The Outer Worldshas an impressive variety of weapons, including many melee options. The game also features unique-grade weapons, akin to what other genres refer to as “legendary” gear. The base game already offers plenty of melee weapons to choose from, yetThe Outer Worlds’ two expansions double down on unique weapon offerings. SinceThe Outer Worlds’ expansions have added plenty of unique weapons, there’s a good mix of weapons to collect for their rarity as well as must-haves for melee characters.
What makes most of the unique melee weapons worthwhile is their special effect, which can’t be replicated with basic weapon mods.Unique gear inThe Outer Worldscan’t be modded with attachments, so the best unique gear comprises items that are both pre-modded and have a special effect. There are still strong unique weapons that don’t have special effects, but the worst unique weapons have no mods or special effects at all.
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S-Tier
Thebest melee weapons inThe Outer Worlds’ unique weapons offer the deadliest combinations of damage types and weapon effects. Since unique weapons can have additional hidden quirks, the weapons in this tier are definitely worth putting to use for their passive effects alone. Even though not all of the weapons in this tier come with both mod slots filled out, they are still the best options for dealing straight damage, applying status effects, or both.
Shock and Awe
Wall of Swords
A-Tier
Not all of these unique melee weapons have special effects, but the ones that don’t make up for that with high damage and status effect applications. The special effects on some of these weapons can be plenty useful, even though they can be outclassed by a select few. For the weapons that don’t have special effects, they still pack strong punches with combinations of elemental effects, like Shock orN-Ray elemental damagemixed with Bleed, Burn, or Stun on 2-handed hitters.
The Hammer of Olympus
B-Tier
The B-Tier of unique melee weapons are still reliable options for dishing out damage, though sometimes normal melee weapons can be modified to produce better results. These weapons still have some merit as unique gear, but they generally rely on having a meleecharacter build inThe Outer Worldsto shine. The few weapons in this tier that have unique effects can mostly be replicated by other, better unique melee weapons.
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C-Tier
A good way to think of the C-Tier unique melee weapons is as stepping stones in the meantime of tracking down some of the better melee weapons. It’s generally more practical to utilize thebest ranged weapons inThe Outer Worldsinstead of melee weapons of this grade. These weapons are still distinguishable as unique gear, but they can be outperformed by a wide variety of other options.
The one redeeming quality of the weapons in this tier is that, while the player may want to replace them asap, they could be granted to companions to still benefit from the better parts of their unique traits. A majority of the companions can be instructed to use specific types ofweaponry inThe Outer Worlds, so giving them unique gear to utilize is a good way to passively get an upper edge and make the most of their existing character traits. Although, the same applies to the better half of the unique weapons as much as these C-Tier underdogs.
Shock-Stick
D-Tier
The majority of the D-Tier unique melee weapons are what’s known inThe Outer Worldsas improvised weapons, signifying that these are novelty items that aren’t fully intended for use in combat. The sparse amount of improvised weapons in the game makes them collectible items, though even the pieces that are unique gear are underwhelming. These items can prove to be effective props forroleplaying inThe Outer Worlds, otherwise intentionally bringing improvised weapons into combat is high risk with no reward.
Primal Tamer’s Baton
Quick and Dirty
The Outer Worlds: Spacer’s Choice Editionis available on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
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