{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/melee-combat--t011","type":"mechanic","id":"melee-combat--t011","lang":"en","title":"Hand-to-hand combat and beat ’em ups","summary":"The player chooses a target, distance and attack direction, connecting movement to safe contact timing and escape from surrounding enemies.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/melee-combat--t011/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/melee-combat--t011.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/melee-combat--t011.md","aliases":["Brawling and beat ’em up"],"tags":["Melee and combat systems","Mechanics and variants"],"sourceIds":["source-3817d420df0baa92","source-e7703f0b61e1f579","source-ec6fde25d6cc3297"],"sources":[{"id":"source-3817d420df0baa92","title":"Robert Nystrom: State","url":"https://github.com/munificent/game-programming-patterns/blob/master/book/state.markdown","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-e7703f0b61e1f579","title":"Godot: AnimationTree","url":"https://docs.godotengine.org/en/stable/tutorials/animation/animation_tree.html","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-ec6fde25d6cc3297","title":"Streets of Rage 4","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/985890/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"The player chooses a target, distance and attack direction, connecting movement to safe contact timing and escape from surrounding enemies."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Mechanic variants\n\n<a id=\"t011-variants\"></a>\n\n- Distinct ranges: a short strike is quicker, while a long strike reaches retreating opponents. <a id=\"t011-v1\"></a>\n- Directional contact: front, side or rear positioning changes the available response. <a id=\"t011-v2\"></a>\n- Launch and knockdown: a hit temporarily puts the target in another movement state. <a id=\"t011-v3\"></a>\n- Environmental weapons: picked-up objects change reach and are consumed through use. <a id=\"t011-v4\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"In an alley, the player pushes the nearest enemy toward a wall and exits through the opened side before continuing the fight.\n\nPrototype check: Test one enemy and a crowd: repeated overlap checks should not grant unintended extra hits to the same target from one swing."},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"Melee combat revolves around distance and the moment of commitment. Starting an action can temporarily remove the ability to defend, so opponents need readable preparation, reach and contact results. These overviews separate decisions about targets, continuing a sequence, choosing a defense and escaping a bad position. Start by testing one attack and one response without decorative effects. The dedicated boss reference remains available in the direction map; this catalog covers the other contact-combat topics. Sources illustrate state and animation-transition models rather than prescribing a universal combat formula."}],"relations":[{"type":"uses","direction":"outgoing","label":"Sources in the selection","key":"resource/state-pattern","title":"State: Game Programming Patterns","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/resources/#resource-state-pattern","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.md"}],"placements":[{"catalogId":"melee-combat","id":"t011","title":"Melee and combat systems","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/melee-combat/#t011","categoryIds":["mechanics"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Brawling and beat ’em up","description":"The player chooses a target, distance and attack direction, connecting movement to safe contact timing and escape from surrounding enemies.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/priority-streets-of-rage4-04.webp","width":1440,"height":810,"game":"Streets of Rage 4","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/985890/","originalUrl":"https://shared.akamai.steamstatic.com/store_item_assets/steam/apps/985890/ss_4dcdd6d0cb38e3bcb747ac7cf69b6b608ae2d46a.1920x1080.jpg?t=1763718423","credit":"Dotemu / Guard Crush / Lizardcube","rights":"Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Publisher-distributed Steam screenshot; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.","caption":"A fight against several enemies on a platform","alt":"A fight against several enemies on a platform","markers":[{"x":36,"y":55,"label":"Attack against the nearest target"},{"x":74,"y":60,"label":"Enemies approach from another direction"}]},"tips":["Separate contact zones and leave a way out of surrounding enemies."],"examples":[{"title":"Streets of Rage 4","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/app/985890/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/melee-combat"}}