For Serious: The Serious Sam Indie Series
Some congratulations are in order! Indie developer Croteam's Serious Sam series is, in a strictly metaphorical sense, pregnant, and about to give birth to three independently developed spin-off games. Croteam and Serious Sam publisher Devolver Digital today announced that they've given several smaller indie devs (including phenomenal Dutch pairing Vlambeer of Super Crate Box fame) the opportunity to make a game based on Serious Sam, and they'll be released in the run up to Serious Sam 3: BFE. What have you got in store? WELL! Come take a look.
Vlambeer's work can be seen above. It's Serious Sam: The Random Encounter, and it... well, you can probably see what they're doing. Serious Sam: The RPG, basically, which can only end up being amazing. The press release assigns it these words:
Traverse a harsh and dangerous world map as Serious Sam and his team are thrown into rapid-fire battles against towering numbers of enemies on their way to glory against the legions of Mental’s horde. Arm your squad to the teeth with massive ordinance, throw down some special items and take aim at the hordes of charging enemies holding that sweet, sweet loot you crave so badly.
Next up is this:
Serious Sam: Kamikaze Attack! From Be-Rad Entertainment, creators of Lame Castle. Since I hadn't heard of Lame Castle I went ahead and played it, and Kamikaze Attack actually looks suspiciously similar. Very nearly Lame Castle: Serious Sam edition, in fact. Here's the word-
Pledge allegiance to the evil lord Mental, join the ranks of the Headless Kamikaze brigade and destroy the vile Serious Sam. Be-Rad Entertainment’s (Lame Castle) hand drawn auto runner brings the awesome to mobile platforms as you guide your fearless group of Headless Kamikazes across the battlefield, dodging hazards and pitfalls while avoiding oncoming fire from the deplorable Serious Sam.
Ah, well. What's next?
Ah yes! Serious Sam: Double D from Mommy's Best Games, which re-images Serious Sam as a platformer. Once again, this screenshot looked more than a little familiar to me, and it turns out that - yes! - Mommy's Best Games created Xbox Live Indie sensation Weapon of Choice, which is exactly what this reminded me of. So again, Weapon of Choice: Serious Sam edition. Here's the official word:
Featuring killer hand drawn artwork, classic and original enemies, and the innovative weapon stacking system, Serious Sam: Double D is a uniquely exciting chapter in the Serious Sam saga. All that stands between victory and annihilation is a man with a T-shirt and jeans… and a great big pile of guns.
Finally we have a word from publisher devolver digital.
“I’ve never heard of any of these indie clowns,” said Fork Parker, chief financial officer at Devolver Digital, publisher of Serious Sam 3: BFE. “Do any of these jokers make hentai games? I’m telling you guys, that weird tentacle stuff is the future of gaming.”
Thanks, Fork. Devolver Digital? You're my favourite.