Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem is the follow-up standalone expansion to Serious Sam 4 that I reviewed a few weeks ago on the PS5. Note the use of the words “standalone” and “expansion”, which basically means this is DLC that doesn’t require the core game to play and is considered so “large” that they can charge $20 instead of the usual $5-10…at least until there is a half-off sale. Personally, I was excited to play this on the PC after having already played the original game on PS5. I had always assumed a powerful PC could muscle its way through some of the issues the game had, even on a next-gen console, but I had no idea the disappointment that was waiting.
Full disclosure…I did not complete this game, nor did I even get that far into it. I played about two hours and don’t think I even completed the first chapter before I rage-quit and uninstalled the game. So, if there is a reasonably fun game beyond the first level I’ll never know, and I blame the designers 100% for creating one of the worst opening levels of any FPS game I’ve played…maybe ever. The sheer imbalance of weapons, monsters, and pick-ups is ridiculous, combined with level design that totally breaks away from the openness of past games that encouraged lots of backpedaling and continuous fire to defeat wave after wave of enemies. This might look like a Serious Sam game, but it sure doesn’t feel like it.
It seems Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem is trying to change up the core gameplay by creating more complex levels and stationary enemies that don’t come after you but would rather stand still and shoot or lob fire balls from a distance. Admittedly, some enemies will still come at you including this new dog-frog hybrid that is nearly impossible to hit. Backpedaling is much harder now since the levels are more complex and it’s easier to get hung up on the architecture; especially when you are running blind. Weird scripting issues prohibit monsters from entering the water, so you can simply escape into the surf and kill from relative safety as long as you don’t drown. The first level was a mix of a lengthy beach section followed by a short hike up to a plateau where a major battle triggered, as I made my way to a communication tower.
Once I entered the factory complex the game started going downhill fast. The sheer number of enemies coming at me was so disproportional to the weapons and ammo I was being given I was often backpedaling completely out of the factory with only a pistol to defend myself. Thankfully, enemies are finite, so I was eventually able to progress further into the facility, but the maze-like alleys between buildings, narrow corridors, bridges, and confining room-sized arenas had me giving up about the time I was put into a small area with about 50 Kleer and a shotgun. After 30 minutes of trying to clear this room, I was scrambling for the uninstall button. I simply didn’t care anymore. I had pretty much gotten my fill of Sam in his previous game and couldn’t imagine this expansion offering me anything worth suffering through this frustration.
As far as positive elements, the graphics and sound are still right up there with the previous game. The new Siberian landscapes and environments offer a chilling change from the levels of the original game. This is what Metro would be like if it were an arcade game. The game runs flawlessly at 4K with max details on my RTX3090 card, and the audio mix is pure insanity mixed up with Sam’s amusing banter. Having played the previous game on PS5, I did enjoy being able to play with a mouse and keyboard. I did try a gamepad just to be thorough, and I will say Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem is impossible to play with a gamepad. There is a total lack of precision and cursor speed required to play the game effectively – I can’t even imagine this on the PS5 unless they retool the controls or add crazy aim-assist. But ultimately, even the speed and accuracy of the mouse wasn’t enough to overcome the poor level design combined with a total imbalance of difficulty – I was playing on Normal difficulty by the way. The fact the most enemies are now keeping their distance, even using your pistol feels like a sniper shot without a scope.
Again, please take my opinion with a grain of salt. I’ve never been a big fan of Serious Sam or any of the countless other arcade shooters. I prefer a slower and more tactical military experience, but I did have fun with Serious Sam 4, so I thought I’d give this expansion a try. It’s almost like this game was designed to be played the moment you finish Serious Sam 4, while you are at the heat of reflexes and intensity, but then why make it a standalone game? Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem is like diving into the deep end of the pool without having ever seen water. I’m sure there are thousands of gamers that will enjoy Sam’s latest excursion, but this Russian adventure just isn’t for me.
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