Serious Sam: The Second Encounter

"One of the best games I've ever played"

Gameplay
I found this game very addicting, the enemies are constantly coming at you. This game will be fun no matter how great or terrible you are at first person shooters. It includes the following difficulty modes (from easiest, to toughest) tourist, easy, normal, hard, and serious. Sam's cocky remarks will have you laughing on your seat! You find a new weapon every in almost every level, and each of them are very entertaining. Being a first person shooter for the computer , you can use your keyboard and mouse, so the controls are very easy to use and to adjust.

Story
In the not-so-distant future, the evil antagonist of the story, Mental spawns his creatures from another dimension, to attack planet Earth. The hero, Sam ''Serious'' Stone hijacks a Sirian spaceship, and goes after the evil Mental, to put a stop on him once and for all! Sam, however, looses control of his ship and lands in the mountains of South America, where now he must fight his way through Mental's army!

I actually found the story to be pretty much the only flaw with this game. I wasn't surprised though, a first person shooter game with a great story line is hard to find.

Graphics
These graphics are great, the texture rendering is truly amazing. Powerful environments are one of the best aspects of this game, and everything is finely detailed.

Sounds
With a surround sound system, you'll feel like the canon ball's blast went off right in your living room! You'll never forget the blasting from your laser canon, or the rusty whirring of the chain saw, when you experience the amazing sounds from Serious Sam: The Second Encounter! Environment sounds include your enemies' grunts, screams, and battle cries. The game music is truly one of the best I've ever experienced in video games.

Replay Value
Even after you've beaten the game, you'll want to go back to one of their custom levels, to try and top off your old records. I found that playing this game a second time around was just as fun as the first time.

What I liked Best
My favorite thing about this game are the weapons. I found these weapons to be very excellent for killing single enemies from very far away (with the Sniper), destroying mass crowds of enemies are best fit for using the flame-thrower or the laser canon. Melee action can't get any better than with a rusty chain saw.

Another major thing are the enemies. Some enemies can attack you from very great distances, some are only a threat from up close, and some can attack in huge masses. The best ones of all are the huge enemies. Some of them are bigger than three story buildings, and when when you have to fight more than one of them at once, things can get very fun. Serious Sam: The Second Encounter has an overall large variety of enemies.

To buy or to rent?
Buy, since the replay value is great. Not only that, you can find this game in practically every retailer for $20 or less!

Total:

Gameplay - 10/10
Story - 8/10
Graphics - 10/10
Sounds - 10/10
Replay Value - 10/10

Overall - 10/10

Reviewer's Score: 10/10, Originally Posted: 07/01/03, Updated 07/01/03