In video games shotguns can be pretty popular because of the incredible damage they inflict up close. In real life they are popular for similar reasons as well as the incredible variety shotguns offer for shooting. birdshot from a rifled barrel, slugs from cylinder bore, buckshot from a choked barrel all offer different performance for different situations. Then of course there are a variety of improvised loads that can be done for fun. It seems like the perfect survival weapon because of the versatility.
A big problem with shotguns is the bulk of ammo especially for a 12 gauge. The guy in the picture is only holding about 50 shells. With some kind of utility belt with box pouches on the side I could easily hold 50 loose rounds of 30-06 without nearly as much bulk. From someone who has a lot of shooting experience you can burn through 50 rounds pretty fast. Another issue is the tube fed mag holding only about 5-8 shells and being slower to reload. From a realistic point of view I don't want to be in a situation where I have to fight hordes of assailants whether it be civil unrest or the undead. I don't want to be in a situation where I have to hurt anyone period, but if I was in that situation a shotgun probably wouldn't be my weapon of choice.
I did try out some wax slugs. Those were actually pretty fun. You cut the front off a shotgun shell and dump all the shot into a pot of melted wax and mix it thoroughly. When the wax is watery you take a spoon and pour the shot back into the shell leaving a small gap at the top of the shell. You then fill the gap with just wax to seal the end of the shell. This prevents pellets from getting loose. If a pellet gets loose and falls into the trigger mechanism it can seriously fowl up a gun.
As the wax cools it hardens holding all the pellets together as one solid chunk. When the shot from a normal shell leaves the barrel it begins to scatter. With a wax slug all the pellets stay together as a solid mass just like a regular slug. When the wax slug hits the target the impact breaks up the wax and the whole slug crumbles like a frangible round. The slug actually absorbs a lot of the shock of the impact so it's less lethal than regular slugs. I don't want to shoot someone or get shot with one to find out for sure though.
My test target was a glass jug full of water. I set it about 20 yards away. When the slug hit the whole thing exploded and sent a chunk of glass flying over my shoulder. I didn't get hurt thankfully, but it's good to learn from. biggrin
