Serious Sam: Double D

Serious Sam is seriously awesome. While Duke Nukem has been stealing the limelight for ages, the underground idol has been showing off his brawn by depleting the world of billions, yes billions, of enemies. The man is like a classic 80s action hero: rugged, witty and an all-round macho among men. His newest entry, Serious Sam Double D, takes the shooter back to a 2D platformer, but doesn’t lose its hectic edge.

Welcome to the world of Serious Sam Double D - the best trailer you'll ever see.

From the very first second of the game, Sam’s driving metal riffs come blasting through the screen, because if it isn’t loud and flashy, then it’s not worth paying attention for. A campaign takes our dim-witted friend through a set of hand drawn stages, animated in flash style. Amongst the locales are ancient, fire-spewing Pompeii and the cyber-Jurassic era, to give an idea of the ballsy theme throughout the game. As Sam hops on from platform to platform, he is met with wave after waves of over the top enemies, such as headless women with big ‘bombs’ or flying, amputated chimps with jetpacks and rocket launchers. And did we mention the Metal? If not, there’s an explicit amount of Metal; which doesn’t mean the game can’t sometimes switch to more atmospheric vibes, such as in the ancient Egypt level.

Along the way, our friend will be assisted by some green chick, who’ll attempt to be a voice of reason as our John Wayne here tries to kill everything in sight. Oh, there’s also a plot, with a somewhat strange antagonist, but in case it wasn’t clear already this game is peculiar indeed. But its cleverness isn’t only used for witty conversational references; there are also a few very simple, yet entertaining puzzle elements. But whether it be the platforming, the plot or the game space in general, one thing is certain: This game is a lot more clever than it will be credited for due to its extended use of gore, explosions and mature themes.

This is by far some of the least crazy stuff you'll encounter in Serious Sam Double D.

But Serious Sam Double D wouldn’t be extreme enough with just crude subject matter if it weren’t for the guns and stuff. And on that part Double D, the name so awesome it bears repeating, delivers in full and literally stacks upon that as well. Introducing the Gunstacker element, any gun found can be stacked on top of another, with up to 6 guns in total. With a sufficient selection of slaughter gear, blasting a full stack takes the explosiveness and fun factor of this game to new heights. Add in a ton of humor, hilarious boss fights and a myriad of secret areas and challenges to unlock and this game is in the ring to wrestle the championship belt off of Contra or other classics.

Even though the controls are tricky at first, once accustomed, destruction will be an extension of oneself.  With a simple set of controls and an additional deployable launch pad for extra height, it doesn’t require much to step into the game, but ruling it will be tough to master. The only real gripe is that the game is a bit short, with just 4 hours on the clock. But it is oh so sweet and couldn’t be packed more with adrenaline if it tried, which more than makes up for the minor issue at hand. To aid this replay value, challenges, secrets and golden guns can be found, though replaying a set just for kicks is certainly not without merit.

This Serious Sam villain has his priorities straight. Scott Baio forever.

Serious Sam Double D is a hilarious, witty, extreme, rocking experience that brings the glory of 2D platform shooters to the forefront. It does nothing wrong and adds new elements to an already explosively fun gameplay scheme. In short, this game is like a good Michael Bay movie with added nudity. It’s a true ode to classic machismo and a must for any platform enthusiast. It will be overlooked, but Serious Sam Double D deserves to be remembered coming award season. But like any underrated action hero, our friend Sam will just have to continue in anonymity. Don’t worry; we love you Sam!

Daav Valentaten, NoobFeed. (@Daavpuke)