Box

Standard box, nothing of note.

The Hotshock Blaster

The Hotshock is a very simple blaster, with few special features. Its shell is quite minimalistic, with few additions that are non-essential to functionality.

The handle of the Hotshock is nothing special. Most of it is reasonably shaped, however I have noticed slight discomfort with the front edges. These edges are sharp, unlike the curved rear surface, and in my use of it I have noticed them digging in slightly to my fingers.
The protrusion at the bottom is a much more serious issue, as it is wider than the rest of the grip, and particularly uncomfortable to hold. For me, the protrusion lines up almost perfectly with my pinky, and it is always a very noticeably and irritating.

I also find the Hotshock's handle to be a little too short. It is rather stubby and feels a lot shorter than most other modern Nerf grips. It would definitely have benefitted from at least a couple more centimetres of length.

The Hotshock is a simple pull-back blaster. While I think its plunger handle could have been a little larger, it's certainly large enough to easily grip and prime with the stock spring. It has roughly 5cm of draw.

The one special feature that the Hotshock has is its ability to hold a spare Mega dart just above the barrel. This dart is secured by friction, and is easily inserted and removed at will.


Performance

The Hotshock achieves ranges of around 10-14m with Mega darts. It's not particularly consistent as Mega darts love to soar or veer at random. Some darts might soar to, or even beyond, 14m, while others may dive into the ground at 10m, perhaps even shorter. Nonetheless, it packs a reasonable kick.
Accuracy is also terrible thanks to the horribly inconsistent Mega darts. Beyond around 6m or so, there is no guarantee of where the dart fired will travel.
Rate of fire is pretty standard for a single shot blaster, one dart every two or three seconds depending on reloading technique.

Game Utility
The Hotshock functions as a compact single shot Mega blaster. It packs a decent amount of power and can be easily holstered or otherwise carried. It faces competition primarily from the Bigshock, which is smaller, but the Hotshock's larger plunger tube offers it more potential power when modding. Naturally, given its single shot nature, the Hotshock does not function as an effective primary blaster, and is at a severe disadvantage against most blasters. Its best role is as a Mega-firing sidearm, purely for targets only affected by Mega darts (e.g. Mega Zombies). It does well in this role if its targets are few in number, due to its relatively compact and streamlined form.

Value and Summary
In Australia, the Hotshock is available for 15AUD from BigW. For comparison, the Strongarm is available for around 10-20AUD depending on where you look. It's certainly not the best deal around, as I think it could have done with being a little cheaper, but it's far from a rip-off. As the Bigshock is/was a TRU exclusive in Australia, retailing for 20AUD, the Hotshock is the cheapest Mega blaster in Australia. It's a simple and effective blaster, that thanks to its sizeable plunger tube, also packs a lot of modding potential. If you're after a cheap, basic Mega blaster, or a blaster you can mod into a simple, powerful single shot, the Hotshock is certainly one to look out for.

Power: 6/7
Accuracy: 0.5/5
Rate of Fire: 1/5
Usability: 4/5
Value for Money: 4/5
Overall: 2.76/5

Personal Rating: 3.5/5 - while I'm not a fan of the handle, it's a simple and effective blaster that does its job well.

The Hotshock is a very basic blaster, plunger tube directly into barrel. Its plunger tube is quite large, offering substantial power with a spring upgrade. With only a little work, it can also be set up to use different barrels, and not just fire Megas. It is very simple to mod, and can produce very good results (over 150fps with Elite type darts is entirely possible and not very difficult).

A link to the review I posted on BlasterHub: link