Melee Grab is initiated when an enemy is close enough and an on-screen prompt to press the USE key (E by default) is shown on the screen. This move will always kill the intended target and sometimes leaves Sam holding a 'trophy' which is usually some part of the enemy's body. The trophy can be dropped or thrown, although using it as a thrown projectile is fairly weak. Melee Grab only works on certain types of enemies. Other enemies are either invulnerable to the move or too large (no prompt will appear to execute a Melee Grab).
Sam ripping out a Gnaar's eyeball from its socket using the Melee Grab feature.
In Serious Sam 3, when the game is played during December, the player can "decorate" the Christmas tree that appears on every level with each type of trophy, including a Gnaar's eye, a Kleer's skull, and a Rocketeer's heart. Collecting the presents can cause these enemies to spawn even if they otherwise normally wouldn't in the level, which can cause the player to go above the level's maximum kill count. Other trophies like Scrapjack's head do not count towards this. When the tree has been decorated, its lights are activated and the "Jingle Bells" theme from Serious Sam: The Second Encounter will play. Decorating every Christmas tree in the game will award the player with the "Reindeer Hunter" achievement and unlocks the Rodolfo player model. The player can select this as their player model in the multiplayer settings.
The Melee Grab feature returns, but it should be noted that the mechanics this time around vary differently compared to the previous game. Most finishing moves are now performed with the Combat Knife rather than the player's bare hands. Depending on the enemy that the player choose to use the Melee Grab on, Sam will grab the enemy and stab it in the head or in the chest. If the player has acquired "The Bigger They Are" and "The Harder They Fall" Sirian Artefacts of Might skills, they can perform unique finishing moves on larger enemies such as Common Aludran Reptiloids and Khnums, but the player has to incapicate them first in order to perform a finishing move. This is easily achieved by stunning them by dealing a high amount of damage to the enemy in a short space of time.
Effects[]
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
The following effects take place when using the Melee Grab:
Beheaded Rocketeer: depending on the weapon Sam has equipped, Sam will either kick the Rocketeer away, stunning him temporarily, or rip his heart out of his chest, leaving Sam with a held trophy.
Cloned Soldier: depending on the weapon Sam has equipped, Sam will either kick the Cloned Soldier away, stunning him temporarily or snap his neck.
Gnaar: Sam will grab the Gnaar and rip out its eyeball, killing the creature and leaving Sam with a held trophy.
Hatchling Antaresian Spider: Sam will perform a stomp that kills the Spider instantly. This move is very fast and can be repeated in quick succession.
Juvenile Antaresian Spider: Sam will grab the Spider and rip off its carapace, delivering a killing blow.
Kleer Skeleton: Sam will sidestep and grab the Kleer in a headlock and promptly pull off its skull, leaving Sam with a held trophy.
Hatchling Arachnoid: Sam will break the Hatchling's neck, which instantly kills it. This move cannot be performed on an Adult Arachnoid.
Scrapjack: this move can only be performed if the Scrapjack is stunned (he appears to be hunched over, but still standing), except in Serious Sam Fusion, where it can be performed on him regardless. Sam will rip off the Scrapjack's faceplate and kiss it, leaving Sam with a held trophy.
Serious Sam 4/Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]
When using the melee grab, the following effects will take place:
Aurigan Haemovore: Sam will take out his knife and impale it in the creature's heart, instantly killing it.
Beheaded Bomber: depending on the weapon Sam has equipped, he will either kick the enemy away or rip his heart out.
Beheaded Rocketeer: Sam will either kick the Rocketeer away or stab him in the chest.
Draconian Pyromaniac: Sam will grab the Pyromaniac by the throat and damage his napalm tanks, causing them to malfunction and forcing him to fly through the air and explode.
Gnaar: Sam will take out his knife and stab the Gnaar in the eye with it, killing the creature.
Kleer Skeleton: Sam will grab the Kleer's skull and rip apart its skull by snapping its jaws.
Octanian Commander: Sam will kick the enemy away or stab him in the head.
Octanian Grenadier: Sam will kick the enemy away or stab him in the head.
Space Mummy: Sam will grab his knife and stab it in the head.
Tactics[]
General[]
Melee attacks can at times prove useful if the player is running low on ammo for weapons or a last-resort, especially for when dealing with medium opponents such as Juvenile Antaresian Spiders or Hatchling Arachnoids, which can take a few rounds from an assault rifle or shotgun to dispatch on their own.
Due to its nature, Melee Grab is best reserved for individual enemies rather than for when taking on groups.
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
It is highly recommended to not use Melee Grab when dealing with multiple enemies, especially when dealing with swarms of foes that can easily drain the player's health and/or armor, like Hatchling Antaresian Spiders. As melee attacks can take some time to initiate, doing against many enemies puts the player in an extremely vulnerable position and can easily result in death, if ignored.
Melee Grab has a much further reach than one may realise. If the player choose to press the Use key when prompted, but happens to be a few meters away from the enemy, Sam will be teleported directly in front of the target for him to initiate the attack. This tactic can prove useful for the player in certain situations (i.e, for taking out enemies around corners or to quickly dodge gunfire and/or projectiles).
Serious Sam 4/Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]
If the player doesn't have enough ammo for many of their weapons, but they happen to have unlocked the respective S.A.M skills that allow them to perform melee attacks on tough enemies (Common Aludran Reptiloids, Draconian Pyromaniacs, etc.), Melee Grab can prove to be a reliable way of quickly eliminating them, but this is best reserved for individual Reptiloids/Pyromaniacs or if there are several of them in the same area.
It is ill advised to perform melee attacks on ranged enemies, such as Octanian Gamma Troopers or Octanian Commanders, unless the player is quick and/or skilled enough to dodge their projectiles and get to them close enough to land the finishing blow.
Related achievements[]
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
Arachnophobia
Rip 10 Juvenile spiders apart.
Bug Hunt
Squash 10 Hatching Spiders.
Chiropractor
Break 10 soldier necks.
Kung-fu Fighter
Perform all possible finishing moves in the game.
Load of Scrap
Rip Scrapjack's head off.
Ophthalmologist
Remove 10 Gnaar eyes.
Scorpion Slayer
Break 5 Arachnoid necks.
Useful Trophy
Kill an enemy with a gib torn from another enemy.
Christmas in Cairo
Decorate the Christmas tree.
Useful Trophy
Decorate the Christmas tree on each level to unlock Rodolfo player model.
Serious Sam Fusion[]
Arachnophobia
Rip 10 Juvenile spiders apart.
Bug Hunt
Squash 10 Hatching Spiders.
Chiropractor
Break 10 soldier necks.
Kung fu Fighter
Perform all possible finishing moves in the game.
Load of Scrap
Rip Scrapjack's head off.
Ophthalmologist
Remove 10 Gnaar eyes.
Scorpion Slayer
Break 5 Arachnoid necks.
Useful Trophy
Kill an enemy with a gib torn from another enemy.
Trivia[]
When using Melee Grab on a Beheaded Rocketeer in Serious Sam 3, the Rocketeer's heart will continue to beat for a few seconds after its been ripped out.
The first time the player uses Melee Grab in Serious Sam 3, the animation used for pulling out the Gnaar's eyeball is much longer compared to when using it on Gnaars later on in the game.
If one watches closely, when initiating a Melee Grab, Sam will be teleported right in front of the enemy if he is some distance away from them. This is more easily seen when playing in third-person.
