In the mid-to-late ‘90’s, the PC gaming market almost seemed like a sort of secret society, offering a consistent level of thrills for quick-learning gamers who knew how to use their PCs for more than just The Oregon Trail. First Person Shooters were all the rage back then, adding fast-paced action, copious violence, and the occasional bits of profanity and nudity that made committed computer players feel truly rewarded.

Eventually, videogame consoles would catch up to the PC market with 3D visuals and “edgier” releases, and it was during the turn of the century that Serious Sam was released, almost as a send-off to the FPS days of yesteryear.

Fast forward to today, where the team behind Sam’s previous adventures brings back their classic for a console and PC re-release. Not content with merely porting the game at a budget price, developer Croteam has given the original game a serious HD makeover, appropriately titled Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter. But does the untouched gameplay still remain fresh in a time of an overabundant FPS market?

Serious Sam HD opens with a rather lengthy prologue detailing what is essentially an alien invasion on Earth. The only hope for victory lies in the titular hero, Sam “Serious” Stone, as he must travel back in time to ancient Egypt, and decimate the alien forces during their first recorded appearance in Earth. One look at Sam’s attire, consisting of little more than a white T-shirt and jeans, should make it obvious enough that the game doesn’t take itself seriously. The story is thankfully kept restricted to the prologue and pre-mission dossiers, while Sam’s deep-voiced one-liners cement the fact that this series is a throwback to earlier first-person classics such as Duke Nukem and Doom.

Adding to the homage is the gameplay, which features a by-the-books control scheme; players can run, jump, strafe and change weapons on the fly just as they can with any other FPS game. You start the game off with a revolver and knife, but quickly update your arsenal with weapons and armor found throughout each level. Most weapons are found in plain sight, while some require the use of secret passages that teleport you to otherwise out of reach locations. Weapons require ammunition, which can be found along with health packs around each area, with extra caches also obtainable through hidden pathways.

And you’re going to need every spare bullet you can find, because what separates Serious Sam from its predecessors is the sheer number of enemies filling the screen at a time. Thanks to an engine that focuses on draw distance, fending off against a dozen foes at once is considered practice; eventually you’ll have to fight off against hundreds of aliens from all sides, from lowly zombie grunts (wielding both guns and chainsaws, no less) to one-eyed ogres to charging bulls, flying harpies, missile-equipped machines and other manner of creatures. The enemy variety is somewhat limited to ten or so types, but when facing off against multiple types at the same time, it becomes a battle of quick wits to remember the ideal pattern and weapon for dispatching each alien foe.

It cannot be emphasized enough how intense the action is in Serious Sam; the frequent, seemingly unstoppable waves of enemies make the main campaign feel more like a survival run than a standard trek across levels. Surviving each wave with just over half the health and some sore trigger fingers means you’re playing the game as intended, and you’ll also be thankful that a Quicksave button has been mapped with the default controls (as well as kicking yourself when you forget to use it; lose all your health and you’re back to the nearest checkpoint, which in a game this intense isn’t nearly frequent enough).

But even though you’re always outmatched, you’re never outgunned. Each new weapon found increases your odds of survival, from a damaging double-barreled shotgun to a rocket launcher, to further destructive guns like a grenade launcher and even a cannon that fires old fashioned, single-killing cannonballs. Be careful not to get too close and personal when using an explosive weapon, however, as Sam can be severely injured from the impact (thus making a certain kamikaze enemy the most memorable in the game; those distant screams that grow ever closer will haunt you for many a night).

It’s unfortunate that the level design isn’t as inventive as the combat. Mostly taking place within an Egyptian motif, the outdoor deserts and interior corridors begin to feel repetitive after just an hour of play. While the areas are always wide enough to fit in as many adversaries as possible, a bit more variety besides “go here and press a switch, head for the exit” would have been nice, even if are barely given a chance to admire the architecture when fending off the frenzy of foes.

For this newest iteration, the visuals have been given a high-def overhaul. While the upgrade doesn’t exactly make the game comparable to present-day FPS titles, the extra gloss and lighting effects certainly suffice as a tummy tuck makeover. What’s truly impressive is how the framerate stays consistent even with the hundreds of explosions, particle beams, and severed limbs flying across the screen. One infamous moment later on has you facing off against literally hundreds of skeletal creatures at once, a scenario that’s bound to be burned into your memory thanks to its frustrating challenge. If your blood thirst hasn’t been quenched once the campaign hasn’t been finished, seek help…immediately. After that, feel free to try the online co-op and deathmatch multiplayer modes, which while not exactly groundbreaking does bring some extra thrills, especially when 16 players band together for the explosive, out of this world finale.

Serious Sam is a game that’s fully aware of where it stands; it isn’t an immersive classic like Half Life or a technological marvel like Crysis, but delivers a once-forgotten primal desire among PC and console gamers to mindlessly slaughter as many opponents as they so choose. As a result, The First Encounter will almost certainly not be the last for anyone who gives this serious shoot-‘em-up a shot.

Score: 7.5/10