Serious Sam 3: BFE

Croteam CEO Roman Ribaric shares more intel on the latest entry in the balls-to-the-wall shooter series.

Details have been scarce on Serious Sam 3 but IGN got Ribaric to open up about some of the new features in the PC game. Here are some of his choice quotes:

On Story:
"Sam entering the Timelock you see in the original games. This time around, the story is much more integrated into the game – i.e the progression across levels, equipment and enemies is more tied to story and character interactions. But we took special care to make sure the story and cut-scenes don't get in your way when playing. Especially when re-playing the game for 100th time. Fun adrenaline-filled action gameplay and freedom in playing are our primary goals. Fear not – we will not allow Sam to become a FMV-based rail shooter."

On Setting:
"As we've been hinting earlier, you'll fight both in city environments, as well as on historical Egyptian sites, but also in some other areas like villages, desert, underground tombs, and players will also visit some environments that are totally different than all seen before."

On Combat:
"We've really let this idea of melee combat spread out a bit this time. Besides using just the hammer or bare hands and feet, there are various specific moves that can be done depending on the current weapon, the targeted enemy and some other factors. Then there is the Mutilator... There are now more variations on how to finish out a particular type of Mental's minions than ever before."

On The Game Engine:
"The upgraded engine allows us to create levels that are as huge as those in the previous games, but at the same time much more detailed. New AI and navigation code makes enemies able to get around more complex environments, and interact with the environment much better. The new rendering system allows us to get much closer to visual goals of the original Serious Sam:The First Encounter – to show gory fights with scary monsters in beautifully realistically rendered environments."

To learn more about the game, including details on vehicular sequences, destructible environments, new enemies, 16-player co-op, and competitive multiplayer, head to IGN.