How to Get the Best Melee Weapon in Atomic Heart and Which Upgrades to Pick
Save ammo and dish out powerful attacks in the process.
In first-person shooter Atomic Heart, resources are slim, so it’s often best to come equipped with a decent melee weapon alongside your firearms. There are five melee weapons to choose from, each with its own distinct strengths and weaknesses. However, there’s one, in particular, you should focus on acquiring ASAP. Not only does this weapon hit hard, but it also comes with a couple of powerful upgrades you’ll absolutely want to utilize, allowing you to stomp on your enemies with ease. Here’s the best Atomic Heart melee weapon and its recommended upgrades.
The Best Atomic Heart Melee Weapon
While the Swede axe is quite good, especially for a starter weapon, the best melee option is the Zvezdochka.
Use the Zvezdochka for best results in Atomic Heart.
This heavy, blunt weapon might not seem like much, but it packs a punch, particularly thanks to the spinning saw at the end. When upgraded effectively, you can easily take down even the toughest of enemies without wasting a single bullet.
Zvezdochka Location
In terms of locating this weapon, you first need to find its blueprint. However, there’s some confusion about how this works, as blueprints tend to spawn in different locations from player to player. There seems to be a specific order in which you unlock blueprints, with multiple opportunities to unlock them, even if you miss a chest in the open world.
Apparently, the Zvezdochka blueprint is the last one you unlock, so keep opening chests if you haven’t found it yet. Blueprints seem to spawn in random locations around the world, but if you’re thorough while looting, you should get your hands on it before reaching the game’s halfway point.
After you acquire the blueprint, you need 162 Metal Parts, 20 Superconductors, and 16 Chemistry items to craft the Zvezdochka.
The Best Zvezdochka Upgrades
When upgraded properly, the Zvezdochka turns into a ranged weapon, without utilizing resources like ammo or energy.
There are plenty of ways to upgrade the Zvezdochka however you see fit, but there are two specific installations you need to prioritize. The first is the Lower Blade With Reflex Booster upgrade under the Disk category, adding an additional spinning saw to the weapon while giving you more damage output. This blueprint is found in a bronze chest inside the Polygon 8 dungeon.
The second upgrade you need to grab is the Reverse Shot installation, under the Crushing Blow category. This essentially allows the weapon’s saw to act as a ranged attack — and when combined with the aforementioned Reflex Booster, gives you two saws to work with. You can find this upgrade blueprint inside a gold chest within the Polygon 1 dungeon.
Aside from those two upgrades, feel free to maximize the other two categories such as the Handle and Cartridge Gun as you see fit. Remember, the elemental Cartridge Gun gives your weapon a bit of added flare, which works well alongside the dual disk Reverse Shot attack.
