OUTLAWS 9.99repeating^32
09-13-2003, 12:46 PM
Hey guys,
Well, since you guys welcomed me to this board so nicely, I think I'm going to give away some of my tips, which you may or may not already know, or that you know but do not really think about. So enjoy!
General Gameplay Tips
1. Time is precious!- The most important aspect of Serious Sam, by far, is time. For every second that one wastes, either hunting down a hidden power-up, or searching for that elusive cannon, is a second that the enemy is out killing. And that is a sacrifice that one cannot afford to make. So, as a general rule, always stick to the basics, if you intention is to win the game. Granted, it is tempting to go after secrets in the game, to add variety and spice to your gameplay experience if nothing else, but you will be much happier in the long run when you actually win.
2. The sneaky one- Nobody likes someone who is sneaky in life. But in Serious Sam, if you're a sneaky player, other players will not like you not only because your being sneaky, but because YOU'RE WINNING. And that's the bottom line. Being sneaky can be as simple as staying away from a mass firefight and shooting at the hoard on the perimeter, or running along the walls in open areas to blend in and stay camoflauged. Or, deciding to use the minigun instead of the lasergun for a long range firefight. The whole point is do not be obvious. Because obvious players get killed.
3a. Huh? What about Jaws?- Your character in Serious Sam is like a Great White Shark. If he stays in one spot for too long, he will eventually lose "oxygen" and it is only a matter of time before he will be fragged(sharks have to keep moving to have oxygen pass over their gills, even when they sleep they move). No sniper in Serious Sam, in a high level game, is going to make a dent on the scorecard. And, it's really obvious when a barrage of bullets have come from the SAME location for a while.
3b. I already took math..- A successful player never runs in a linear motion for longer than 3 seconds. When you are moving, always make sure you are jumping, and every few seconds make sure you turn around and check your back! One cannot hear footsteps in Serious Sam, therefore it is absolutely crucial to make every attempt to know if there are players around you. And again, running in a linear motion gives the enemy a clear understanding of where you are going to be next, and they can line up the shot to make the kill.
4. Pick off the weak- If you see someone with "red crosshairs", go after them! Don't even worry about the surrounding players- a player in the red zone usually only needs one more hit to go down. So take them down! Of course, in the fast paced game of Serious Sam, one does not usually have time to make the distinction between a player who has low health and a player who has higher health, but this does occur in rare instances.
5. Anticipate- Always anticipate what your enemy will do next. Will he run to the left, will he go after that +25 health, will he decide to switch to the knife..etc. Predicting the future greatly increases your chance of survival. Similarly, always act as if there if someone waiting for you down the corridor in indoor areas. I personally do not recommend throwing grendades down corridors or shooting rockets up elevators, because of the position give away, but some players do use it and swear by it. I, instead, recommend to "strafe jump" quickly with a shotgun preferably, when making a turn in a corridor. This usually catches the enemy by surprise and gives you just enough reaction time to take him/her out.
6. No courage- Serious Sam players often make the mistake of going after a player who either has you outgunned or is "green crosshaired" when you have low health. The chances of survival agaisnt a player who is equal to or exceeds your skill level is very slim. The best advice in this situation is to RUN AWAY. Switch to your knife and get the hell out of there. If you don't, all you are doing is racking up another frag for your opponent.
Weapons
Rating between 1-10
1. The Knife- Rating 9 - Arguably the best weapon in the game, and when one considers the fact that one always has it, that should not come to much of a surprise. The knife is crucial because it enables the player to run faster and jump higher. Not just by a little but, but by a substantial amount. Also, the "backstab"(instant kill) aspect of the knife is a very interesting and effective means of killing an opponent who does not watch his back. Although you can reach hidden areas with the knife that would not be reachable otherwise, I do not reccommend using this feature, as explained in General Gameplay Tips #1.
2. The Chainsaw- Rating 2- The chainsaw is, in all in all, not very useful. You are restricted to your melee range, but you do not have the extra speed that one has with the knife. Also, there is no "backstab" instant kill feature with the chainsaw. That said, one can also have a very fun time playing with chainsaws only with friends.
3. The Pistol- Rating 4- Perhaps the most underrated weapon in the game. Obviously, the double pistol increases the rate of fire by 2x, so it is desireable to have two if possible. The interesting aspect of it is, that you have it all the time, and it is useful for finishing off "red crosshaired" players in a medium to long firing range. Obviously, one should not use the weapon if one has another gun, but when you first spawn, it can be a help in certain situations.
4. The Single Barrel Shotgun- Rating 8- The single barrel shotgun is a very useful weapon. It allows for a quick rate of fire and can be devasting to a mass of players. See "Double Barrel Shotgun" for more information on how to use it.
5. The Double Barrel Shotgun- Rating 10- The double barrel shotgun has been shown, time and time again, to be the weapon of choice for succesful players. The weapon should not be used in long range firing, however. The reason for this is the simple fact that one gives away his position by hitting a target with the shotgun in long range, and the actual damage done to the target is very minimal. It packs twice the punch as the single barrel, but does take twice as long to reload. So, as a general tactic, try to get as close as possible to the target when using the shotgun, and THEN fire. Not the other way around. A very useful technique is to combine jumping around and/or over the target and hitting them with a full double barrel shotgun blast. The affect produced is nothing short of amazing.
6. The Tommy Gun- Rating 3- The Tommy Gun is a show gun, period. I never recommend that one use the tommy gun. It requires a lock on the target for much too long of a time. In that time period, the target has either run away or has taken you out already. Avoid the temptation of using this gun at all costs.
7. The Minigun- Rating 7- The minigun only has merit in a long range situation. It is the weapon of choice for long range outdoor areas, but for indoor areas and in close-medium range firefights, it is very unproductive. The reason is, like the tommy gun, it requires a longer lock on the target than normal, and when a target is close, this becomes very difficult. The weapon does not have too bad of a position give away, and unless the target also has a suitable long range weapon, this is not usually a problem anyway.
8. The Flamethrower -Rating 3- The flamethrower is nonsense. It was useful in the campaign to take out the little frogs, but that was about it. Spraying the hot napalm across the battlefield will only give away your position, and not give you any kills. Again, avoid the temptation of using this weapon at all costs, unless faced in a close range situation where it is your only weapon and knifing would not be suitable.
9. The Rocket Launcher- Rating 5- The Rocket Launcher can be useful, however, in most indoor environments, there is simply too much risk involved. In a firefight, often times it is very easy to kill yourself, which is the absolute worst thing that you can do in Serious Sam. One must almost remain in a single position in a tight indoor environment to avoid suicide. In long ranges, the rocket itself is much too slow, and the "grey trail" from the rocket is a dead give away on your position. If you do use it, make sure that you fire at the ground, and never in a horizontal way like a standard gun. This will greatly increase your chances of fragging.
10. The Grenade Launcher- Rating 7- The Grenade Launcher is useful in tight indoor areas. The unique advantage here is the fact that one can bounce the grenades around corners and poles, which can frag an opponent who was either running away or waiting for you around the corner. Another interesting aspect is its high rate of fire, although the range of the weapon is very much reduced when one does this. This does have merit in a situation where a hoard of players are having a fire fight, and you are dropping in a barrage of grenades from an above position. The weapon also does not give away position as easily as other weapons, which is without question an advantage.
11. The Lasergun- Rating 6- The lasergun is a useful weapon, but it is unfortunately a very weak weapon. The "location give away" cost to benifit ratio is too high for this weapon to be successfully regularly employed. It is my weapon of choice, however, in Red Station. Combined with the Serious Damage Powerup, one can really rack up kills in Red Station in a very short amount of time with this weapon. This is the only weapon which I can really only recommend for a specific level.
12. The Sniper Rifle - Rating 4- The sniper rifle is also a fool's purchase. One may be lured by the temptation of a "one shot kill", but how many times, in any computer game, or in life for that matter, does this approach actually work? The fact of the matter is, unless one has very good aim, your line of vision will be decreased for a very long time, and that spells disastor. It is very, very difficult to run and snipe with this weapon, thus making it only useful for standing in one spot type of shots. And I have already given my position on players who try this. Also, when one fires the sniper rifle, the entire arena can hear the shot. And that is, without question, a very undesirable feature to this weapon.
13. The Cannon- Rating 6- Some players may be surprised to see such a low rating for the "king of weapons". But, this weapon has major drawbacks, although it is essentially a one shot kill. First, it has a very slow rate of fire. If an enemy dodges one of your cannon shots, you are a sitting duck. If you try to shoot an enemy in an indoor environment, many times the weapon will bounce off of a wall, corner, or column, and not hit your target. Also, whenever you fire, unless your opponent is blind, everyone around you will know that you are firing. So, if you are going to use this weapon, and insist on using it, make sure you line up your shot correctly and ahead of time, or else you will just end up dead.
Final Thoughts
There are other aspects of Serious Sam that one simply has to learn by experience. This is by no means anywhere close to all you have to know to be a very successful Serious Sam player. But I hope that you learned something from my experiences, and I hope that you reconsider at least one aspect of your strategy, to make you better. Again, this is strickly my opinion, and is not the only way to win. But these tips sure work for me, and if you give them a try, I bet that they'll work for you.
Well, since you guys welcomed me to this board so nicely, I think I'm going to give away some of my tips, which you may or may not already know, or that you know but do not really think about. So enjoy!
General Gameplay Tips
1. Time is precious!- The most important aspect of Serious Sam, by far, is time. For every second that one wastes, either hunting down a hidden power-up, or searching for that elusive cannon, is a second that the enemy is out killing. And that is a sacrifice that one cannot afford to make. So, as a general rule, always stick to the basics, if you intention is to win the game. Granted, it is tempting to go after secrets in the game, to add variety and spice to your gameplay experience if nothing else, but you will be much happier in the long run when you actually win.
2. The sneaky one- Nobody likes someone who is sneaky in life. But in Serious Sam, if you're a sneaky player, other players will not like you not only because your being sneaky, but because YOU'RE WINNING. And that's the bottom line. Being sneaky can be as simple as staying away from a mass firefight and shooting at the hoard on the perimeter, or running along the walls in open areas to blend in and stay camoflauged. Or, deciding to use the minigun instead of the lasergun for a long range firefight. The whole point is do not be obvious. Because obvious players get killed.
3a. Huh? What about Jaws?- Your character in Serious Sam is like a Great White Shark. If he stays in one spot for too long, he will eventually lose "oxygen" and it is only a matter of time before he will be fragged(sharks have to keep moving to have oxygen pass over their gills, even when they sleep they move). No sniper in Serious Sam, in a high level game, is going to make a dent on the scorecard. And, it's really obvious when a barrage of bullets have come from the SAME location for a while.
3b. I already took math..- A successful player never runs in a linear motion for longer than 3 seconds. When you are moving, always make sure you are jumping, and every few seconds make sure you turn around and check your back! One cannot hear footsteps in Serious Sam, therefore it is absolutely crucial to make every attempt to know if there are players around you. And again, running in a linear motion gives the enemy a clear understanding of where you are going to be next, and they can line up the shot to make the kill.
4. Pick off the weak- If you see someone with "red crosshairs", go after them! Don't even worry about the surrounding players- a player in the red zone usually only needs one more hit to go down. So take them down! Of course, in the fast paced game of Serious Sam, one does not usually have time to make the distinction between a player who has low health and a player who has higher health, but this does occur in rare instances.
5. Anticipate- Always anticipate what your enemy will do next. Will he run to the left, will he go after that +25 health, will he decide to switch to the knife..etc. Predicting the future greatly increases your chance of survival. Similarly, always act as if there if someone waiting for you down the corridor in indoor areas. I personally do not recommend throwing grendades down corridors or shooting rockets up elevators, because of the position give away, but some players do use it and swear by it. I, instead, recommend to "strafe jump" quickly with a shotgun preferably, when making a turn in a corridor. This usually catches the enemy by surprise and gives you just enough reaction time to take him/her out.
6. No courage- Serious Sam players often make the mistake of going after a player who either has you outgunned or is "green crosshaired" when you have low health. The chances of survival agaisnt a player who is equal to or exceeds your skill level is very slim. The best advice in this situation is to RUN AWAY. Switch to your knife and get the hell out of there. If you don't, all you are doing is racking up another frag for your opponent.
Weapons
Rating between 1-10
1. The Knife- Rating 9 - Arguably the best weapon in the game, and when one considers the fact that one always has it, that should not come to much of a surprise. The knife is crucial because it enables the player to run faster and jump higher. Not just by a little but, but by a substantial amount. Also, the "backstab"(instant kill) aspect of the knife is a very interesting and effective means of killing an opponent who does not watch his back. Although you can reach hidden areas with the knife that would not be reachable otherwise, I do not reccommend using this feature, as explained in General Gameplay Tips #1.
2. The Chainsaw- Rating 2- The chainsaw is, in all in all, not very useful. You are restricted to your melee range, but you do not have the extra speed that one has with the knife. Also, there is no "backstab" instant kill feature with the chainsaw. That said, one can also have a very fun time playing with chainsaws only with friends.
3. The Pistol- Rating 4- Perhaps the most underrated weapon in the game. Obviously, the double pistol increases the rate of fire by 2x, so it is desireable to have two if possible. The interesting aspect of it is, that you have it all the time, and it is useful for finishing off "red crosshaired" players in a medium to long firing range. Obviously, one should not use the weapon if one has another gun, but when you first spawn, it can be a help in certain situations.
4. The Single Barrel Shotgun- Rating 8- The single barrel shotgun is a very useful weapon. It allows for a quick rate of fire and can be devasting to a mass of players. See "Double Barrel Shotgun" for more information on how to use it.
5. The Double Barrel Shotgun- Rating 10- The double barrel shotgun has been shown, time and time again, to be the weapon of choice for succesful players. The weapon should not be used in long range firing, however. The reason for this is the simple fact that one gives away his position by hitting a target with the shotgun in long range, and the actual damage done to the target is very minimal. It packs twice the punch as the single barrel, but does take twice as long to reload. So, as a general tactic, try to get as close as possible to the target when using the shotgun, and THEN fire. Not the other way around. A very useful technique is to combine jumping around and/or over the target and hitting them with a full double barrel shotgun blast. The affect produced is nothing short of amazing.
6. The Tommy Gun- Rating 3- The Tommy Gun is a show gun, period. I never recommend that one use the tommy gun. It requires a lock on the target for much too long of a time. In that time period, the target has either run away or has taken you out already. Avoid the temptation of using this gun at all costs.
7. The Minigun- Rating 7- The minigun only has merit in a long range situation. It is the weapon of choice for long range outdoor areas, but for indoor areas and in close-medium range firefights, it is very unproductive. The reason is, like the tommy gun, it requires a longer lock on the target than normal, and when a target is close, this becomes very difficult. The weapon does not have too bad of a position give away, and unless the target also has a suitable long range weapon, this is not usually a problem anyway.
8. The Flamethrower -Rating 3- The flamethrower is nonsense. It was useful in the campaign to take out the little frogs, but that was about it. Spraying the hot napalm across the battlefield will only give away your position, and not give you any kills. Again, avoid the temptation of using this weapon at all costs, unless faced in a close range situation where it is your only weapon and knifing would not be suitable.
9. The Rocket Launcher- Rating 5- The Rocket Launcher can be useful, however, in most indoor environments, there is simply too much risk involved. In a firefight, often times it is very easy to kill yourself, which is the absolute worst thing that you can do in Serious Sam. One must almost remain in a single position in a tight indoor environment to avoid suicide. In long ranges, the rocket itself is much too slow, and the "grey trail" from the rocket is a dead give away on your position. If you do use it, make sure that you fire at the ground, and never in a horizontal way like a standard gun. This will greatly increase your chances of fragging.
10. The Grenade Launcher- Rating 7- The Grenade Launcher is useful in tight indoor areas. The unique advantage here is the fact that one can bounce the grenades around corners and poles, which can frag an opponent who was either running away or waiting for you around the corner. Another interesting aspect is its high rate of fire, although the range of the weapon is very much reduced when one does this. This does have merit in a situation where a hoard of players are having a fire fight, and you are dropping in a barrage of grenades from an above position. The weapon also does not give away position as easily as other weapons, which is without question an advantage.
11. The Lasergun- Rating 6- The lasergun is a useful weapon, but it is unfortunately a very weak weapon. The "location give away" cost to benifit ratio is too high for this weapon to be successfully regularly employed. It is my weapon of choice, however, in Red Station. Combined with the Serious Damage Powerup, one can really rack up kills in Red Station in a very short amount of time with this weapon. This is the only weapon which I can really only recommend for a specific level.
12. The Sniper Rifle - Rating 4- The sniper rifle is also a fool's purchase. One may be lured by the temptation of a "one shot kill", but how many times, in any computer game, or in life for that matter, does this approach actually work? The fact of the matter is, unless one has very good aim, your line of vision will be decreased for a very long time, and that spells disastor. It is very, very difficult to run and snipe with this weapon, thus making it only useful for standing in one spot type of shots. And I have already given my position on players who try this. Also, when one fires the sniper rifle, the entire arena can hear the shot. And that is, without question, a very undesirable feature to this weapon.
13. The Cannon- Rating 6- Some players may be surprised to see such a low rating for the "king of weapons". But, this weapon has major drawbacks, although it is essentially a one shot kill. First, it has a very slow rate of fire. If an enemy dodges one of your cannon shots, you are a sitting duck. If you try to shoot an enemy in an indoor environment, many times the weapon will bounce off of a wall, corner, or column, and not hit your target. Also, whenever you fire, unless your opponent is blind, everyone around you will know that you are firing. So, if you are going to use this weapon, and insist on using it, make sure you line up your shot correctly and ahead of time, or else you will just end up dead.
Final Thoughts
There are other aspects of Serious Sam that one simply has to learn by experience. This is by no means anywhere close to all you have to know to be a very successful Serious Sam player. But I hope that you learned something from my experiences, and I hope that you reconsider at least one aspect of your strategy, to make you better. Again, this is strickly my opinion, and is not the only way to win. But these tips sure work for me, and if you give them a try, I bet that they'll work for you.