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Serious Sam 4 is not as bad as the "critics" are saying

So yesterday I finished Serious Sam 4. It was a god damn blast. I very much enjoyed the game. Imo, the best ss game in the series, gameplay wise.
I noticed that reviewers took a dump on the game. Sure it's a bit rough technically speaking, but it's one of the finest examples of an old school fps formula that works.
What do you think about ss4?
 

GlockSaint

Member
I think their perspective wasn't that the game was terrible it's just that there much better games out there (in their opinion) that do the same at a much higher quality. Personally i agree i quit halfway through, it got really really repetitive and boring. To each is his own though
 

jigglet

Banned
I think their perspective wasn't that the game was terrible it's just that there much better games out there (in their opinion) that do the same at a much higher quality. Personally i agree i quit halfway through, it got really really repetitive and boring. To each is his own though

I'm curious what better games are out there, if we're talking about Duke Nukem clones but built around a co-op experience? I remember having such a ball in SS1 with a bunch of my friends just running around like mad men. I don't think there are actually many alternatives in this space.
 
I think their perspective wasn't that the game was terrible it's just that there much better games out there (in their opinion) that do the same at a much higher quality. Personally i agree i quit halfway through, it got really really repetitive and boring. To each is his own though
What other games bro besides doom and indie old school shooters?
There really aren't that many games that fill that old school shooter void.
 

Kuranghi

Member
RIP In Peace, Painkiller and Bulletstorm series... ⚰ 🙏 :lollipop_crying:

I just replayed Bulletstorm at 4K60 and it was glorious, got every skillshot, so fun!

I had a go on a more recent Painkiller game a few months back but it wasn't really that great, I think it wasn't made by PCF. What is the best Painkiller to play outside of the original... I'm guessing its maybe just the remake of the original?
 

Kuranghi

Member
So yesterday I finished Serious Sam 4. It was a god damn blast. I very much enjoyed the game. Imo, the best ss game in the series, gameplay wise.
I noticed that reviewers took a dump on the game. Sure it's a bit rough technically speaking, but it's one of the finest examples of an old school fps formula that works.
What do you think about ss4?

This has me so happy, I was really down about the reviews but planned to try it anyway, this makes me so much more excited to try it now!

I have just finished TFE in coop with a friend who's never played them before (in SS:Fusion) and we planned to do TSE, followed by SS3 and then SS4.

Should I skip SS3 and go straight to 4? Heard bad things recently but could be more misunderstanding like SS4 has been getting.

SS2 is sort of a console game and not really the same gameplay as SS1, 3 and 4, right? I get the sentiment that people pretend TSE is SS2.
 
This has me so happy, I was really down about the reviews but planned to try it anyway, this makes me so much more excited to try it now!

I have just finished TFE in coop with a friend who's never played them before (in SS:Fusion) and we planned to do TSE, followed by SS3 and then SS4.

Should I skip SS3 and go straight to 4? Heard bad things recently but could be more misunderstanding like SS4 has been getting.

SS2 is sort of a console game and not really the same gameplay as SS1, 3 and 4, right? I get the sentiment that people pretend TSE is SS2.
SS2 is okay but it's the weirdest Serious Sam for sure. It's not bad, it's just, different. And definitely has a console vibe to it.
First and second encounter are masterpieces. I think you can freely skip ss3, it's really bad. It's not unplayable but it's very bland and repetitive.
 
Well it was mostly bashed for its rough, and unfinished state. It shouldn't have launched like that. I don't know how much they managed to polish with the recent patches.

Reviewers have misunderstood SS since... pretty much since the beginning. It has never rated that highly, and it has never been the darling of Game of the Year mentions.

The first couple of games received critical acclaim, the first one in particular won multiple awards and caused ripples of influence that nudged the genre to copy its design for a while. The visual remakes of the first two - Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter and Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter are really great first person shooters that anyone with the slightest interest in the genre should play. Just don't play them on easier difficulties, they're piss easy.

I honestly have no idea what's going on with this series. It basically hit its peak with the very first release, and has subsequently gotten worse with each new release.
 

DunDunDunpachi

Patient MembeR
Well it was mostly bashed for its rough, and unfinished state. It shouldn't have launched like that. I don't know how much they managed to polish with the recent patches.



The first couple of games received critical acclaim, the first one in particular won multiple awards and caused ripples of influence that nudged the genre to copy its design for a while. The visual remakes of the first two - Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter and Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter are really great first person shooters that anyone with the slightest interest in the genre should play. Just don't play them on easier difficulties, they're piss easy.

I honestly have no idea what's going on with this series. It basically hit its peak with the very first release, and has subsequently gotten worse with each new release.
Don't take my cynicism as bad feelings toward the series itself. I love Serious Sam. I love searching out all the secrets. The games feel like a spiritual successor to Duke 3D, but with even more self-deprecating humor.
 

silentsod

Neo Member
I've been having a great time with SS4. It's quick to the action, enemy numbers are up (and they patched in an enemy count multiplier which will be a Godsend for co-op), and the systems changes are all solid. It simply feels great to pop slow mo and disperse rockets into a crowd, dual wield, or use the speed power up and drop a boss in seconds.

I have encountered 0 bugs but I waited for the first patch to be deployed before buying.
 

silentsod

Neo Member
This has me so happy, I was really down about the reviews but planned to try it anyway, this makes me so much more excited to try it now!

I have just finished TFE in coop with a friend who's never played them before (in SS:Fusion) and we planned to do TSE, followed by SS3 and then SS4.

Should I skip SS3 and go straight to 4? Heard bad things recently but could be more misunderstanding like SS4 has been getting.

SS2 is sort of a console game and not really the same gameplay as SS1, 3 and 4, right? I get the sentiment that people pretend TSE is SS2.

Skip 3 it's a slog of a game and barely gets going before it ends.
 
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