Are melee builds viable in Once Human?

With Once Human having a variety of melee weapon types and a dedicated slot for them, along with specialized mods and a Combat Deviant tailored for melee playstyle, creating a build purely centered around close-ranged combat is certainly possible. However, many players question its effectiveness in battle, wondering if the dedicated slot will ever see any real action or if it will always be solely used for the speed jump exploit and Fortress Warfare buff.

While melee has a place in the current meta, it fills a specific niche rather than being used for its intended purpose. On the other hand, a purely melee-focused build in Once Human has no place in the endgame, but it is viable in the early to midgame.

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Why are melee builds in Once Human not viable in the endgame?

Melee weapons have their uses, but not in the traditional sense(Image via Starry Studio)

In the early to mid-game, you will spend most of your time exploring Strongholds and encountering normal enemies, making melee builds in Once Human a perfectly viable option. However, optional Elites and mandatory Monolith bosses will pose significant challenges. This is due to several reasons:

• Damage output and survivability: In the early to mid-game, creating an optimized melee build is impossible, as you won't have access to the required armor sets or mods. So, a close-ranged playstyle becomes especially difficult as you constantly take damage and have to run to enemies to hit them. Additionally, your damage output might not be sufficient to defeat them quickly.
• Boss design: Many bosses and Elites are designed in ways that make them difficult to hit with melee attacks. They might be flying, or certain mechanics may force you to hit weak spots that are out of reach for a melee build in most cases.

On the other hand, these issues are exacerbated in the endgame, where you will predominantly face bosses rather than normal enemies while farming specific loot or resources. Additionally, in Hard and Pro modes, even regular enemies deal so much damage that opting for a melee build over a traditional shooter playstyle in Once Human is a tough sell.

So, while you can create a melee build in the early to mid-game and find some use for it, it's not worth pursuing in the endgame. Even if a melee build is viable for defeating normal enemies in harder difficulties with optimal setup, the rare resources required to create such a build are better spent on more well-rounded meta builds like Shrapnel, Frost Vortex, Power Surge, or Unstable Bomber.

In conclusion, it is viable to use a melee build in Once Human in certain scenarios, but mostly not in others. Is it worth making one? In almost all circumstances, no.

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What is the use of a melee weapon in Once Human's current meta?

While the speed jump exploit may look quirky, it is extremely useful in endgame dungeons like the LEA Research Lab (Image via Starry Studio)

In the current meta, a melee weapon is primarily used for the speed jump exploit, where you perform a jump attack while sprinting to cover large distances quickly. This is useful for navigating boss arenas, dungeons, or the open world when you don't have access to your vehicle.

Another use is specific to the Long Axe weapon, where you animation-cancel your heavy attack to activate the Fortress Warfare buff and immediately switch to your primary weapon to deal damage.

In both cases, the melee weapon is not used for close-range combat but for certain niche exploits or mechanics.

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Check out our other guides on this game:

• All Gold Mods in Once Human, and where to get them
• 5 beginner tips for Once Human
• Once Human Mobile release date
• Once Human Dayton hospital crate locations and puzzle