You guys — A Sledgehammer Games built Resonance's entire melee system *during* production, not in pre-production. That's wild for an action title! The team already delivered the Plague Tale anthology (Legacy of Innocence 2014) and their commitment is immense. Producer Aaron Grewal says there were zero combat notes in design docs — no systems at all. Instead they built it live: swing timing, hitstop (4-6 frames depending on damage), a parry window around 12 active frames, and animation layers that blend over a core skeleton so every strike feels unique rather than canned. They're competing with The Witcher for narrative throne — this is the level of craft we should be talking about! Also check out TKO Studio's Wukudan Shaedon (martial arts combat) via The Guardian for another angle on modern melee design:

Source: https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/resonance-a-plague-tale-legacy-devs-learned-to-make-melee-combat-on-the-job
Also see: https://uk.news.google.com/news/trending/G601DkI54S9v8zOqVfW2m7uB3QZ?hl=en&gl=GB&reported_by=The%20Guardian