I think the game is the most balanced it has been since it began. The reason why shotguns seem so dominant is because of the layout of the maps and certain subclasses. At least imo. Most of these maps are more ideal towards shotguns because of the limited sniping lanes and vertical changes. I believe it just comes to playing smart and taking in information well enough to know where the enemy is and how they are going to approach you. I'm a sniper kind of guy but I love close battle fights. I hate the idea of hard scoping a lane for ever which everyone does in ToO. Learning how to quick scope and jump snipes are how you play these shotgun favored maps and if you hard scope a lane for awhile then I guarantee you won't do as well as you'd like. Rotating and gaining new advantage points are a must for snipers. When you get to the top 1% then you'll realize right away how different it is. If you limit yourself to only hard scope lanes with a sniper then you will get shitted on against shotties. Learn how to adjust and play in close quarters with a sniper. But the most important skill overall is your primary gun skills. Hard to kill someone when you're getting team shotted. I guess just play smarter is where I'm getting at. Lots of different ways to bait shotgunners/snipers.