I heard that my childhood shotgun, a 16 gauge (Sweet Sixteen) is being manufactured again. It is a great answer to reducing recoild without having to go all the way down to a 20 gauge.
An Iowa hunting buddy would take a .410 single shot to the field. One shell in the shotgun. Two shells in his pocket.
Result: three cock pheasants in the bag.
I would haul my A-5 12 gage. Result: two in the bag and a sore shoulder.