akirakurosawa

...hmm, OK. Doesn't look that bad ;-) Reminds me a bit of ' dark messiah'. Like the counterparts. But they are using long swords. Still a lot of strafing. Imagine that with a knife!? Bare hands!? Ugly. I liked zeno clash for melee fight. Or look at the new dead island. The best 'direct' melee mechanics I have seen so far.

...I edited my post by adding that QuickTime event as the final chapter of a player vs. player fight (if the stats come close). No skill involved!? I believe it needs skill to react. What could be more direct than a 1vs1 reactiontime game, that calculates with your stats (sick,...less reaction time). I have seen 1vs.1 melee in traditional ways...it looks and plays ridiculous. A lot of jumping and strafing. No fun to play or watch (for me) but sure, its more 'direct'.

...I understand your concerns. QuickTime could be too much console. On the other hand with QuickTime you could realize a real VS. mechanic that would last till one or the other player gets lacy (or weak). Eventually it could be the last phase of the 1vs.1 gameplay you suggested. I have to say that I think that this QuickTime stuff would only work for player vs. player melee (don't want a telltale walking dead). One player has to press a random key/ button (provided by the system\ mechanics), the other player can react to this by pressing the right (random) button. So even a weaker player has the chance of winning the melee fight depending of its reaction time. That reactiontime could perhaps be reduced for a wounded\ hungry\ sick character. Edit: Imagine watching that player vs. player fight as a neutral 3. person.