No game would be complete without at least one melee weapon. Even if military-grade blades, sporting goods, and more tend to be saved as secondary weapons (especially in shooters), melee weapons are a necessity for any gamer.
While all of these melee weapons can deal impressive damage, that's not their only function. Some have an interesting secondary function, while others carry a legacy. Either way, players need to use these weapons at least once.
10 The Yakuza Series — The Bicycle Is Best Used In Street Fights
In Sega's popular Yakuza franchise, players are encouraged to pick up anything they can get their hands on and use it as a weapon. This includes everything from a potted plant to a giant traffic cone, but the most iconic object is undoubtedly the bicycle. Almost every montage of a Kazuma Kiryu rampage has at least one bicycle beat-down.
As funny as the image of Kiryu slamming a bike into an opponent's face may be, the object in question is an effective improvised weapon. Besides the damage boost, the bike gives Kiryu some extra range and can also be flung as a projectile. There's a reason why the bike didn't just become Kiryu's signature weapon, but Yakuza's as well.
9 Team Fortress 2 — The Frying Pan Is Great For Annoying Everyone
The Frying Pan and its iconic (if incredibly loud) sound may have been made specifically for Left 4 Dead 2, but it found immortality in Team Fortress 2. In Valve's zombie co-op shooter, the Frying Pan was just another melee weapon. However, when it landed in the hands of Blu and Red's mercenaries, the pan found new life as a fatal punchline.
The Frying Pan is a default melee weapon for all classes except the Engineer and Spy. The weapon has since become a mainstay of annoying Scout mains and DemoPans (or Demo Knights who wield the pan), and its ability to inflict Random Crits turned it into one of the most lethal joke weapons, in a game already filled with goofy yet deadly weapons.
8 Duke Nukem 3D — The Mighty Foot Lets Duke Stomp On Foes
Duke Nukem 3D is all about the guns but when Duke runs out of bullets, his Mighty Foot (aka The Mighty Boot or Mighty Kick) is always there to back him up. With just one button, players can engage The Mighty Foot to kick aliens in the face. But if they're quick enough, players can make Duke kick an alien in the face with both feet.
Besides the fact that The Mighty Foot is one of 3D Realms' funniest additions to an already silly game, what makes it great is that it's just as effective as any of Duke's other firearms. The Mighty Foot may just be a slightly stronger pistol in terms of damage, but it has the added benefit of infinite ammo and a massive damage boost when Duke uses steroids.
7 Half-Life — The Crowbar Is Gordon Freeman's Most Reliable Weapon
When the Resonance Cascade ripped open a portal to another world and unleashed aliens on Black Mesa, theoretical physicist Gordon Freeman is forced to fight for his life. The first weapon he came across is a crowbar but, arguably, it's all he needed. The right player in the wrong place can beat the entire game with just the crowbar.
If Gordon's guns are more situational than universal, his crowbar can be used just about anywhere and on anything. It's the best way to break obstructions without wasting bullets, and it can kill Headcrabs in one hit in Half-Life 2. The crowbar may be one of the weaker weapons of the PC classic Half-Life, but it's still one of the most useful.
6 Serious Sam 3: BFE — The Sledgehammer Can Wipe Out Hordes Of Aliens
In terms of gameplay, Croteam didn't really change much for Serious Sam 3. However, they did add a sledgehammer, which replaces previous melee weapons like the combat knife. Not counting Sam's hands-on executions or its axe skin for the DLC, the sledgehammer is the third game's sole melee weapon, but it's all that Sam needs.
Besides its immense damage and ability to kill weaker enemies like Beheaded Rocketeers or Kleers in one hit, the sledgehammer can kill multiple generic enemies in one swing. This makes the sledgehammer great for crowd control, especially in Serious Sam 3: BFE's more hectic levels. It's also a reliable weapon when players run out of ammo.
5 The Halo Series — The Energy Sword Is A Must For Multiplayer
Bungie's original Halo trilogy are often regarded as the best multiplayer games ever played, so it's fitting that these games are also home to some of the best multiplayer weapons ever wielded, much like the Energy Sword. In canon, it's one of the Covenant's best weapons. In-game, it's a one-hit-kill blade that turns players into beasts.
Despite its limits like a limited battery life and lack of range, the Energy Sword is still one of the most coveted weapons in every online Halo battlefield. It's not uncommon to see players kill each other in their mad dash to get to it first. Even when Halo moved on to 343 Industries and into a new console generation, the now iconic Energy Sword remained.
4 BioShock Infinite — The Sky-Hook Gives Players Executions & Mobility
Despite being the legacy sequel to the survival-horror classic BioShock and being made by the same developers (Irrational Games), BioShock Infinite is an entirely new game. This was made clear through Booker DeWitt's Sky-Hook, which turned him into the kind of swashbuckling hero who would be lost in the original's claustrophobic halls.
Besides being a wrist-mounted buzzsaw that could kill enemies in one aerial execution, the Sky-Hook was Columbia's favored means of commute, allowing Booker and Elizabeth to zip around the airborne city with ease. With the right Gear, Vigors, and timing, players can dispatch entire groups with just the Sky-Hook while also looking incredibly cool.
3 The Batman: Arkham Series — The Batarang Is An All-Purpose Weapon
Rocksteady Studio's Arkham games are undoubtedly the definitive Batman games, and they did a great job at letting players know what it's like to be Gotham City's dark savior. One of the simplest yet most layered ways the games did this was through the Batarangs: Batman's signature melee projectile that could also be used for a variety of situations.
Specialized Batarangs like the Explosive Batarang (which acts as a mini-grenade) or the Sonic Batarang (which startles enemies) help players clear out rooms from a distance or solve environmental puzzles. When players aren't stuck in these situational moments, the Batarang is still a great way to deal damage and hit multiple targets at once.
2 The Assassin's Creed Series — The Hidden Blade Is The Best Assassination Tool
Given the historical nature of Ubisoft's flagship series, it makes sense that players are given different weapons from every era of history to assassinate their targets. That said, the wrist-mounted Hidden Blade — Assassin's Creed signature weapon and future legacy item, is still the best way to kill high-profile targets and their guards.
Additionally, a well-upgraded Hidden Blade makes it even more reliable. Upgrades from The Ezio Trilogy such as the Hookblade or Poison Dart Launcher make weapons like guns or swords redundant. Whenever a Hidden Blade is available in an Assassin's Creed game, it's the one melee weapon players should get both for practical and sentimental reasons.
1 The Mortal Kombat Series — Scorpion's Chained Kunai Guarantees Brutal Fatalities
Scorpion may be Mortal Kombat's most famous character, but he's not exactly the series' strongest fighter. What he lacks in base damage and raw power, though, he more than makes up for in speed and combos. That's where Scorpion's trademark chained kunai comes in, since it's the key to most of his best and most famous attacks.
Using the kunai, players can grab enemies and haul them into Scorpion's range, where he can then dish out some quick damage. When the time is right, players can then activate Scorpion's Brutalities and/or Fatalities, some of which make good use of the kunai. Gameplay aside, Scorpion's kunai is just as iconic and badass as he is.