Seriously, the last page....
So what have we got then? Well, it’s as I said before. Serious Sam 2 is an old skool style blaster with all the finesse of a well thrown house brick, though obviously a lot more welcome as being hit with this won’t involve stitches. It’s a shooter, pure and simple and tries to be nothing other than a shooter, and a frantic, good looking one at that. If you’re looking for storyline and depth, look elsewhere as SS2 is about as deep as puddle… a small one… in a drought. Dark, thoughtful plotlines and sub-plots don’t have any place in here, it takes up too much brain time that should be being devoted to trigger time.
Click for larger imageNow all of this makes Sam sound like he’s the perfect blaster, which he nearly is, if it weren’t for a few annoyances inherent in the type of game this is. First off, those wonderful invisible barriers, the bane of FPS games everywhere, are back. There’s simply nothing more annoying that not being able to explore an area purely because you can’t jump a two foot high fence. Secondly, despite the huge areas and great variety in backdrops, there’s very little variation in the gameplay. All you do is run and shoot, run and shoot… sure, you get to do it in vehicles sometimes too, but it’s still just run and shoot. And lastly, and the biggest problem, is that once you’ve completed the single player game, there’s absolutely no compulsion to go back and have another go. By the time you’ve battled through the last few levels, you might well find the game becoming more than a little tedious as there’s very often no reason at all to even bother aiming as you spray bullets everywhere… Perhaps Croteam have taken mindless blasting too far?
Click for larger imageThat’s the crux of the problem with Serious Sam 2 really. Just how much mindless blasting can you take before it’s too much? There’s certainly plenty of enjoyment in here, but just as being given the keys to the brewery will see you in hospital with a stomach pump going full chat… Serious Sam 2’s blasting is the digital equivalent of binge drinking… binge blasting perhaps? And, just like alcopops, Serious Sam 2 is great when taken in moderation, a perfect distraction if you fancy a quick 15 minute stress relieving blast that looks pretty and plays well… Just don’t expect anything more and you won’t be disappointed.
Pros
Looks great
Shooter action honed to a fine point
Hordes of enemies all charging together
Massive levels
Great humour
Cons
Less depth than daytime TV
Gameplay repetitive in the later levels
The alcopop of gaming… Great in moderation but much less fun when you over do it.
Serious Sam 2 was reviewed on the HEXUS.gaming Test Rig.
