Has it ever worked? I'd like it to work.

I just started playing Warhammer: Vermintide and there's something about the core gameplay that really interests me but I don't think it's quite there. For starters I wish it wasn't multiplayer and I didn't have to rely on the spotty matchmaking to find people online to play with, but on the other hand the game was built with that in mind and if it wasn't for the teamwork and the huge mobs I don't think the combat mechanics are deep enough to sustain a singleplayer campaign.

I know the big problem about First Person Melee Combat. The melee combat relies on positioning and spatial awareness, and the first person perspective by its very nature restricts that. However, the first person camera does a great job at immersion and putting you right in the middle of the action, so I'd love to find a game that really found a way for it to work. There are games like Skyrim that have it, but in those it is a very small part of the experience, and even then I don't think it's that great, I was hoping to find something more focused on the melee combat.


Is there a game that did First Person Melee Combat really well?


There's Escape From Butcher Bay, I never played that one. There's also Dark Messiah of Might and Magic, I played maybe an hour of that one, but I couldn't choose between melee, stealth or magic and never got back to it. Also since then I've heard some very negative opinions on it that discouraged me from giving it a second chance.

The only one that I remember really enjoying and playing all the way to the end was Zeno Clash, but it wasn't all that deep and the game was very short, probably to keep it from getting too repetitive. I know it has a larger scale sequel, but I also haven't played that one. Honorary Mention: Punch Out, it's not technically first person, but your character is transparent and barely visible, so it's almost there.

The best I've ever found is Oblivion with Duke Patrick's combat mods. He adds a ton of complexity to melee fighting. Including momentum. Stand still and swing your sword, and you get blocked. Jump off a ledge while swinging and the opponent goes down hard. Also, moving backwards is very different. Stamina works differently, too. And I remember being able to throw my melee weapon (but perhaps that was a separate mod).

Anyway, quality work from a modder who has spent 25 years learning actual medieval armored melee fighting.

This was something I hated in Borderlands 2, the melee felt weird and the hitzone was too far from the player (if you looked up it was shorter).

I thought Riddick, Condemned and Dead Island melee were all pretty good.

Off topic, but I find jumping really problematic in a lot of games, always feels weird and unrealistic.

Dark Messiah of Might and Magic is probably best first person combat I've ever player. Your normal attack is weak, but your power attack is strong. You can kick your enemy to push him away and gives you spaces. Magic affect environment like shooting ice on floor makes it slippery etc.

You have already mentioned Dark Messiah. Then there is also the Elder Scrolls series and Dead Island and its spiritual successor Dying Light. The Mount & Blade series should also be mentioned in the thread about 1st person melee combat.

Then there is also one of my cult favorites: Oni. That is third person, however.

Shadow Warrior 2013 and Shadow Warrior 2 are really fun in general, and also with melee weapons.

I'll second Dying Light, the melee combat in that game had a good feel to it.

I thought FEAR did it very well, though it was restricted to kicks I think. Still it felt great and very convincing whenever you managed to pull it off in between the gunplay.

Have you tried the game Zeno Clash?

It is a first person melee combat game. And done well.

The two things I remember most about FEAR are when I messed up one of the jump scares and slide-kicking little office cacti around.

I'll remember to try that next time. All I remember about the offices are those invisible ninjas.

The only moments when I feel the melee in "FPS" is done well its when it actually allowes me to switch to TPS. I can not remember a single instance in which I thought "awesome melee" while being in FPS mode. It lacks the "corner of the eye" view RL has to get immersed in, which TPS does a better job of IMO.

Chivalry and Dark Messiah's are the ones that are really hard to top.
There's also a unique magic system in Arx Fatalis, but not really melee combat.

Superhot primary let you throw stuff and shoot, but when the enemies gets too close I typically hit them. So, while it isn't PURE first person mele, it is the one first-person game where the mele felt most natural. The game is pure bliss in VR with motion controllers.
As you said, screen based playing miss some of that spartial awareness, to it's a bit hard to judge a kick in first person. I hope there will come some more mele to VR somewhere in the future. I think it would work pretty well.

Does "Blade of Darkness" count or are you behind the the guy's shoulder?

It's been a while since I played.