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Since the toxic effect of lead on birds has led to a ban on this heavy metal for hunting in wetlands, numerous alternative materials exist on the European market, such as copper, iron, bismuth and tungsten. However, these materials are neither tested for their impact on the environment nor for their killing effect. Due to the complex effect of shot on game, there are no exact guidelines for testing the killing effect. There are only some recommendations on how to assess the performance of conventional lead shot cartridges. These standards do not consider different physical and mechanical properties (density, deformation behavior, hardness, brittleness) of new alternative shot materials and should be updated likewise. For this reason, the Wannseer Norm (LAMPEL and SEITZ, 1983), which is an admitted guideline for conventional lead shot in Germany, was modified by observations of the kinetic energy as an indicator of the ballistic coefficient for a comparative investigation of conventional and alternative shotshells. In addition to the coverage of a 16-field grid we analyzed ballistic criteria based on hits and kinetic energy of the shot pellets on specific surface areas as well as the radial spread of the shot pattern. The coverage is calculated from the number of segments which must contain a minimum of hits or a minimum kinetic energy. Generalized linear models were used to compare different shot types with the same caliber and shot diameter based on these criteria. It was noticeable that shotshells differed in terms of the shots' kinetic energy, as compared to their number of hits. For this reason, it has to be discussed to what extent the energy aspect should be taken into account in new standards (for alternative materials in particular). With regard to the criteria examined in this study, the shotgun cartridges Rottweil Steel Game and Rottweil Ultimate achieved at least the same target ballistic performance as conventional lead shotshells. Furthermore, an alternative shotshell called FOB Sweet Copper was repeatedly conspicuous in the study and seems to be unsuitable for hunting. This demonstrates the urgent need to introduce standardized criteria for testing the environmental impact and the killing effect of game shot in Germany and the EU. For the latter, our study should provide an initial approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]