Computer Gaming World: Serious Sam II: What Were They Thinking?

Publisher: 2K Games

Developer: Croteam

Genre: First-person shooter

Release date: Fall 2005

First-person shooters can go one of two ways: They can be ultrarealistic affairs with actual firearms that you can buy at your local sporting goods store, or sci-fi adventures with otherworldly ordnance. Thank goodness for Serious Sam II, a game that, despite its name, doesn’t take itself—or anything else for that matter—very seriously. Any game in which you can play roulette in the jungle, meet a tribe led by an Elvis impersonator, and fly an alien flying-saucer taxicab is definitely not what you’d call ordinary. So, while looking at some key bits of the game, we felt inclined to ask Admir Elezovic, Serious Sam II developer Croteam’s lead artist, for his thoughts on just what was running through the developers’ heads as they designed the ass-kicking sequel to the underdog shooter of 2001.

The Arsenal

“Seeing another nameless hero with a Kalashnikov in his hands doesn’t exactly make our spines tingle.”

The Klodovik Bird

Birds always seem to have the best aim—at least that’s what Darren found out in the park last weekend. But what happens when you attach a bomb to a bird’s leg and let it go? You watch it find the nearest enemy, and then it’s “bombs away!” If there’s nothing nearby, it returns and drops its—ahem—payload on you.

Admir Elezovic: The idea for the Klodovik bird came directly from Mental [Serious Sam’s main enemy] himself. He called us demanding to add his pet into the game or else.… What could we do?

The Cannon

Take a big ol’ cannon, light the fuse, and let ’er rip. This area-effect weapon is a little like a grenade launcher, but it also packs a ballistic punch. Just the idea of carting this thing around in your hands seems a little over-the-top and cartoony: perfect for the juvenile delinquents running CGW.

Admir Elezovic: Davor Tomicic (our game designer) brought a real pirate cannon from his “things I like to play with” collection to our office. It instantly became our favorite toy, so naturally it ended up in the game.

The Sirian Bomb of Death™

Honestly, there’s nothing that says “have a nice day” like a smiley-faced smart bomb.

Admir Elezovic: The Sirian Bomb of Death™ is an berultimate weapon of mass destruction that should only be used in extreme circumstances, as it has side effects such as giving the player double vision and brain damage. :)

The Enemies

“We start with a normal character and add impossible things until it becomes weird enough to go into the game.”

Kamikaze

The kamikaze is the most memorable enemy from the original Serious Sam. There’s just something about a guy with no head who’s running and screaming at you. We’re happy to see that he’s back and as hotheaded as ever.

Admir Elezovic: Kamikaze in the first Serious Sam was based on our CEO’s [Roman Ribaric] personality. We couldn't re-create his lovely face, so we took it out. Adding two bombs in the character’s hands was just a bonus. With Sam II, we’ve taken it one step further, and now the kamikaze’s entire head is a giant bomb. Strangely, it looks even more like Roman than it did before.

Bull Soldier

When we saw this guy, we had flashbacks to Doom II. As cool as he looks, though, he’s probably the most “normal” of the enemies that you’ll encounter in Serious Sam II.

Admir Elezovic: No comment.

Zombie Stockbrokers

Take someone relatively normal—let’s say a stockbroker, for example—and have him become a shambling, brain-eating member of the undead. Then, of course, arm him with a shotgun.

Admir Elezovic: What’s so unusual about that?

The Vehicles

“Vehicles are brand new with Sam II. Besides being recognizable, we wanted them to be fun to play with.”

The Serious Surfboard™

Forget the Silver Surfer and Patrick Swayze’s poignant performance in Point Break, because with this board, Sam can shred the skyways and waves of enemies at the same time.

Admir Elezovic: The original idea was to have a flying carpet, but that wasn’t working. Taking inspiration from one of our lead coders being a keen surfer, the Serious Surfboard™ was born.

The Dinosaur

In what has to be the most messed-up and inspired mode of transportation we’ve seen, you get to ride a dinosaur like you’re a prehistoric cowboy. Yee-haw!!!

Admir Elezovic: The question should be, “Who hasn’t wanted to ride on the back of a T-Rex?”

Rollerball

Upon hearing about a ball we could board, we thought back to the glory days of American Gladiators. Hawk, Turbo, Ice—where are you now?

Admir Elezovic: Rollerball started out as an enemy, but we decided to make it a vehicle. It’s cool and very funny, as it makes the player look like a badass hamster.

WPUBLISHER: 2K GAMES DEVELOPER: CROTEAM GENRE: FIRST-PERSON SHOOTER RELEASE DATE: FALL 2005