Serious Sam: Next Encounter

Join ‘Serious’ Sam Stone as he battles Mentals minions though time and space.

NA release: 14th April 2004
EU release: 30th April 2004
JP release: N/A
Developer: Climax Solent
Publisher: Global Star Software
NGC Magazine: 83%
Mods Used: None

The Serious Sam games are certainly games that know their audience and doesn’t try to cater for anyone else. They’re budget retro-style titles for people who want to blast through hundreds and hundreds of random enemies. I’ve tried a few games and never really liked them, and this is no exception – but even at this point, it was still a budget game and does what it sets out to do.

The gameplay isn’t exactly deep. Wander through a level, blast everything, move on. The levels are large, but there’s not much too them other than enemies and the occasional switch. Sam can’t jump, so strafing around enemies is pretty much all you can do, and is something that works well, so it’s the entire game. You do get points and combos if you’re into that kind of stuff.

There are a few modern things thrown in here, such as vehicle sections. These have horrendous controls and the vehicle weapons don’t feel as powerful as the regular guns, so the only variety is something you want to be finished with as quickly as possible.

Poor

Serious Sam is something of a triumph, then. Throw in some vehicles (including a combine harvester), differing ammo types and daft pick-ups (Serious Skates are our favourite), and the final deal-clenching fact that this costs a mere £20, and you’ve got a game that really is a treat. Seriously.
Jes Bickham, NGC Magazine #94

Remake or remaster?

A remaster would be fine.

Official Ways to get the game

There is no official way to get Serious Sam: Next Encounter.