Serious Sam represents what all FPS games should be like.
Gameplay: 8.5/10
- Well, just mindlessly killing random enemies does get repetitive after a while, but... the game just makes you feel so powerful on the lower difficulties, and so "leet" on the higher difficulties, since the game is REALLY hard when compared to other shooters. If you'd try to count the amount of enemies that Sam shoots during the game... it's probably over tens of thousands. Especially in multiplayer. Oh, and the game really shines on the multiplayer co-op mode, and it's really fun playing this in LAN. I don't usually play multiplayer games, but along with BF1942 and Quake1, Serious Sam is an exception, just because it's so goddamn fun to play this.
Atmosphere & Immersion: 7/10
- If you think that the game is immersive, you are completely wrong. The game doesn't even try to feel realistic. Even though I absolutely love realistic games, it's a good thing that Croteam decided to make this game as unrealistic as possible. The old saying "do not sacrifice gameplay over realism" fits this game so well. The game is also filled with tongue-in-cheek humor and easter eggs. "You have found a secret trap!" is just priceless.
Graphics: 8.5/10
- The graphics are very good for the year 2001, though they are certainly not as good as Max Payne for example. But as with any game, you shouldn't care how the graphics look, it's the gameplay that matters. It is cool how you can change just about anything in the game's advanced settings menu, I think that all games should have as much options as Serious Sam has. Every single thing that lets you customize your gaming experience to the way you like it, is a positive thing.
Sound: 7/10
- They are... ok. Music is quite good, especially the intro/credits music. Sound effects are decent. Sam has a cool voice, though you don't get to hear it that often.
Physics: 5/10
- Mostly run-of-the-mill stuff. Games didn't have ragdoll yet so Serious Sam uses death animations. They are good death animations though. There aren't any objects you can interact with that would use physics, but I don't really care.
Replay value: 3.5/10
- Well, there are different difficulty levels, and that's always a good thing. The hardest difficulties are just crazy unless you are really an expert. But the level design is repetitive, it's just Egypt all the way. There isn't really that much replay value, but what would you expect from a shooter game?
Value for money: 9/10
- This can probably be found really cheap these days, if you can find it. But the bottom line is that it's a really good game and if you are a FPS fan you have to play this game, since this represents everything that is good about shooter games.
Bugs, Stability & Performance: 10/10
- This game performs really well on even older machines. If you have a PC that is less than 6-7 years old, you can run this game no problem. Modern PC's can easily run this with all maxed out. I have never experienced any crashes or bugs whatsoever.
Will this game be remembered by old school gamers as a classic after 10 years?:
- I really hope so. Serious Sam is truly an awesome game, a real classic to the genre.
Who would I recommend to buy the game?:
- Any FPS fan or anyone who likes fast paced action. If you only like games with "deep storylines" or "breathtaking graphics", go away... Idiot.
Final score (not necessarily an average): 8.5/10