Melee is a simple attack that does minimal damage (Maximum damage in Max Payne 3), but is effective if you're conserving ammo or just want to hit someone personally (to be more precise up close & personal). It also works if you need to break something, like a window.


Not the weapon of choice, especially of course while in a quick paced gun-down with a lot of enemies, and/or especially with the tougher enemies (more in particular usually enemies that are commandos, or simply bosses). Good if you're almost or completely out of ammo, and you happen to be staring down that commando. It's better than nothing, but always go with an alternative if you have it.

Melee is not completely useless, however. It can be used to hit people from behind walls, and against single enemies it guarantees a kill should the first hit be successful since the enemies are locked in a perpetual stun-lock.

In Max Payne, the player has the choice of either beating the enemies down with the lead pipe, or the baseball bat in which the baseball bat has more attack power. 

In Max Payne 2, the player can now execute the pistol whip action with any weapon (as long as the player has a weapon).

Melee attacks do not require ammo.

In Max Payne 3 singleplayer, Max instead does a takedown to a enemy but it only requires 1 ammunition ammo to finish off a victim. This can be done with any weapon (except for other weapons that uses explosives E.G. grenade launchers, LAWs, ETC). If Max does not have have any ammo, the player can disarm an assailant and finish the victim off at the same time as the player freely uses this weapon againts his enemies. Not only the player can perform a simple Melee hit but most NPCs will perform this to Max if the player is close enough for him to hit a player.

In Max Payne 3 multiplayer, unlike singleplayer mode all players can only use thier current weapon to melee someone (e.g. using a rifle butt as a melee weapon).

The Deathmatch Made In Heaven DLC includes 2 melee weapons, the police baton and the cattle prod with the baton dealing enough damage for a 1 hit kill and the cattle prod acting like a melee version of the stun gun, causing the target to go to the prone position making the victim semi-defenceless since they can still shoot there current weapon while in this state. These weapons however can only be accessed through the multiplayer game. These melee weapons can be gold plated but require weapon level 10 or the alternative is chrome plating if you have sgined up to rockstar's Social Club



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