At first glance, the Berletta pistol looks unimpressive. It's one of the cheapest weapons in all of Arc Raiders, often dismissed as early-game filler or vendor trash. Some players even argue it's cheaper than the game's so-called "starter" weapons.

But that reputation couldn't be more misleading.

In the right hands, the Berletta is one of the most dangerous weapons in the game—capable of killing heavy-shield players faster than weapons like the Epic Tier 4 Volcano or even the Tempest. Not consistently, and not effortlessly—but potentially, which is what truly matters in buy ARC Raiders Station.

This article breaks down why the Berletta works, how its stats actually function, why upgrading it is mostly pointless, and how to use it to its absolute maximum potential.

Core Stats: Small Numbers, Big Potential

On paper, the Berletta doesn't look impressive.

Body Shot Damage: 10

Headshot Damage: 25

Fire Rate: ~7.5 shots per second

These are the exact same damage values and headshot multiplier as the recently nerfed Kettle. Normally, you'd expect a pistol to fire slower but hit harder—but the Berletta flips that expectation entirely.

With fast enough clicking, the weapon reaches its fire-rate cap easily, allowing for extremely fast burst damage when headshots are landed consistently.

Recoil and Bloom: Better Than It Looks

When comparing recoil and spread, the Berletta behaves similarly to the Kettle in terms of maximum dispersion. However, its spread kicks in faster, giving the Kettle a slight edge in sustained ADS fire.

Where the Berletta truly shines is hip firing.

Both initial shot accuracy and maximum dispersion are noticeably tighter than the Kettle's, making the Berletta far safer for close-range, panic-heavy engagements. If hip fire is part of your playstyle, the Berletta outperforms expectations dramatically.

Agility Explained: The Stat Nobody Understands

The Berletta's defining feature isn't its damage—it's its agility, the highest in the entire game.

Compared to the Kettle, the Berletta has 44% more agility, but the game never clearly explains what agility actually does. Extensive testing revealed the truth.

Agility does not affect:

Sprint speed

Stamina drain

Vaulting or climbing speed

Where agility does matter is weapon handling:

Faster ADS Speed

Berletta: ~0.33 seconds to perfect accuracy

Kettle: ~0.55 seconds

Faster Weapon Swaps

Weapon → Berletta: 1.0 second

Weapon → Kettle: 1.4 seconds

Unarmed → Berletta: 0.75 seconds

In practice, this makes the Berletta the best true sidearm in Arc Raiders. It excels at quick swaps and finishing enemies after landing a heavy opening shot.

Upgrade Tiers: Why You Should Never Upgrade It

Surprisingly, upgrading the Berletta does almost nothing.

From Tier 1 to Tier 4, the only meaningful changes are:

Reload speed

Durability

That's it.

Tier 1 Reload: ~3 seconds

Tier 4 Reload: ~1.5 seconds

The Berletta does not gain:

Accuracy

Ammo capacity

Damage

Time-to-kill

Agility improvements

Considering the cost—mechanical components and multiple gun parts—upgrading simply isn't worth it. A Tier 1 Berletta already performs at nearly its maximum potential.

This makes it one of the cheapest near-peak-performance weapons in the entire game.

Best Attachments: What to Use (and What to Avoid)

Attachments to Avoid

Extended Barrel: Adds recoil and benefits long-range weapons—not a close-range pistol.

Silencer: Ineffective due to close-range engagement and weak PvE scaling with light ammo.

Best Attachments

Muzzle Brake (Recommended)

Reduces horizontal recoil significantly

Prevents left-right jumping during fast spam

Green tier performs nearly as well as blue

Compensator (Viable Alternative)

Improves dispersion

Strong at blue tier, weaker at green

Light Magazine

Increases capacity to 22 rounds

Enough to kill one or even two players without reloading

After testing frame-by-frame with ARC Raiders BluePrints,the muzzle brake consistently landed more shots than the compensator, especially during aggressive spam firing.

How to Use the Berletta Correctly

The Berletta is not a poke weapon. Shoulder-peeking against shotguns, anvils, or renegades will lose you fights.

This is a diving weapon—meant for close-range aggression.

Headshots Are Mandatory

Light Shield: 12 body shots vs 5 headshots

Medium Shield: 6 headshots

Heavy Shield: 7 headshots (~0.87s TTK)

Body shots are simply inefficient. If you aren't aiming for the head, you're using the weapon incorrectly.

This is one of the few guns in Arc Raiders where headshots aren't just optimal—they're required.

Best Weapon Pairings

The Berletta shines brightest as a secondary weapon.

Best pairing:

Anvil + Berletta

Land a heavy Anvil shot, then instantly swap to the Berletta to finish the fight. The agility bonus makes this combo incredibly lethal.

It's also the best weapon combination for the Flanking Augment, despite the augment's current limitations.

Final Verdict: Don't Sleep on the Berletta

The Berletta isn't flashy.

It isn't forgiving.

And it isn't easy.

But it is:

Cheap

Fast

Lethal in skilled hands

Perfect as a secondary weapon

Next time you open a weapon case and see a Tier 1 Berletta, don't be disappointed. You didn't get unlucky—you looted one of Arc Raiders' most efficient weapons.

Use it correctly, and it might just save your run.