| Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem | |
|---|---|
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| Developer(s) |
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| Publisher(s) | Devolver Digital |
| Series | Serious Sam |
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| Genre(s) | First-person shooter |
| Mode(s) | Single-player |
Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem is a 2022 first-person shooter game developed by Timelock Studio and Croteam, and published by Devolver Digital. A standalone expansion to Serious Sam 4 , the game was released on 25 January 2022 for Windows, and on 6 October 2022 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.
Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem is a standalone expansion to Serious Sam 4. [1] [2] The game features five levels and several new weapons. [2]
Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem takes place in Russia, somewhere in deep Siberia. The events occur in an alternate timeline of Serious Sam 4 , between two of the last levels from the main game.
Set directly after the events of "The Package" mission in Serious Sam 4, Sam "Serious" Stone arrives on the north coast of Russia, aiming to reach Tunguska to stop General Brand, who took possession of the Holy Grail and destroy the portal being used by mentals forces to invade the Earth.
Having arrived on the mainland, Sam attempts to contact the HQ without success. Sam infiltrates an oil refinery that has a signal SOS on a transmission tower. Stone reaches the tower and meets a survivor, but the man is killed. Within the refinery, Sam hears a radio transmission from Igor Ledov, the head of the local partisan squad. Igor is aware of Brand's betrayal and appeals to all armed human units to shoot his plane on sight. Ledov offers Sam help and asks the hero to go to the village Kalinovka to the south, where the squad will be waiting for him.
Heading south, Russian soldiers of Earth Defense Forces locate Brand's plane and shoot it down. Sam travels the Siberian tundra and forests and finds an abandoned village surrounded by Octanian troops where he meets with One-Eye Olga, a legendary Russian sniper who was believed to have been killed during the storming of the portal in Tunguska. Olga reveals she faked her death, hiding in an abandoned church in the meantime and was also responsible for shooting down Brands plane.
Serious Sam continues his journey south through Siberia's tundra and soon reaches Kalinovka. There he meets Ledov's partisan squad: the stern and dense Ivan, the energetic and militant Natasha, the silent Vlad and the leader of the group himself, the former rock musician Igor. Ledov tells Sam that there is an abandoned railway depot on the outskirts of the village, where a working locomotive is present which, they can use to reach the closest town Ustinov and travel to Tunguska from there. Sam and Ledov's partisan squad fight through Kalinovka and reach the depot where they Finally, having beaten off significant enemy resistance, board the train.
On the way, the heroes enjoy Ledov's songs and reminisce about the recently killed Father Mikhail. Soon, the train arrives at the Ustinov station. Ledov says that the squad has to go through the town and reach the hydroelectric dam, from there, raft in boats to the mouth of Tunguska river. Sam with the squad fights his way through the town and stumble upon the remains of another partisan group, in which Ledov recognizes a squad of certain Pavlov guy. Someone or something dealt with these people with unprecedented cruelty. Sam suspects something is wrong, and they are subsequently ambushed by Octanian raiders that bomb the town, undermining a nearby building. General Brand himself, in his monstrous form, suddenly appears, grabs Ivan and tries to convince Sam to join Mental's forces. Ivan harshly dissuades Sam and pays for it with his own life as Sam and the rest of guerrillas open fire on the traitor, but he manages to escape.
Partisans in rage decide to kill Brand by all means and avenge the death of their comrade. Sam tries to dissuade Ledov and his people but are cut off from Sam by a collapsed building, forcing them to split up and intercept Brand on the dam. Alone, Sam decides to get to the dam by a detour. On the way there, he tries once again to contact his friend on the radio, but communications are blocked. Sam finally reaches the dam, but Mentals' forces have overwhelmed Ledov's people. Seeing Sam, Igor tells Sam that it's a trap, but Brand appears, ambushes and throws Sam off the dam. Meanwhile, the enemies knocked down Ledov and surround him. Exhausted and wounded, Igor sacrifices himself to halt the alien's advance.
Sam fights Brand, who stabs himself with the Grail, absorbing its power which transforms him into an even more frightening creature. Despite this, Brand is defeated by Sam. Shortly afterward, a time portal suddenly appears, from where emerges Sam from the future. The future Sam tells Sam that killing General Brand in this timeline will result in a darker fate for the Earth. One-Eye Olga also walks out of the portal and reports that she has killed Napoleon, but this did not affect the future in any way. Future Sam says that he just wanted "someone to shoot that little twerp", and presents Sam and Olga with a new mission, to go to 1352 BC, where Pharaoh Akhenaton has just discovered a buried Sirian ship. The three of them go through the closing portal, and game credits roll.
The post-credits scene shows present Sam who comes out of the time portal, puts Ledov's guitar on the stove next to the graves of all four partisans and, after standing in silence for a while, leaves into the portal again.
Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem was developed by Timelock Studio, a Russian group composed of long-time members of the Serious Sam modding community, under the oversight of Croteam, the series' creators. [2] [3] The Timelock Studio members had previously not been affiliated with each other but by chance worked together as testers for Serious Sam 4 . The team felt that the game's levels set in Russia had unexplored potential and wished to develop them further. With initiative from their team lead Evgeny, they compiled an 80-page design document that they submitted to Croteam in September 2020, just before Serious Sam 4's release. The company greenlit the project as a three-level piece of downloadable content (DLC) for Serious Sam 4, though it later expanded to a standalone expansion as it outgrew the usual scope for DLC. [4] After settling on the name Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem for the game, the group of modders founded Timelock Studio in 2021. [4] [5] The development pipeline for a retail product marked a shift for the developers: According to director Igor Grinkevich, the workflow for an individual piece of content is creating and then simply releasing it, whereas the development for Siberian Mayhem introduced them to deadlines, marketing, and localisation. Each team member coincidentally had their own speciality, which Grinkevich described as a "wonder". In the design process, the developers sought to combine classic Serious Sam elements with modern ones to make up for faults they found in Serious Sam 4. Secrets and Easter eggs were added spontaneously. Croteam consulted Timelock Studio on creative and technical aspects, including optimisation, while Devolver Digital acted as the game's publisher. [4]
The game was first teased via a 34-second video published to YouTube in December 2021, showing protagonist Sam Stone navigating a frozen landscape. [6] Devolver Digital referenced the video again in early January 2022, stating that it would announce a new Serious Sam entry later that week and release it later that month. [7] The company announced Siberian Mayhem on 10 January 2022 and released it on 25 January for Windows via Steam and GOG.com. [1] [8] Owners of Serious Sam 4 received a 25% discount on the new game. [8]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | 70/100 [9] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| GameStar | 70/100 [10] |
| Hardcore Gamer | 4/5 [11] |
| NME | 4/5 [12] |
| Shacknews | 6/10 [13] |
| The Games Machine (Italy) | 7.8/10 [14] |
Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem received "mixed or average" reviews, according to the review aggregator website Metacritic, which calculated a weighted average rating of 70/100 based on twenty-five critic reviews. [9]
Siberia is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states since the centuries-long conquest of Siberia, which began with the fall of the Khanate of Sibir in the late 16th century and concluded with the annexation of Chukotka in 1778. Siberia is vast and sparsely populated, covering an area of over 13.1 million square kilometres (5,100,000 sq mi), but home to roughly a quarter of Russia's population. Novosibirsk, Krasnoyarsk, and Omsk are the largest cities in the area.
The Angara is a major river in Siberia, which traces a course through Russia's Irkutsk Oblast and Krasnoyarsk Krai. It drains out of Lake Baikal and is the headwater tributary of the Yenisey. It is 1,849 kilometres (1,149 mi) long, and has a drainage basin of 1,039,000 square kilometres (401,000 sq mi). It was formerly known as the Lower or Nizhnyaya Angara. Below its junction with the Ilim, it was formerly known as the Upper Tunguska and, with the names reversed, as the Lower Tunguska.
Serious Sam: The Second Encounter is a 2002 first-person shooter game developed by Croteam and published by Gathering of Developers. It is the successor to Serious Sam: The First Encounter and the second game in the Serious Sam series. Taking place immediately after The First Encounter, it follows the soldier Sam "Serious" Stone, whose spaceship crashes back to Earth on his way from ancient Egypt to Sirius, requiring him to seek the Holy Grail to continue his journey. As Sam, the player traverses linear levels, either enclosed or set on open plains, and battles increasingly large waves of enemies with an expanding arsenal. The gameplay builds on that of The First Encounter while adding additional weapons, more enemy types, and platforming elements, and additionally contains the Seriously Warped Deathmatch mod by A Few Screws Loose.
Croteam is a Croatian video game developer based in Zagreb. The company was established by Davor Hunski, Damir Perović, Roman Ribarić and Dean Sekulić, four former classmates, in late August 1992. Croteam is best known for Serious Sam, a series of first-person shooters introduced with Serious Sam: The First Encounter in 2001. The company also developed the 2014 puzzle game The Talos Principle and its 2023 sequel The Talos Principle 2. Croteam employed approximately 40 people in 2020 and was acquired by its long-time publishing partner Devolver Digital in October that year.
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Serious Sam 2 is a first-person shooter video game released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox and the sequel to the 2002 video game Serious Sam: The Second Encounter. It was developed by Croteam and was released on 11 October 2005. The game was initially published by 2K Games, a Take-Two Interactive subsidiary. The game was later made available on Steam on 31 January 2012. While the game was originally released only for Microsoft Windows and Xbox, an unofficial Linux version of the game was created and is being handled by Linux Installers for Linux Gamers.
Football Glory is a 1994 football video game developed by Croteam and published by Black Legend. One or two players compete in football matches viewed from a top-down perspective and modelled after one of six leagues and cups. The players can perform various moves, including tackles and bicycle kicks, and view instant replays of highlights. The pitch is occasionally invaded by dogs, streakers, hooligans, and police.
Serious Sam 3: BFE is a first-person shooter video game developed by Croatia-based indie development studio Croteam and published by Devolver Digital. It is part of the Serious Sam series and the prequel to the 2001 video game, Serious Sam. The game takes place in 22nd-century Egypt, during Mental's invasion of Earth, as implied in The First Encounter. The game features a 16-player online, as well as a 4-player splitscreen co-op campaign mode. The game was first released for Microsoft Windows on 22 November 2011. The OS X support for the game followed shortly after and was released on 23 April 2012. The Linux version of the game started being worked on after a high number of requests, where the first Linux-related update was the porting of the game's dedicated server. The game itself, however, was released one day after Valve opened the beta branch for "Steam for Linux", namely on 20 December 2012.
Serious Sam is a video game series created and primarily developed by Croteam. It consists predominantly of first-person shooters. The series follows the advances of mercenary Sam "Serious" Stone against Mental, an extraterrestrial overlord who attempts to destroy humanity at various points in time. The first game, Serious Sam: The First Encounter, was released for Microsoft Windows in March 2001. Several spin-offs were developed by other developers, such as a Palm OS conversion of The First Encounter by InterActive Vision, Serious Sam: Next Encounter by Climax Solent, and Serious Sam Advance by Climax London. All three were published by Global Star Software.
Serious Sam: The Random Encounter is a 2011 role-playing and bullet hell game developed by Vlambeer and published by Devolver Digital. It follows Sam "Serious" Stone travelling to the future in search of his nemesis, Mental, teaming up with mercenaries on the way. The player controls Sam and his accomplices through confined levels, engaging in battles through random encounters. These pit the player characters against large waves of enemies, and the player controls the weapons and items each character uses against them in five-second turns.
Serious Sam Double D is a 2011 side-scrolling shooter game developed by Mommy's Best Games and published by Devolver Digital. The game follows Sam "Serious" Stone traveling through various historical settings to destroy the horde of his nemesis, Mental, and its teleportation beacons. As Sam, the player navigates 2D levels and can use the "gun stacker" to create vertical stacks of up to six weapons that are fired simultaneously. Enemies appear from all sides and their corpses can be used as platforms.
Serious Sam: Kamikaze Attack! is a 2011 auto-running game developed by Be-Rad Entertainment and published by Devolver Digital. The player controls a Headless Kamikaze that chases after Sam "Serious" Stone, attempting to defeat him. The character moves automatically and can dodge or deflect incoming hazards. Announced in March 2011 and developed over six months, Kamikaze Attack! was created as part of the Serious Sam Indie Series to promote the launch of Serious Sam 3: BFE. It debuted for Android and iOS in September 2011, followed by a release for Windows in January 2012. The game received a mixed reception, with praise for its controls, conflicting opinions about its visuals, and criticism for its repetitiveness and lack of appeal to non-fans of the Serious Sam series.
Devolver Digital, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Austin, Texas, specializing in the publishing of indie games. The company was founded in June 2009 by Nigel Lowrie, Harry Miller, Graeme Struthers, Rick Stults, and Mike Wilson, five executives who had been involved with Gathering of Developers and Gamecock Media Group, which published games on developer-friendly terms, but due to the high cost associated with releasing retail games saw themselves acquired and dissolved by larger companies. To avoid this, Devolver Digital instead turned to digital distribution channels.
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Serious Sam VR: The Last Hope is a 2017 first-person shooter game for virtual reality (VR) developed by Croteam VR and published by Devolver Digital. One or two players fight waves of enemies, including bosses, across five thematic planets. The enemies approach from a 180° field and the player can use dual-wielded weapons while moving across a limited space. To develop The Last Hope and experiment with other VR implementations, Croteam VR was established as a specialised division of Croteam. Devolver Digital announced the game at E3 in June 2016 and launched it in early access that October. After several updates, it was released in September 2017 for Windows with compatibility for the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift VR headsets. The Last Hope received mostly positive reviews, with post-release reception lauding the game's gameplay and visuals while criticising difficulty spikes and issues with the online multiplayer mode.
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I Hate Running Backwards is a 2018 shoot 'em up game developed by Binx Interactive and published by Devolver Digital. One or two players traverse procedurally generated levels using several characters, including Sam "Serious" Stone, the protagonist of the Serious Sam series. The screen scrolls vertically as the player character runs backwards through a partially destructible environment and battles enemies approaching from the bottom of the screen. The player can use two weapons, a melee attack, and an "ultimate" ability that requires the prior defeat of several enemies.
Serious Sam 4 is a 2020 first-person shooter developed by Croatian studio Croteam and published by Devolver Digital. It is part of the Serious Sam series and a prequel to Serious Sam 3: BFE. The game was announced in April 2018, originally as Serious Sam 4: Planet Badass, was released in September 2020 for Microsoft Windows and Stadia, followed by PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S ports in December 2021. A standalone expansion, Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem, was released in January 2022.
Serious Sam: Tormental is a 2022 twin-stick shooter and rogue-lite game developed by Gungrounds and published by Devolver Digital. One or two players traverse procedurally generated levels across several stages set in the mind of Mental, the antagonist of the Serious Sam series. They use two weapons each, of which the primary weapon can be enhanced through "mods" found throughout the game. The unlockable player characters can perform dodge rolls and a unique special ability. Upon the player character's defeat, the player is reset to the start of the game. After completing all stages, the players can use black keys to unlock power-ups from a vault. The stages then loop with increasing difficulty.
