Serious Sam: The Second Encounter

 PC
Serious Sam: The Second Encounter Image
Metascore
85

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critic Reviews What's this?

User Score
8.6

Generally favorable reviews- based on 268 Ratings

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  • Summary: Sam is back in the all new Second Episode of his battles with his arch-enemy Mental! After finding the Sirian spacecraft in ancient Egypt, Sam "Serious" Stone hijacked it and headed for Mental himself! But this, sadly, was not to be, as Sam lost control of the the alien craft and crashSam is back in the all new Second Episode of his battles with his arch-enemy Mental! After finding the Sirian spacecraft in ancient Egypt, Sam "Serious" Stone hijacked it and headed for Mental himself! But this, sadly, was not to be, as Sam lost control of the the alien craft and crash landed in the South American mountains. Now, Surrounded by an even stronger army of Mental's evil forces, Sam is forced to battle his way towards Mental's fortress and put a stop once and for all to his plans of world domination. [Take 2]… Expand
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Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 0 out of 22
  3. Negative: 1 out of 22
  1. Gamers' Temple
    93
    Imaginative levels, great graphics, memorable enemies.
  2. IGN
    92
    Honestly, I've never experienced as frantic, hectic, intense, or smooth a gameplay as this without ever stuttering (assuming you play at levels inline with the power of your system). Why more games don't opt to license this piece of technology is a mystery to me and everyone else at IGNPC.
  3. GameZone
    90
    It is not as realistic as some of the new W.W.II FPS games that are coming out right now, but they don't have the shear intense fun factor that SS,TSE has. I had a blast with this game.
  4. Gaming Age
    83
    It's like the videogame version of a really bad (read: good) B-movie.
  5. PC Gamer
    82
    Better than the original in almost every respect; good, mindless fun. [Apr 2002, p.74]
    All this publication's reviews
  6. All Game Guide
    80
    Anyone who enjoys frenzied shooting and zany physics will be very happy to own this one.
  7. G4 TV
    40
    Given that all you're doing is shooting everything around you, it's almost essential to give the player a continual sense of progress and achievement by opening up new locales frequently. Otherwise the whole exercise collapses under its own redundancy.

See all 22 Critic Reviews

User Reviews

Write a Review
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 28 out of 33
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 33
  3. Negative: 2 out of 33
  1. JaydenPickens
    Feb 20, 2019
    10
    One of my fav games. Amazing level design, weapons, humor, sound and atmosphere. Classic shooter right here. Wish they'd still make shootersOne of my fav games. Amazing level design, weapons, humor, sound and atmosphere. Classic shooter right here. Wish they'd still make shooters like this nowadays. Pickens approves!… Expand
  2. SergeiZ
    Jul 18, 2020
    10
    Like The First Encounter, but more Maps, More enemies, more battles. Perfect!
  4. SeriousPain
    Jan 27, 2014
    10
    Some people think Serious Sam is a brainless chaotic run and gun Duke Nukem clone. While it is old school run and gun, and can be playedSome people think Serious Sam is a brainless chaotic run and gun Duke Nukem clone. While it is old school run and gun, and can be played without much thinking, its definitely much brainless , and there wont be difficulty spikes and that much chaos if you'll actually develop some tactics to how to deal with the enemy in different situations.
    And its definitely not a maze game with shooting in it like Doom or Duke Nukem!

    You'd think a game that simply based around running and shooting is just a generic FPS (or TPS, the game also has 3rd person perspective), but the only game I can think of that does the same is Will Rock (no, not Painkiller).

    In those games (I'll talk about the whole franchise, even though SSII and SS3:BFE did few mistakes here and there), every enemy has its own basic movement, attack, sound, the enemies can come from any direction, at any time, in any amount, and theres usually more then one kind of enemy coming at you at once, and it all matters to figure how to move, what guns to use and who should you deal with first, but theres no enemies that require specific weapons to deal with, and the game never tells you what exactly to do all the time, so theres many ways to go through each levels, sometimes even brainlessly running forward and shooting everything that moves with your strongest weapons, but that will get you killed a lot and thats the reason people think the game is too chaotic, they don't think enough.

    Going through levels experimenting with different tactics, or simply blowing **** up on lower difficulty or with cheats, together with secrets, the game counting how long it took you to pass every level and how many monsters you killed, and also all the mods the community keeps making, give the Serious Sam games lots of replayability.

    And the various levels with always great graphics for its time, that in this franchise never looks dated like some other games of its time, with a great and one of my favorite soundtracks (that helps in gameplay by changing when monsters appear) never gets old!
    Just don't expect any story. It has one, but its not the focus of the games.

    Serious Sam, with The Second Encounter considered by many as the best in the franchise (and for good reasons) is one of the best pure Shooters out there, and my all time favorite! Obviously 10/10!    … Expand
  5. iseeall
    Dec 14, 2015
    9
    This sequel is as good as the first Serious Sam. A few weapons were added (sniper rifle and flamethrower), the missions are a bit more variedThis sequel is as good as the first Serious Sam. A few weapons were added (sniper rifle and flamethrower), the missions are a bit more varied and there are a few new enemies. The game is as funny and as action-packed as before.… Expand
  6. Awczarek
    Jul 9, 2018
    9
    You played TFE? you like it? than go and play TSE! it's better amazing level design.
  7. Alp3rr0
    Feb 27, 2021
    8
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. Well good but the First Encounter is better than the Second encounter but its still funny its still good to play well just buy and play you'll like it

    well the Wind god Kukulkan is is not hard but its still a boss    … Expand
  8. ritardedartkid
    Jul 20, 2013
    3
    If you've ever played the first encounter then you've already played the second one. Same weapons, same enemies, and a lot more painful toIf you've ever played the first encounter then you've already played the second one. Same weapons, same enemies, and a lot more painful to play through.… Expand

See all 33 User Reviews

Awards & Rankings

24
#24 Best PC Game of 2002
20
#20 Most Discussed PC Game of 2002

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