Check out our video review:
I like the history of the Serious Sam series. Specifically the fact that the first game, The First Encounter, was a budget title and released to significant success. It comes from an indie developer and, from what I understand, it sold for twenty dollars at release here in the states. This is in 2001, mind you, before the indie scene became what it is today. Since then, Serious Sam has become a pretty popular franchise and I just find that fascinating. Of course, I didn’t know about The First Encounter when it came out. I discovered it some years later. I remember coming home from school and playing it and The Second Encounter on my laptop. Serious Sam 4 is what got me to jump back into the series. As of this review, it’s the only game in the main series I haven’t beaten yet because it ran like shit on our old hardware. So we built a new PC and I figured I would start from the beginning so I could refresh myself on the previous entries. Then I realized I haven’t played the original First Encounter since high school. Over the years, I’ve invested more time in the HD version and I played through the Revolution version once, but I haven’t touched the actual original game in years so I’ve been looking forward to revisiting it.
Developed by Croteam and published by Gathering of Developers, Serious Sam: The First Encounter was released for PC in March, 2001. A remake titled Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter was released for PC in 2009, Xbox 360 in 2010, and Stadia, Switch, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One in 2020. If you own the HD game on Steam, it’s automatically added to Serious Sam Fusion which is a central hub for multiple Serious Sam games; the HD versions of the First and Second Encounter and Serious Sam 3 along with their VR versions. It also comes with new engine features, patches, and upgrades. I should also mention that The First Encounter is included in Serious Sam Classics: Revolution along with The Second Encounter. Revolution unifies the two original games. It brings them together in one package, comes with some new content, and it’s free to owners of the originals on Steam. For this review, I played the original game and the HD version, from Fusion, specifically, for PC. It should be noted that the Steam version of the original game was re-titled Serious Sam Classic: The First Encounter and is updated to support modern systems so I didn’t have to do any tweaking to get it to run properly.
The story goes that humans uncovered traces of advanced technology from an ancient alien civilization known as the Sirians. This technology enabled humanity to explore the farthest reaches of space and in the year 2104, they are attacked and almost eradicated by alien forces led by an entity known as Mental. World leaders have decided to use a device known as the “Time-Lock”, a relic from the ancient alien civilization, to send Sam “Serious” Stone back in time to Egypt to save humanity from extinction. The setup is conveyed through text at the start of the game and any other plot developments are revealed as you progress, mainly through NETRICSA which stands for NEuroTRonically Implanted Combat Situation Analyser. You can access NETRICSA any time to learn about the area or level, weapons, and enemies. The plot is never shoved in your face and I enjoy the sci-fi aspect as well as Sam’s various one-liners which add some humor to the experience.
The game does come with a multiplayer component that can be enjoyed online or locally and the campaign can be played solo or cooperatively. The First Encounter is not totally unlike shooters that came before it but there are things about it that separate it from the pack. You go from level to level shooting enemies and running and strafing are a big part of the gameplay. One way I feel The First Encounter differentiates itself from others of its kind, especially at the time it released, is through its tone and atmosphere. While The First Encounter is violent and bloody, it’s also very colorful with a dash of humor. Think about the classics like Wolfenstein 3D, Doom, and Quake. I would argue they have darker tones and atmospheres, they’re more grim, and Quake features some Lovecraftian elements. The First Encounter is a mostly bright and colorful experience set in Egypt. Also, the level design is not maze-like and key hunting is not a major focus. There are items that are needed to progress but they’re not hard to find. The big highlight here is the encounters and the sheer number of enemies you’ll face. Serious Sam is all about decimating armies of foes.
I like how the game eases you into its primary selling point. You start out in environments with small areas and corridors and plenty of things to use as cover but as you progress, the environments open up more and by the end of the game, you’ll be battling in a lot of large open spaces with enemies coming at you from every direction. The First Encounter is not a game where you want to remain stationary for long periods of time and the gameplay can be fast-paced and get very intense. You’ll need to run, jump and strafe to avoid the enemies and projectiles coming your way. The First Encounter comes with a solid arsenal and all the firepower remains useful. Every weapon is great for specific threats and situations and switching between the different weapons during battle is all part of the let’s call it “strategy”. You need to know what weapons to use and when and what enemies to prioritize and when. On the surface, the gameplay looks very simple. Like someone just running around and shooting mobs of foes. That is essentially what’s going on but it’s not as mindless as one might think. If you don’t know what you’re doing, don’t know what weapons to use and when for example, enemies will overrun and kill you.
I think the gameplay primarily holds up because of its simplicity. The First Encounter is an easy to pick up and play first-person shooter. It’s not mindless but it does lack a certain variety and I can understand complaints that things can get repetitive. There’s no set pieces or scripted sequences or anything to really break up the typical run and gun action. You’re constantly running and shooting and sometimes you’ll be forced to engage wave after wave of foes. You’ll often see enemies spawn in during battles and they can come from anywhere. Basically, nowhere is safe. I enjoy it but this style of gameplay might not be for everybody. There’s always plenty of enemies to shoot and I do like the gunplay – weapons have good audiovisual feedback, enemies bleed when hit or shot, and they can be turned into gibs.
Personally, I feel the HD version has the better gunplay mainly because the visual and gore effects look a lot better. As enemies take damage, they’re bodies will become visibly bloody, battles often result in bloody body parts scattered about, blood splatter is more pronounced, and I feel this all results in more satisfying action. For the most part, the HD version is a faithful remake that looks better, although there are some other differences. The anti-gravity effects in the original are absent in HD and some new secrets have been added to the HD version.
As fun as The First Encounter can be, I can’t say I’m a fan of everything about it. Some of the ambushes and traps can feel like bullshit. Yes, there are tricks and ways to overcome every challenge the game throws at you so maybe “bullshit” isn’t the right word but I still say some are bullshit. Annoying or frustrating might be the words I’m looking for. You’re running along and suddenly enemies spawn behind you. Hell, some of the secrets are actually traps. You end up trapped in a room or small area and have to fend off the enemies that spawn. It’s that kind of stuff that can be annoying. A common one is you pick up an item and enemies spawn all around you. This happens quite a bit so after a while I came to expect it. For the most part, I don’t mind the ambushes but some can be frustrating or feel like bullshit like when you’re ambushed by hitscan foes like Arachnoids. That can feel cheap.
The First Encounter features a good variety of enemies and at this point, I guess you could say some are iconic and even come with iconic audio. The screams of Beheaded Kamikazes, the clip-clop of Kleer Skeletons, the screech of an Arachnoid, and the growl followed by the stampeding sounds of Werebulls coming for you are all definitely memorable. At least I think so. I immediately associate these sounds with Serious Sam. This is one of those games with enemies you love to hate. By that I mean enemies that you may dislike at first but once you figure out the strategy to take them down, you realize they’re not that bad. You may even come to love them and their distinct behavior is what makes them unique. Maybe that’s just a me thing but I find there are several enemies like this in the Serious Sam titles. You can’t actually outrun many foes so you have to learn what enemies to prioritize and when and dodge their attacks if necessary like the charge of a Werebull or the leap of a Kleer Skeleton for example. You’ll always be outnumbered and often surrounded so listening for what’s coming is just as important as seeing what’s coming because your eyes can’t be everywhere all the time. Enemies will often spawn around you and because they make distinct sounds, they can easily be identified just by listening.
The only enemies I genuinely dislike are the Arachnoids because of their hitscan nature. They actually fuck with the flow of things. You’re running, gunning, dodging, and blowing away baddies and then an Arachnoid appears and now you’re slowly losing health so you have to stop and get behind cover or prioritize them immediately. They just interrupt the whole flow and can basically take priority over every other threat or you risk losing health no matter where you are on the battlefield. Their hit scan nature goes against the grain so to speak. In general, it’s wise to keep moving because enemies will eventually advance on your position and you’ll also be exposed much of the time so when you have a foe like Arachnoid that can hit you from anywhere whenever you’re in their line of sight, that just seems like a poor fit, a cheap way of cornering you or making you vulnerable. Maybe it’s just me but just I don’t care for this design choice. It’s never so bad that it breaks the game or anything but some encounters with Arachnoids can lean more into frustration than fun in my opinion.
Many of the environments in The First Encounter are huge. For the time it came out, I find the size of some of the areas to be impressive. Also impressive is the draw distance and just how many enemies you’ll often face at once, all the action on the screen. That said, some areas do feel empty. Visually speaking, that is. Hell, some are just big empty boxes that throw waves of enemies at you. No buildings or structures to use as cover. Just big open spaces with enemies coming at you from multiple directions. The environments are not only big but also encourage exploration. There’s plenty of secrets to find and you can even find exits to secret levels. Secret areas usually contain or reveal goodies like ammo, health, armor and weapons so they are worth finding but, as mentioned before, some secrets are just traps which can be a bitch. You know what I find humorous? Areas that are so large that secrets are just locations way out in the distance. Not necessarily hard to find, just a trek.
I would say The First Encounter is a mostly linear experience. It would be hard to get lost. You will need to find items and interact with things to progress but I never found it hard to figure out where to go. You’ll navigate through tombs, temples, sewers, suburbs, and many desert areas. As mentioned earlier, the beginning of the game contains smaller areas and corridors but things open up and get bigger the further you progress. Many outdoor environments contains buildings and structures that can be used as cover but keep in mind that cover doesn’t necessarily mean safety. The Suburbs and Metropolis levels are good examples. Enemies like Arachnoids and Reptiloids will often spawn on rooftops and on top of structures in the distance. Reptiloids in particular unleash projectiles that will home in on Sam so staying behind something doesn’t guarantee protection. You need to keep moving.
When it comes to the presentation, the HD version definitely looks a lot better. Better models, better textures, better effects, and better gore. Still, I think the original does hold up rather well. Both versions are colorful and showcase some beautiful Egyptian landscapes and backgrounds. I would say most of the outdoor areas have some pretty scenery. The only real eyesore I noticed is some pop-in in both versions. As for the audio, the sound work is great. In fact, I would go so far to say that it’s an important part of the gameplay. Specifically, the sounds of enemies. As I mentioned earlier, listening for enemies coming can be just as important as seeing them coming. Other than that, the weapons fire and explosions sound good and the action is backed by an excellent soundtrack. Music intensifies when enemies are near and there’s a good mix of dramatic, ominous, and rocking jams. On the technical side, I did not encounter any noticeable issues in either version and they ran great in my experience.
The First Encounter is one of my favorite shooters, although I do bundle it together with The Second Encounter in my head. Even though we’re reviewing them separately, and they are technically separate games, I treat them as a single game or package. For an indie budget title released in 2001, I think The First Encounter is quite impressive. It comes with an action-packed campaign, multiple difficulty levels, a scoring system, multiplayer, and it supports mods. Needless to say, it comes with a lot of replay value. It was also different than others of its kind at the time of release. Yes, there were a lot of run and gun shooters but nothing quite like The First Encounter, a shooter with huge environments and armies of foes coming at you from every direction. That’s what defines Serious Sam, what it makes it stand out. The gameplay is not mindless but it can get repetitive and because of that, it’s not going to be for everybody but I do consider The First Encounter to be a classic. It’s easy to jump into and the gameplay still holds up. It’s one of those games I can revisit and always have a good time.
I absolutely recommend Serious Sam: The First Encounter. I also recommend both versions of the game, the original and HD. Despite the dated presentation, the original is still a fun time and if you get it on Steam, it should run fine on modern systems as of this review. I tend to stick with the HD version nowadays just because it looks better but both are viable options if you haven’t played the game at all. I think The First Encounter is one of those shooters that fans of the genre owe it to themselves to play if they haven’t already. Definitely check it out.