tested. However, Serious Editor 2 allows for levels to be played and tested within the editor without requiring compilation. While playing the level within the editor, the level designer can directly switch to editing mode, make the desired modifications, and then continue playing, greatly simplifying the final stages of level editing. Reception Unlike its predecessors, Serious Sam: The First Encounter and Serious Sam: The Second Encounter, the first of which was awarded GameSpot PC Game of the Year in 2001, Serious Sam 2 received less praising reviews. The game's average review is a 75% according to GameRankings. Its highest mark by mainstream media was a 4.5/5.0 from Computer Gaming World, though most reviews were in the 70% or 80% range. Other notable reviews include GamePro rating it 4/5 and GameSpy giving it a 3.5/5 (Good). IGN awarded Serious Sam 2 an 8.2/10, summing up the sentiments of many of other publications' reviews: One of the main criticisms of the game was that it was a lot less "serious" and a lot more "cartoony" than The First Encounter and The Second Encounter. An over-emphasis on reflective surfaces and oddly out of place pixel shading were perceived as being more about showing off the capabilities of the engine than about defining the atmosphere of the game. Lighter colors and a more upbeat soundtrack made the game feel less grounded in reality, contrary to the realistic Egyptian tombs and Mayan pyramids of the earlier games, and players complained that while the weapons of the previous games seemed to be massive and powerful, those in Serious Sam 2'' were less so. References External links 2005 video games 2K games Devolver Digital games First-person shooters Indie video games Multiplayer and single-player video games Serious Sam Video game sequels Video games developed in Croatia Video games set on fictional planets Windows games Xbox games