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#9
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Fight back up close · Built

#92026-10-28Combat

Fight back

You are no longer only running. Fists, a crowbar or a length of steel pipe: up close you can now hit back, and the infected feel it.

In a meadow at sunset the survivor swings a red crowbar into the head of a pale infected that reels back with its arms raised; a grey hut and pine trees behind them.
Crowbar to the headIn-engine · WIP · Greybox

Until now the only answer to the infected was to run. That has changed: when one gets close, you can hit back.

In a meadow at sunset the survivor swings a red crowbar into the head of a pale infected that reels back with its arms raised; a grey hut and pine trees behind them.
Crowbar to the head2026-10-28In-engine · WIP · GreyboxFighting back. A crowbar to the head knocks an infected back and stuns it for a moment. The crowbar is a placeholder model.

Fists first

You always have your fists. Jabs, crosses and hooks follow each other, left and right. A punch does not do much damage, but it pushes an infected back for a moment, and sometimes a moment is all you need to get away. Taking one down with bare hands takes many blows and a lot of stamina.

Whatever heavy you find

A crowbar or a length of steel pipe changes that. Both hit far harder and reach further than a fist, the crowbar a little harder, the pipe a little further. Every swing costs stamina and needs a short moment to wind up, so you cannot just mash the button: swing too early and you hit air, swing too late and their hands are already on you. A solid hit knocks the infected back, stuns it for a moment and interrupts its own attack. It will come back at you.

Standing, your whole body goes into the blow, hips and feet included. On the move only your arms swing, so you can hit out while backing away.

Hands, not hotbar

Weapons do not sit in the hotbar. Next to your backpack there is now your gear: what you hold in your hands, and later what you wear. Put the crowbar into your right hand, by dragging it there or with a right-click, and you carry it, visibly, for everyone around you. Take it out of your hand and you fight with your fists again. The other gear slots are already there but locked; clothing comes later.

The survivor stands in a meadow holding a crowbar; at the top right the open inventory with panels titled Nearby, Gear and Inventory, the crowbar in the gear panel's right-hand slot and a steel pipe in the backpack.
The gear panel2026-10-28In-engine · WIP · GreyboxThe new gear panel next to the backpack. A weapon goes into your hand, not into the hotbar, and everyone sees you carry it. The other slots are for clothing later.

Noise

Every swing is a sound, and every hit is louder: the dull thud of a fist, the crack of a crowbar, the clang when you strike metal. The infected hear it. A fight is never just between you and the one in front of you.

Not yet

The crowbar and the pipe are placeholder models for now. There is no blocking or dodging, weapons do not wear out, and fighting other players is prepared but switched off.