Alan Wake 2: How to Get the Pump-Action Shotgun

What survival horror game is complete without a proper pump-action shotgun? Here’s how to get the Pump-Action Shotgun from the Bright Falls Sheriff’s Station in Alan Wake 2.

Click Click Boom: How to Get A Pump-Action Shotgun for Saga in Alan Wake 2

This guide involves a couple of unavoidable spoilers for near the end of Saga’s campaign in AW2.

I am a proper loot gremlin, so I explored the entirety of the Bright Falls Sheriff’s Station in Return 1 looking for drawers to open and ammo to steal. While there, I noticed Sheriff Tim Breaker’s office was locked. Even better, it was the sort of lock that came with a prompt, which suggested you’d eventually find a key for it.

How to Get the Sheriff Station Key

You do, but it’s much later in Saga’s game. When you return to the Sheriff’s Station in “Scratch,” talk to Estevez, who’s locked herself inside the file room by the front door, then dispatch the large Taken that’s roving through the building. You can now return to Estevez and run through all her conversational prompts until she gives you the Sheriff Station’s Keys.

These keys are meant to get you into the station’s basement, but you can also use them right there and then to open Breaker’s office. Alternatively, you can wait and Estevez will automatically unlock Breaker’s office right before you reach Saga’s campaign’s point of no return. It’s really helpful to have the Pump-Action for some of the fights before then, though.

While there are a couple of items of interest in Breaker’s office, the big get is his shotgun, which is locked inside a case on the wall. Naturally, it’s got a 3-digit combination lock, because everything in Bright Falls has a 3-digit combination lock.

How to Solve Breaker’s Cipher

If you check Breaker’s desk, you’ll find he’s got a collection of books on both UFO mythology and memory improvement, and a note next to them with a clue to a cipher: A=1, B=2, C=3, I=9, J=0, K=1, L=2.

The three UFO books are Parts I through III of a series, and are authored by Quincey, Batston, and Westmore, respectively.

Breaker’s cipher works through repetition. J equals 0, so K equals 1, and so forth, so once you reach T, it resets to 0 and continues. If you’re having trouble, break out the scratch paper and write this down.

In this cipher, Q equals 7, B equals 2, and W equals 3.

Therefore, the passcode to Breaker’s shotgun case is 723.

Open the case to claim the Pump-Action Shotgun. This unlocks the Stop Right There trophy/achievement on the spot.

If you’ve also claimed Saga’s Hunting Rifle and Alan’s Sawed-Off Shotgun over the course of the game so far, you’ll also receive the trophy/achievement All Accounted For.

Is the Pump-Action Shotgun Worth It?

By default, the Pump-Action Shotgun can hold 6 shells and has a higher rate of fire than Saga’s Sawed-Off. However, the Sawed-Off features the Ready for More upgrade, which restores some of Saga’s health on a successful kill. This makes the Pump-Action a superior choice against bosses, while the Sawed-Off remains relevant for sustainability in the field.

Remember, when in Bright Falls, just carry a golf bag full of long guns around with you at all times. It’s fine. Nobody cares.

Like all of Saga’s other weapons, you immediately unlock the Pump-Action Shotgun’s upgrade options in her Mind Room once you’ve found the weapon:

• Stay on Course: Stand in one place and keep your crosshairs still. After a couple of seconds, Saga will focus her aim on her next shot, which minimizes spread and reduces the weapon’s recoil. 16 Manuscript Pieces.
• Under Control: Saga moves noticeably faster while the shotgun is readied. 12 Manuscript Pieces.
• Faster and Faster: Hold down the fire button to enable auto-fire. 20 Manuscript Pieces.

It’s possible that you might’ve already found and spent all the Manuscript Pieces in the game by the time the Pump-Action Shotgun becomes available. This isn’t that big of a deal overall, thankfully, but Stay on Course is a useful option if you can afford it. Like the Hunting Rifle’s Kill Shot upgrade, this gives you some additional ammo efficiency. Be sure to stun or blind an enemy to buy yourself time to activate Stay on Course.

That’s how to get the Pump-Action Shotgun in Alan Wake 2. For more tips and guides, check out our dedicated AW2 game hub.

---