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"Wounded countless times, but never defeated, Serious Sam becomes a living symbol of the Earth's resistance against the advancing evil."
Serious Sam: The First Encounter opening prologue[src]
 

Samuel Herbert[1] Stone, better known as Serious Sam or just Sam Stone, is the titular protagonist of the Serious Sam series.

Sam is a member of the Earth Defense Force, a global military organization that fought against Mental's alien army during the Mental War. He worked himself up in the ranks until he was promoted to Captain. His skills, bravery and commitment to the cause have led to him becoming a well-known member of the EDF, a member of General Brand's personal Alien Artifact Acquisition team, and a legendary hero vowing to fight for all of mankind.

After Sam inadvertently awoke Tah-Um (colloquially referred to as "Mental" by humanity), an extremely powerful entity feared throughout the universe, Sam fought for his planet, as well as other homeworlds that thwarted Mental's invasion attempts. After the end of the Mental War on Earth, was over, which saw the destruction of the planet and the annihilation of humanity, Sam swore revenge against Mental, and would avenge his fallen comrades and the rest of mankind by traveling back in time to ancient Egypt, departing to Sirius and assassinating Mental and spare humanity from extinction. So far, the outcome of this mission has yet to be determined.

Biography[]

Sam was born and raised in Northport in the United States sometime during the late 21st century (most likely around the 2080s or 2090s).[2] At some point in his life, Stone attended a high school.

In the year 2104, Sam was made Captain of the exploratory vessel, Surveyor. Stone was tasked by an oil corporation with searching for suitable locations to begin interstellar operations in the constellation of Canis Major, in the system of Sirius.[3] The ship transports Sam and the crew to their destination, where they come across a suspicious asteroid field surrounding the system, which was not mentioned in human records. This ominous asteroid field activates a security system and awakens Mental from dormancy several thousand years earlier than usual. This aggravtas Mental, and he begins sending his forces to annihilate humanity. This marks the beginning of the 10-year long and brutal "Mental War".[3]

Destined to fix what perhaps was the biggest mistake humanity had ever made, Stone enlists in the Earth Defense Force, and eventually works his way up through the ranks. He soon becomes perhaps the best and well-known soldier in the EDF. During the early days of the war, Sam commandeered the Battlecruiser Saratoga, which he used to travel to many planets throughout the galaxy to convince the native species to join in the fight against Mental.[4]

In the year 2112, Stone was hand-picked by EDF General Howard Brand to become a member of his Alien Artifact Acquisition team. Sam soon joined up with his pals: the flamboyant and reliable Hellfire, the quiet but strong-willed Jones, the eccentric Rodriguez, the paranoid conspiracy theorist Carter, and recruit Kenny on an important mission to find the Ark of the Covenant and the Holy Grail. It is believed that these two important artifacts will give humanity a fighting chance to win the war against Mental.[5]

In the year 2113, a year after the Tunguska Offensive, humanity is doomed to the brink of extinction after Mental sent a massive invasion force to Earth. With world leaders running out of options, they turned to their last option; a mysterious ancient artifact called the Time-Lock. They believed this relic from a long forgotten race was a device capable of sending someone back in time.[6] Using this device, world leaders hoped they could use it to change the outcome of the war so that humanity could be given a second chance. Unfortunately, the machine lied dormant, so the EDF had to find a way to turn it on. At some point, Stone is tasked with rescuing professor Hermann Stein in Cairo, who has vital information regarding the Time-Lock. Sam finds Professor Stein's research, uploads it to HQ, and is told of a secret chamber inside the Great Pyramid of Giza. He heads inside, acquires a strange alien artifact called 'the Arrow', and uses it to turn on two powerful plasma generators, Horus Generator and Anubis Generator, in order to power up the Time-Lock.

With the Time-Lock online, the EDF soon come under attack by Mental's forces and were wiped out. Sam entered the Time-Lock just as the Earth is destroyed by the Moon and ending humanity in the current timeline. After entering the Time-Lock, Sam vows to kill Mental personally in order to avenge the losses of his comrades along with the rest of humanity.[7]

Appearances[]

Serious Sam 4[]

Sam Kenny and Mikhail

Sam and Kenny meet up with Father Mikhail.

Sam is escorted by the EDF into Rome as part of a convoy to meet up with Father Mikhail, a priest and expert in archaic texts who they believe will help them locate the Holy Grail. The convoy comes under attack by Octanian Raiders, and Sam's car is hit in the process and separating him from his friends. He and Kenny are forced to tag along on foot to meet up with Father Mikhail. They deal with some of Mental's forces along the way, along with Octanian troops, but they are dealt with and Sam meets up with Father Mikhail.[8]

With Mikhail having joined up with Sam and Kenny, the three make their way to the Piazza della Repubblica, which is where Hellfire will extract them. Some fighting ensues, and they eventually make it to the location. Sam meets up with Jones and Rodriguez, who are happy to see him in one piece. Sam sees a Gnaar charging towards Kenny, so he lends him a shotgun to deal with it. More of Mental's minions arrive to harass Sam and his friends, but they are able to eliminate every single one of them. Suddenly, a massive metal snake erupts from under the ground. Jones gives Hellfire's minigun to Sam to deal with the threat, and he brings it down. Hellfire then arrives to pick Sam and the rest of the team up to return them back to base.

Jones caught by Khnum

Sam sees Jones captured by a Khnum.

Once at base, the team decide on what to do next. Carter suggests using the HAARP weapon to force Mount Vesuvius to erupt so that will it ground all enemy air traffic in the region. The plan is set into motion, and Sam, Rodriguez, Jones, Hellfire and Kenny set out into Pompeii to place 8 beacons that are needed to activate the satellite. The team are successful in planting the beacons, with the exception of Jones, who Quinn tells Sam she is struggling to reach him. Sam heads to the amphitheatre, Jones' last known position, and encounters a Khnum, who tear Jones in half and eat him right in front of Sam. This infuriates Sam, and the two fight. Sam incapacitates the Khnum and cuts open its gut to retrieve the beacon that it swallowed. Sam impales the Khnum's head with the beacon and, with all 8 of them now operational, the mission is complete.[9]

Sam contacts HQ to let them know they haven't yet established a safe perimeter, but Quinn and Brand have problems making out what he is saying. Brand orders one of the soldiers to fire the HAARP, despite the team still being in Pompeii. Brand knows that Sam has to accept the risks that follows with being a soldier. The satellite is activated, and a large seismic wave is sent to Earth, forcing Vesuvius to erupt, causing the ruins of Pompeii to begin filling up with lava and piles of ash.[10][11] Sam is forced to run back to the car as fast as possible before he succumbs to the fumes. He navigates his way through the ruins and assists Kenny, who gets trapped under a statue. Sam helps him up and the two fight more of Mental's forces and also kill a Witch-Bride of Achriman. The pair make it to the car, and Sam is saddened to tell Rodriguez the bad news about Jones. Hellfire floors it and they are able to return back to base.

Enraged over the loss of his comrade, Jones, Sam punches Brand in retailian for making the decision to activate the HAARP too early and before the team could evacuate to safety. Bran orders men to stand down, and will not court martial Sam for assaulting a superior officer, but he's not going to apologize, seeing that as being a leader, he has to make tough choices, even if people hate him for it. Once their argument is over, Quinn informs Sam and Brand that the Octanian raider fleet has been grounded, but HQ have lost contact with Carter and Father Mikhail after they went back into Rome. Quinn suspects that the seismic activity in the region is the culprit, and that Carter and Father Mikhail have hidden somewhere underneath the Colosseum, their last known location. Brand orders Sam to pair up with Rodriguez and go into Rome together to rescue them.[12]

Rodriguez meets Sam

Rodriguez appears underneath the Colosseum.

Sam and Rodriguez head into Rome, and soon end up heavier resistance such as Snipers and Bio-mechanoids. Rodriguez decides that they should split up to cover more ground; he will search the town, while Sam goes into some ruins. Sam explores the ruins and eventually makes it to the Colosseum, where he encounters one of Mental's servants, Lord Achriman, for the first time. Achriman begins to taunt him before spawning in some of his minions to deal with Sam for Achriman's own amusement.[13] Soon, Achriman comments that he is feeling "bored", so he plans to make things more "exciting" for Sam by summoning a a Swamp Hive to dispose of him. Achriman teleports away and now Sam is forced to deal with the beast. He kills it and is about to come up with a one-liner appropriate for the situation, but Rodriguez suddenly appears from a trapdoor below the Colosseum and interrupts the moment, much to Sam's annoyance.

Sam and Rodriguez make their way into the catacombs beneath the Colosseum, and soon find Carter and Father Mikhail. Mikhail tells Sam that they are not actually looking for the Ark of the Covenant, but a sacred text that will help them locate it and the Holy Grail. Mikhail gives him instructions on how to find this text; he must get to the Vatican Library, find the statue of Saint George, and activate a hidden mechanism that will reveal the book.[14] Sam proceeds to the Vatican, but eventually comes across a street that is blocked off by a barrier made from tentacles. An old Italian lady, Nonna, appears and assists Sam. The two fend off some of Mental's forces and she lends him her minigun as thanks. Sam asks her directions to the Vatican, and she tells him where to go and that, once he gets there, he should find the "Popemobile", but Sam has doubts that it might not be his kind of ride.[15]

Sam in the Basilica

Sam forgets what Father Mikhail told him to do to look for the book.

He makes his way through the park and comes across the Popemobile; a 15 meter tall customized mech made especially for the Pope. Sam tries out this new ride, and uses its weapons to destroy the tentacle barriers and hordes of aliens that stand in his way. Sam eventually makes his way to the Vatican, where he encounters the Megalopolyp; the culprit behind the tentacles that have been popping up all over Rome. A tough battle begins, and the Megalopolyp begins attacking Sam by chucking debris at him and attacking his mech with its tentacles. Sam is able to kill the beast and exits the mech. Once he makes it inside St. Peter's Basilica, he struggles to remember what Father Mikhail told him. He finds the statue of Saint George that Mikhail mentioned, but he has no idea what a 'sigil' is. He gives up and decides to plant some C-4 on the statue. He detonates the explosive, which destroys the statue and deals heavy damage to the Basilica's entrance. Despite the damage Sam has caused, he is able to find the book the team was looking for.[16]

With the manuscript now in the Triple-A team's possession, it is revealed from the book that the Ark of the Covenant and the Holy Grail are located in Carcassonne, France, and not in Rome as the EDF previously thought. Sam and the team board a plane to France to retrieve the Holy Grail. General Brand informs the team that their contact, Michelle of the French Resistance, will take them to the castle, which is where the Grail is kept. On their way into France, the team's plane comes under heavy fire by Octanian raiders, so Sam and the rest are forced to jump out via parachute. Sam loses contact with his team as he lands in the French countryside. By morning, he finds himself in the middle of nowhere and is miles away from the nearest settlement. Sam makes his way down a hill and comes across a motorcycle, which he uses to drive to Carcassonne.[17] Along the way, he helps two young women fend off Mental's forces, and a strange hippie called Filibert.

Eventually, after some long traveling, Sam finally makes it to Carcassonne, and meets Kenny there. The two proceed to a park, and some heavy fighting between them and Mental's forces takes place.[18] Sam becomes impressed with Kenny's skills, but he suddenly vanishes out of Sam's view. Sam turns around to see Lord Achriman holding Kenny in his clutches. Sam demands that Achriman let him go, but Achriman refuses and just insults Sam and taunts him once again. Sam demands to leave Kenny out of the sitatuon and just fight him one on one, but Achriman ignores his bluffs and responds by killing Kenny right in front of Sam. Before he can even react, Achriman teleports away, leaving Kenny's lifeless body on the ground. Saddened and enraged, Sam vows to avenge Kenny. Just then, Sayid, a member of the French Resistance, meets up with him. Sayid introduces himself to Sam and the two make their way into a bar, where they finally meet up with Michelle. She offers words of encouragment to her comrades and also introduces Sam to the rest of the resistance. Sam inspires the soldiers to fight, and they make their through the town and towards the castle.[19]

Arriving at the castle, Sam eventually meets up again with Carter and Father Mikhail, they team up again and soon encounter Rodriguez. The men fight their way through the narrow streets and Hellfire is there to greet them. Hellfire informs Sam of some supplies she came across a while back, so the two investigate and go on a "date", which Rodriguez teases them about.[20]

With the team finally back together, they force deeper into the citadel until they reach the basilica, where the Holy Grail is kept within. There, Sam encounters Lord Achriman for the third time. He and his team fight against Achriman, and Sam defeats him after a tough fight. Before Sam finishes him off, he uses Kenny's "one-liner" to avenge his former comrade shortly before he dispatches Achriman. Mikhail is amazed at Sam being able to defeat Achriman, but he warns him about the Grail and begins to have second thoughts about the artifact. He believes that the Grail is unholy and was kept sealed away for a reason. Sam dismisses his theories, and seeing that since they came all this way, they might as well go inside the church to find it.[21]

Brand betraying Sam

Brand betrays Sam and the rest of his team to fulfill his own selfish goals.

Finally inside the church, Mikhail performs a ritual which activates a secret mechanism, and the Ark of the Covenant is revealed. Sam opens the box to find a "stick", which is something that he definitely wasn't expecting. Sam reaches out to grab the Grail, but Brand suddenly appears with some of his men, and warns him not to touch it. Brand reveals his treacherous nature to Sam and his friends, and plans to use the Grail for his own evil purposes.[22] Sam and the team try to stop him, but his newly found powers granted to him by the Grail are no match for them, and Sam is knocked unconscious. Brand disposes of the rest of Sam's friends, while he wants Sam personally to use as bargaining chip for join Mental's ranks.

Awakening after a long tranquilzer trip, Sam finds himself on a train seated next to one of Brand's soldiers. Sam is still too disoriented to do anything, and is sedated once again. He awakens for the second time to realize that he is onboard Brand's transport plane, which is heading for the portal Tunguska. The same soldier who sedated Sam looks to see if Sam is awake, but Sam pretends to still be asleep. Sam uses this moment of surprise to attack the guard and stabs him with the syringe right between his eyes. More of Brand's soldiers are alerted, and open fire on Sam. Brand orders them to keep him alive, and Sam uses this opportunity to steal a parachute and escape from Brand's plane. Brand attempts to talk Sam out of it and that he should give up, seeing that the war is "over", and that he would have a better life as Mental's 'pet' than if he stays on Earth. Sam declines, stating that he's got things to do, but he tells Brand that they will meet again. Brand is annoyed about the outcome, but decides not to bother tracking Sam down.[23]

Sam jumps out of the plane and lands somewhere in the Arctic Ocean near an abandoned oil platform, and several miles away from land. Luckily for Sam, he is not completely stranded, as he can see a boat in the distance, but it detaches from the crane and explodes. He is able to find a second boat on top of the oil platform, so he makes his way there and kills anything that gets in his way. He takes control of the crane, detaches the boat and makes his way inland towards Tunguska. Eventually, he reaches the mainland, but once again he finds himself lost. Suddenly, a portal appears next to him. A future version of Sam pops out, and he lends Sam a hand by providing him with his snowmobile. The future Sam departs, and Sam contacts Quinn, who gives him directions to the portal.[24]

Brand with grail

Brand captures Sam and uses him to bargain with Ugh-Zan VI, the guardian of the portal.

Sam eventually comes to an EDF outpost several miles away from the portal. A Khnum appears and is about to eat Dmitry, but Sam is able to save him by decapitating the Khnum with the snowmobile's blades. Sam saves Dmitry's life, and in that moment he attempts to comfort him with a joke, but Dmitry does not take this seriously, much to Sam's disappointment. He asks the soldier for directions to the big battle, and he does so. Sam equips himself with heavy firepower and makes his way onto the battlefield, which is still several kilometers away from the outpost.[25]

Along the way, Sam encounters extremely heavy resistance from Mental's forces, but he mows them all down with his weapons. Along the way, Dr. Kiesel contacts Sam, and tells him that the artifact, the 'False Grail' that General Brand has stolen, is extremely powerful and dangerous, and could result in a potentially apocalyptic scenario for mankind should it fall into Mental's hands. With this information in mind, Sam now knows that he has no choice but to kill Brand and stop him at all costs. After some more heavy fighting, Sam eventually reaches the battlefield, and finds himself in a full-blown conflict, with hundreds of EDF soldiers and several M1A1 Abrams tanks repelling Mental's forces in a last-ditch effort to force them back into the portal. Sam restocks on ammo, health and armor and leads the soldiers into battle. Midway through, Sam is hit by an energy blast from Brand and his newlyfound powers, which stuns him and he falls over. Sam is surprised to see an even larger, uglier Brand walking towards him. Before Sam can react, Brand knocks him unconscious.[25]

Having regained consciousness, Sam now finds himself in Brand's clutches. Brand summons Ugh-Zan VI, the guardian of the portal, and presents to him Stone himself, hoping to use him as a bargaining chip so he can join Mental's ranks as one of his servants. Ugh-Zan, disinterested, rejects the offer and flicks away Brand and Sam off his hand. Sam, once again, is back on his feet, and is now forced to fight Ugh-Zan. Hellfire assists him by dropping a crate containing a grappling hook and parachute, some ammo and C-4 charges. Using the grappling hook and parachute, Sam hoists his way up to the designated locations and sets up multiple C-4 charges onto Ugh-Zan's body. He detonates the charges, destroying Ugh-Zan's metal rods and rendering him vulnerable. Hellfire drops a mech for Sam to aid him in the fight. Sam hops into the mech and unleashes all of its firepower at Ugh-Zan.[25]

Sam riding on MH-6

Hellfire takes Sam closer to Ugh-Zan so he toss the unstable Grail into his mouth.

With the beast apparently defeated, Professor Kiesel notifies Sam, and warns him that Ugh-Zan has only been temporarily stunned, so if Sam doesn't act, Ugh-Zan will rise again. Coming up with an idea, Sam grabs the False Grail and, before the snake figure can bite him, he punches it, causing an unstable reaction to form within the rod. Sam calls for Hellfire, and she escorts him via helicopter so he can get closer to Ugh-Zan. Sam tosses the increasingly unstable Grail into Ugh-Zan's mouth and he swallows it.[26] The Grail's neutrino reactor undergoes a meltdown inside Ugh-Zan's body, which causes a massive explosion from within. The explosion is so powerful that Ugh-Zan ends up decapitated. Sam and his friends struggle to find an appropriate one-liner for the situation, but Sam comes up with the perfect one: "We blew his mind!".

The EDF soldiers cheer Sam and the Triple-A team on while they bring a large truck with an ICBM loaded onto it. Brand has been strapped to the warhead and continues to rant on about how Mental will wipe out humanity and so forth, but the team ignore his bluffs and tape his mouth shut. The team launch the missile and Brand into the portal, which explodes, killing Brand and destroying the portal. With their mission complete, the team celebrate and are temporarily relieved of duty now that the Earth is safe (for the time being, at least).

In a post-credits scene, Sam and the gang are drinking beer over an open fire, reminiscing about their mission and the friends they lost along the way. Sam makes a toast to Kenny as a tribute to his lost friend.[27]

Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]

Set in an alternate timeline, Sam heads for the mainland after escaping from Brand's transport plane somewhere in the Arctic Ocean. He eventually lands ashore in Siberia next to an oil refinery. He makes his way to an oil rig occupied by Mental's forces and attempts to contact Quinn via radio, only to find out that it's busted. He discovers at the refinery that there is someone in need of help after Sam realizes the beeping on the radio was an S.O.S signal.[28]

Sam fights his way through the refinery until he eventually makes it to the communications tower, where the survivor has forced himself into hiding. Sam announces he has come to rescue him, only to discover that he is ends up beind killed by a Draconian Burner. Sam battles the beast, kills it, and makes his way into the comms tower. He contacts Igor Ledov on the radio, who is a big fan of Stone, and tells Sam that he will need to make his way south to a village called Kalinovka, where Ledov and his band of partisans will be waiting for him.[29]

Having received instructions from Ledov, Sam finds a mech, which he uses to fight his way through the refinery, until he comes across the refinery's exit. He soon comes across a snowmobile, which he uses to traverse the harsh, cold Siberian wilderness. Eventally, he reaches a checkpoint that has been occupied by Octanians. He kills them all and makes his way to an (apparantly) abandoned church. However, the church is actually resident to the infamous One-Eyed Olga, who Sam believed to be dead. Olga reveals to Sam that she faked her 'death' after killing Ktapodius the Strangler in order to avoid drawing enemy attention to herself.[30] So, she has decided to lay low at the church as a temporary measure until things calmed down a bit.

Due to the ruckus Sam caused in the village earlier, more of Mental's minions and Octanian soldiers arrive. Sam, with assistance from Olga, kill them all and the area is once again secure. Olga lends Sam her crossbow, and he makes his way through the wilderness again, until he comes to a checkpoint. Once there, Ledov warns Sam that he will likely encounter some Octanian Sentry Towers along the way. Ledov says that to destroy this thing, he has to take out its bioreactor, which needs to cool down sometimes.[31]

After making his way through the countryside, dealing with dangerous sentry towers and more of Mental's forces, Sam comes across a bridge, which he uses to venture over the river and get closer to Kalinovka. Ledov informs Sam that he has left him a "nice present" (a tank) for him to use.[32] He uses the tank to blast his way through one horde of enemies after another, and Sam makes his way to Kalinovka, where he finally meets up with Ledov's Squad.

Ledov and his comrades introduce themselves to Sam, who are excited to meet him, calling him "his biggest fans". Ledov informs Sam that they need to fight their way to the trainyard, where they can use a locomotive inside to make their way to Ustinov.

Serious Sam 3: BFE[]

Black Hawk Cairo

Sam en route to Cairo as part of Alpha Team, in order to rescue Professor Stein.

Sam is first seen on a UH-60 Black Hawk, which is escorting him and the rest of Alpha Team to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, where their objective is to secure professor Hermann Stein, who, as he claims, has found a way to power up the Time-Lock, a mysterious device that can send someone back in time.[33] Halfway there, Sam's helicopter is shot down, and his comrades are killed before they can even get to the museum, so he goes to rescue Professor Stein himself. Unfortunately, Stein is killed by Antaresian Spiders, but Sam is able to upload the data to HQ from Stein's cell phone.[34]

After killing an Adult Arachnoid and exiting the museum, Sam is contacted by Garret, an Earth Defense Force pilot. He tells Sam that he will meet him at the designated extraction point, which Sam soon makes his way to, but the chopper is shot down by a Major Bio-mechanoid by the time Garret arrives.[35] Sam kills the Bio-mechanoid and contacts Quinn, who requests that he makes his way to the crash site and rescue the pilot, but he is already too late, as a strange alien creature hijacks the helicopter and takes over it. Sam is forced to find cover while he deals with this threat. Avoiding minigun turrets and gunfire from the helicopter, he soon acquires a rocket launcher, and is able to 'secure' the bird by shooting it down.[36]

Sam makes his way towards the city outskirts, and finds that Mental is sending much tougher foes at him, which is shown by the sudden arrival of an Alcor Class Warship. Using his recently acquired rocket launcher, Sam sends multiple rockets at the ship, by taking advantage of its weakspot; the deployment hatches. Sam is able to deal heavy damage to the ship before it flees.[37] Sam informs Quinn of the situation, who is surprised to find out that Mental's forces are escalating and becoming more of a threat. She tells Sam that the data he uploaded from professor Stein's cell phone reveals that there is a secret chamber inside the Great Pyramid of Giza, and that getting into the secret chamber revolves around the Great Sphinx. Sam deduces that the Sphinx is the way into this "secret chamber", and he drives towards the pyramid complex in a car.[38]

Sam with detonator

Sam decides to blow up the Sphinx with C-4 charges.

Sam makes it on the outskirts of Cairo in an abandoned slum. He contacts Quinn for an update on the situation, but she replies telling him that they still need more time to figure out a way into the secret chamber. Sam proceeds towards the Sphinx, and plants C-4 explosives around the ancient structure. Sam contacts Quinn yet again, asking if the "eggheads" at HQ have solved the riddle yet, but Quinn says that she still needs more time. Growing impatient, Sam believes that now is a good time to initiate "plan B". Sam detonates the explosives, causing the Sphinx to be blown apart.[39] A furious Quinn demands to know what's happened, but Sam cuts off her at the last minute.

Despite Sam's destructive choices, it turns out there is a deep hole nestled within the ruins of the Sphinx, revealing the riddle of the Sphinx to be real, and not a myth as initially thought. Sam enters the hole, which leads him through a series of traps and dark hallways, until he reaches a large, empty room with a locked door. Looking around for clues, Sam comes across the tomb of the the Oracle, who was believed to the last Sirian alive on Earth. Seeing a pecuilar object on the mummy's wrist, Sam takes it and, with the "the Arrow" in his possession, he is able to access the secret chamber. Inside this chamber, built by the Sirians long ago, is a hologram displaying the location of two extremely powerful plasma generators.[39]

Sam uploads the data to HQ, and is ordered to await for extraction outside the pyramid's entrance. Hellfire arrives to extract Sam in a Black Hawk. With Sam now on board, Hellfire informs tells Sam that the data HQ has received from him says that there are two powerful plasma generators located in Karnak and Luxor. It is believed that these generators power up the Time-Lock.[40] With this crucial information in mind, Sam is taken to Karnak by Hellfire, where he has to activate the Horus Generator. Using the Sirian bracelet he obtauned from the Great Pyramid, he finds four Sirian keys which are needed to unlock the generator's door. He enters the generator room and turns it on. Next, he is forced to deal with a powerful enemy and even heavier resistance from Mental's forces, before making his way to the location of the second generator, Anubis, in Luxor.

Sam activating Horus

Sam activates the first plasma generator.

When he arrives at Luxor, he activates the second plasma generator, Anubis, though he soon re-encounters the same warship he fought against in Cairo. This time, Sam destroys it. Wilson arrives via helicopter to extract Sam back to HQ. On the way back to HQ, Wilson and Sam are flying over some dunes in the desert, when all of a sudden a Major Bio-mechanoid rises out of the sand and fires a rocket at the helicopter. Wilson is unable to react in time and the helicopter is shot down.[41] The impact from the hit forces Sam out of the helicopter and he loses all of his weapons (except for the Mutilator bracelet) in the process. Upon regaining consciousness, Sam attempts to contact HQ, but discovers that his earpiece is broken, rendering him unable to contact anyone for support. He makes his way through the lost temples of Nubia, and eventually makes his way back to what remains of civilization after exiting through a tomb.

Upon exiting the tomb, Sam comes across a dead EDF soldier. Using his earpiece, Sam contacts HQ, but only to hear signs of a struggle over at headquarters. Sam, confused, asks Hellfire what's going on over there. She tells him that Mental has a launched an ambush on their base. Quinn has been killed and Charlie Team has been wiped out.[42] Hellfire tells Sam that if anyone survives, they will find him. A Gnaar finds Hellfire and sneaks up behind, killing her. The Gnaar contacts Sam and mocks him, telling him that he "cannot win" and "it's over". Sam responds by telling the creature that it's not over until he "teabags every last one of you alien motherfuckers!". The Gnaar tells Sam that Mental is going to "moon" him, although Sam doesn't quite grasp the concept of what this means and ends the conversation.

With the Earth Defense Force effectively dissolved after Mental's sneak attack on their base, Sam decides to make his way to the Time-Lock on his own. He finds a car nearby, which he fills up with gas so he can drive to the location of the Time-Lock; the Theban Necropolis. Soon after, Sam's car runs out of gas, and a Sandwhale begins making its way towards Sam to eat him, forcing him to ditch the car and run as fast as he can and out of the sand.[43] He narrowly avoids being devoured by the Sandwhale and makes his way to the Time-Lock. Mental, restless as ever, sends wave after wave of increasingly tougher resistance at Sam, but this doesn't deter him, and he kills every single alien that stands in his way.

Eventually, Sam reaches some temples, with the Time-Lock not far behind. Suddenly, there is a large tremor, and one of Mental's servants, Ugh-Zan IV, emerges from under the sand. Just as this massive beast is about to fight Sam, a Sandwhale emerges to fight Ugh-Zan. With the massive beasts distracted, Sam uses this opportunity to grab a jetpack and resupply on health, armor and ammo to prepare for fighting Ugh-Zan. The latter defeats the Sandwhale, and Sam uses some scaffold poles nearby to lodge them into Ugh-Zan's back. As the scaffold tubes conduct lightning, being made of metal, Sam uses this to his advantage to stun Ugh-Zan with lightning strikes while he can continue putting more tubes into his back. Eventually, after more lightning stuns Ugh-Zan and depletes a large chunk of his health, Sam finishes him off and kills him. With the last obstacle standing between him and the Time-Lock out of his way, Sam uses his jetpack to fly to the Time-Lock.[44]

Ugh-Zan IV face

Ugh-Zan VI appears to stop Sam.

Before he departs, Sam makes a quick phone-call to Mental, but his daughter, Judy, picks up the phone and asks Sam to leave a message. Sam tells her to tell Mental that "Sam is coming over to play. And by play, I mean kill him". Judy asked him if he is serious, to which he replies he intends to make good on his promise. With scant few seconds before the Earth is "mooned" by Mental (Mental literally sent the Moon hurtling towards the Earth), Sam jumps into the Time-Lock, sending him back in time to ancient Egypt.[44]

Jewel of the Nile[]

Sam is in Wilson's Black Hawk, on their way back to the EDF's headquarters. Wilson suddenly receives new orders, and is tasked with taking Sam to the island complex of Philae, as HQ say that the Time-Lock didn't come online successfully.[45]

Quinn apologizes to Sam for the sudden change of plans, but as he is "the only guy in the area" at this given moment, he has no other choice. He goes ahead with the mission, despite not having a clear understanding of what he needs to do. He finds some keys, which leads him to the tomb of Isis, the ancient Egyptian goddess of fertility. Sam opens the Sirian door inside, finds a statue, and places it on her "plinth" on the surface, which activates several mechanisms that involve finding mroe statues.[46] Eventually, Sam acquires a key, the Seal of Isis, which Quinn believes will open the door to the Time-Lock control room. However, much to Sam's dismay, the control room is not there, and HQ are unable to send in any helicopters to extract him.

Luckily for Sam, there is a boat anchored not far from him, so he takes it to Abu Simbel, the second alleged location of the Time-Lock control room. Quinn tells Sam that he needs to find the statue of Nefertari and place it next to the statue of Ramses the Great to unlock the door to what may be the Time-Lock control room. After doing so, Sam comes across a seal, but not the control room. She tells him that this seal can open a Sirian door inside the Tomb of Sethirkopshef.[47]

Heading to his next objective, Sam fights more of Mental's forces as he gets to the tomb, where he is successful in activating the Time-Lock inside its respective control room. Once he gets outside, he comes face to face with a massive Scrapjack, Raahloom, the Imposing Prototype. After defeating this massive beast, Wilson arrives to extract him via helicopter from the temple complex and back to headquarters.[48]

Serious Sam: The First Encounter[]

Time-Lock SSHD

After entering the Time-Lock in Serious Sam 3, Sam was sent back in time to ancient Egypt.

After the events of Serious Sam 3: BFE, Sam arrives in the year 1378 BC, the year the Time-Lock was armed, and winds up at the Mortuary temple of Hatshepsut, a temple dedicated to the Egyptian ruler Hatshepsut. Here, NETRICSA tells Sam that there were two massive cities built during this time; Memphis and Thebes. She says that the Sirians lived in Thebes, so as part of his mission to depart to Sirius, he has to obtain four magical elements which are needed to get into the grand city.[49] First, Sam makes his way through a sand canyon to the Temple of Thutmose to get the air element, then the earth element from the Tomb of Ramses III, the fire element from the Valley of the Kings, and finally, the water element, which lies inside a temple in an oasis.

With all four elements in his possession, Sam fights his way to the city of Memphis and the Temple of Ptah. There, in the temple, lies the Sign of Amon-Ra. Neither Sam nor NETRICSA know its purpose,[50] but they head towards Thebes. After days of walking in the desert, Sam finally reaches the entrance to the city, where he places the elements onto their respective altars, in a giant yard, and summons an ancient guardian of death. After destroying it, Sam proceeds to Karnak, where he finds some Sirian pictograms, which NETRICSA translates for him. They say that the Sirians themselves did not live in Karnak, but in Luxor, so Sam goes there, and finds a rising obelisk (actually a transmitter), which he uses to call the Sirian spaceship, the SSS Centerprice, to Earth.[51] Clearing his way to the Great Pyramid, Mental sends his evil servant, Great Admiral Ugh-Zan III, in a last-ditch attempt to stop Sam from boarding the ship. As Sam is no match for this monster's enormous size and strength, he runs to the Great Pyramid. Using the Sign of Amon-Ra, Sam initiates the ship's boarding process, and large mechanical doors on top of the pyramid to prepare Sam for boarding the spaceship. Before he can, though, he has to face Ugh-Zan again. Using the ship's laser cannon, Sam is able to deplete Ugh-Zan's health before he finishes him off, and then he departs to Sirius in the spaceship.[52]

Serious Sam: The Second Encounter[]

Recapping the events that took place in the previous game, Sam is seen travelling aboard the SSS Centerprice, but something collides into it, bringing it down to Earth. The spaceship crash-lands in Sierra Madre de Chiapas, in pre-Columbian Mesoamerica. It seems that with the spaceship destroyed, Sam is now stranded on Earth. Fortunately for him though, the Sirians left a backup spaceship in case something happened to the original. However, according to NETRICSA, the ship is located in a different time period, and requires an important artifact, the Holy Grail, to be activated.[53]

Luckily for Sam, the Sirians left a solution to this problem; they left time portal with each great human civilization on Earth, and the nearest time portal for him in this time period is located deep within the grand Mayan city of Teotihuacan. Before he can go there, though, NETRICSA tells him that the portal will need a key for to be activated. In this case, it is a sacred item that the Mayans left inside a pyramid in Palenque.[54]

Sam proceeds to the Valley of the Jaguar, and obtains the item that he is looking for; a crystal skull. Next, Sam makes his way to Teotihuacan. After navigating through various yards and conquering deadly traps, he ends up in a large arena, where the Mayan Wind God, Kukulkán, battles him. After a big fight involving him and Mental's forces. the Wind God activates the Time-Lock for Sam, and allows him to use it. After travelling in time, again, Sam finds himself in ancient Mesopatamia, and arrives at a ziggurat located not far from the large city of Persepolis.

NETRICSA tells Sam that, just like in Mesoamerica, Sam will have to make his way to Persepolis and head into the deepest part of the city to find the time portal that the Sirians left behind.[55] Upon exiting the ziggurat, he soon heads into Persepolis, and winds up at the elephant square. NETRICSA, thinking the Tower of Babel would be here, is shocked at just how large Persepolis really is.[56]

Sam makes his way through the many yards and complexes, until he eventually makes it to the parts of Persepolis dedicated to Gilgamesh, a hero in ancient Mesopotamian mythology.[57] Once he exits the Temple of Gilgamesh, Sam then needs to head to the palace of King Tilman, which will lead him straight to the Tower of Babel. Once outside, with the Tower dominating the courtyard, NETRICSA warns Sam that there is an monster rumored to be living inside the tower, which she deduces was placed there by Mental to guard the portal.[58] Upon entering the tower after obtaining all three tablets of wisdom, he battles the monster, and the time portal activates, sending him further in time.

Sam arrives in the year 1138 AD, in the quiet Polish town of Krwawitze. NETRICSA informs him that there is a castle which contains an old book known as the Book of Wisdom, which will help guide him in finding the Holy Grail.[59] This book was made by the Arc-Al-Magi, a clan of wizards who know about the Sirians and are the keepers of the Holy Grail. Having obtained the book, Sam learns from it that the Holy Grail is located inside the legendary Ice Castle.[60] However, by the time Sam reaches the castle, he discovers that the magicians had actually taken the Grail and placed it within Church of Sacred Blood.[61]

Sam Holy Grail

Sam obtains the Holy Grail.

Determined to get the Holy Grail, Sam makes his way to the Grand Cathedral, where he has to defeat massive hordes of Mental's armies. As usual, Sam kills them all and heads to the church and finds out that Mordekai the Summoner, one of Mental's evil servants, is the guardian of the Grail. Sam kills him and then enters the church, and finally obtains the Holy Grail. After hearing a phone ringing in one of the confession booths, Sam gets Mental on the other end of the line. Sam then confesses his 'sins' to Mental and sarcastically remarks how "sorry" he is for killing his forces. After a small chit-chat, Sam then threatens Mental before departing in the Sirian backup spaceship to Sirius, so he can finish off Mental for good.[62]

Non-canonical appearances[]

Serious Sam: Tormental[]

Set during Serious Sam 3: BFE, Sam winds up in Egypt (as usual for the series) after his helicopter is shot down by a Major Bio-mechanoid. He eventually finds the Bio-mechanoids and defeats it, and then he proceeds to a pyramid, which is rumored to contain the Mentaloptican, a cursed artifact.[63] Sam enters the pyramid and ends up in some tombs. Eventually, he comes across the Mentaloptican, finds its weak spot, and destroys it after a tough fight. The explosion sends him back, and a copy of himself is absorbed into Mental's brain, along with NETRICSA.[64]

This copy of Sam, stuck in the mind of his archenemy, must now battle his way through Mental's thoughts and deepest secrets, and find a way to defeat him, while buying the original version of him enough time to make to the Time-Lock before the Moon plummets towards Earth.

Relationships[]

Mental[]

Serving as the main antagonist of the series, Mental is Sam's archnemesis and most hated adversary. Sam has vowed to personally kill Mental to avenge the loss of his comrades and the rest of humanity after the EDF was wiped out during a sneak attack by Mental's forces, which was initiated by the latter.[42] Sam will not hesistate to kill anything that Mental throws at him, even if Sam is forced to face Mental's dreaded servants, such as members of the Ugh-Zan dynasty, who tower over him at several hundred meters tall, or powerful sorcerers like Lord Achriman and Mordekai the Summoner.

According to Mental, Sam is likely his son due to his inhuman fighting abilities against his army, though this has not been confirmed by Croteam. Mental also jokingly calls Sam his son after he infiltrates his home during the events of Serious Sam 2.[65]

Fiona "Hellfire" Starr[]

Hellfire is one of Sam's best friends and companions, though they may be more to them than just friendship, as hinted by their conversations in both Serious Sam 3: BFE and Serious Sam 4.[20][66] She likes to refer to Sam as "babe", and the two like to flirt with each other occasionally.

At one point in Serious Sam 4, Rodriguez asked Hellfire if she and Sam really had sex in a helicopter whilst they were fighting Harpies in Beijing, but she just denied it or tried to cover it up in response.[67] In Carcassonne, when Hellfire and Sam go on a "date" together, Hellfire asks Sam if they could ever go on a real date "without killing anyone" after the war is over. He hoped that it could become a possibility if they just "injure someone".[20]

Like Sam, Hellfire loves heavy weapons, such as her signature minigun, and she enjoys mowing down hordes of Mental's forces, especially when she is teamed up with Sam.

Dwayne Rodriguez[]

Rodriguez is one of Sam's pals and best friends. He recognizes Sam's position in the EDF, and calls him "boss" as a sign of respect and authority, which is a strong indicator of their friendship. Rodriguez will tag along with Sam and occasionally the rest of the Triple-A team whenever they go on missions together. Rodriguez also likes to tease Sam about his relationship with Hellfire.[20]

Sam and Rodriguez's relationship becomes more stern in Serious Sam 3: BFE, especially when Rodriguez started berating Sam after he fell out of the helicopter due to not wearing his seatbelt. Sam also got annoyed with Rodriguez when he got cocky about their mission objectives on their way to Cairo.

Thomas Jones[]

One of Sam's close friends and companions who Stone had a high amount of respect for. When a Khnum ate Jones right in front of him, Sam was outraged and fought the creature one-on-one. Sam defeats the creature and shoves Jones' beacon right into its skull to personally avenge Jones' death.

Penelope Quinn[]

They have a complicated and slightly antagonistic relationship, though Quinn is someone that Sam can definitely rely on and trust, especially when it comes to solving puzzles, clues, or giving him directions to a specific location. Sam will report his findings to her and obey her instructions most of the time, but she will become annoyed with him when he would do something reckless, such as when he decided to destroy an overpass with C-4 (because it was blocking his way), or when he would go as far as to blow up the Great Sphinx rather than give the scientists at HQ enough time to decipher the clues from Professor Stein's research.[39]

Kenneth Orkanti[]

Sam deeply cared for Kenny, and wasn't as rough on him compared to the other members of his team, despite him being the newest recruit among them. Their friendship soon begins to improve and Sam becomes impressed with Kenny's combat skills and use of one-liners. He was deeply saddened by Kenny's death at the hands of Lord Achriman. After Sam incapacitates Achriman in a fight, Sam uses Kenny's 'one-liner' to avenge him just moments before he finishes Achriman for good.

Howard Brand[]

 
"I spent a lot of time thinking about what turned you into a traitor. Was it fear, delusion, greed? You know what I realised Howard? You're a fucking idiot."
―Sam's last words to General Brand[src]
 

Prior to Brand betraying humanity, Stone highly respected him, especially given his rank as general. Brand had also defended Stone on one occasion, along with the rest of the Surveyor crew, after they awoke Mental from his slumber, despite accusations of misconduct.[68]

There was one occasion when Sam assaulted Brand after he made the premature decision to activate the HAARP before Sam and his team could establish a safe perimeter from the target area. Brand accepted this burden, and decided not to court martial Sam for his actions (though if it had been another soldier, he otherwise would have).[69] Brand didn't, however, regret his decision, seeing that sometimes people had to make pragmatic choices, even if others hated them for doing it.

After Brand betrayed Sam, his friends and the rest of humanity, their relationship was pretty much out the window. Sam, at that point, knew that Brand was a treacherous sociopath and a self-righteous traitor who only cared about what he and Mental wanted. His hatred for Brand is expanded upon during the events of Siberian Mayhem, especially after Brand forced Sam to surrender and killed one of his friends right in front of him.[70] When Sam made his way to the dam to rescue Ledov and his squad, Brand appeared again and decided give Sam no more second chances. Sam had no choice but to fight Brand, but he emerged victorious in the end.

During their fight, Sam thought that it was ridiclous of Brand to grant himself such ludicrous titles such as "The Beast of the Apocalypse", and realized that he was just "an asshole with a magic wand". After Brand was defeated and rendered incapacitated, Stone asked Brand what he had hope to accomplish by being a traitor. In the end, Stone didn't really care why Brand betrayed his own people, and realized that Brand's goal was nothing but an idiot. After blasting Brand's head open with a shotgun, Sam kept his cool, remarking that it felt "really good" upon killing him.[71]

Lord Achriman[]

Sam harbored a deep hatred and resentment towards Lord Achriman, not only because he was one of Mental's dreaded servants, but because he would constantly provoke Sam and taunt him whenever he encountered him. After Achriman killed Kenny, this made Sam's hatred for him grow even stronger. When he fought Achriman for the final time, Sam blew his head clean off with a shotgun to avenge Kenny personally.

Gottlieb Kiesel[]

The professor would contact Sam on occasions for help with something, whether it be neutralizing enemy portals, finding alien artifacts, and so on. He would not hesistate to help out the professor, but sometimes Sam would want more than be bargained for, such as when he decided to keep the Sirian artifacts for himself instead of giving them back to the professor for study.[72]

The professor had a habit of introducing his full name to Sam, whom the latter found rather awkward, seeing as that Sam already knows him. Sam also liked to joke around with the professor, though he didn't find it very humorous. Professor Kiesel describes Sam's sense of humor as being "incomprehensible bordering on deranged".[73]

Despite their awkward, if not banterous, relationship, Professor Kiesel will not hesistate to reward Sam for helping him out. An instance of this was when he gave Sam an upgrade for his rocket launcher after the latter collected alien tissue samples for him in Pompeii.

Jones[]

Not much was known about their relationship, since they were only seen on the helicopter briefly on their way to the Egyptian Museum. As seen in the game's opening cutscene, they didn't interact with or talk very much.

Wilson[]

Sam and Wilson liked to joke around, as heard in their conversations, such as when Wilson arrived to pick Sam up from Luxor, Sam thought it was Hellfire at first, but was disappointed after hearing Wilson's voice.

Filibert[]

Sam thought he was a strange man, not only because of his beliefs, but he because he inadvertently caused Mental's Horde's to attack his farm after he set up a beacon, thinking that the invaders were "peaceful angels". Sam even called him a "terrible hippie", and Filibert agreed somewhat, but he told him that people just have to go with the flow of things.

Hermann Stein[]

Sam was tasked with protecting Professor Stein while he was busy searching for clues inside a tomb in Egypt. Sam wasn't really fond of archaelogists, especially Professor Stein and his interest in ancient Egyptian history.

Personality and skills[]

By nature, Sam is firm, kind, prudent, brave, and full of courage. He always tries not to discredit his good name and help the weak. He likes to have fun every now and then and doesn't mind having a beer. Although he is often faced with many challenges, he is always ready to cope with them. Sam is very clever and cunning; he is excellently oriented in non-standard situations and very quickly understands. Without these qualities, he would not have been able to survive in battles against Mental's alien forces.

Sam often makes quips, witty remarks and one-liners towards the enemies he's fighting or the situation he ends up in. He prefers to overcome obstacles or the mission objective his way rather than listen to his superiors. He shows little interest in puzzles, history and archaeology, often preferring to blow stuff up with explosives or rocket launchers rather than solve a riddle or locate a hidden mechanism. Sam likes strong weapons and shotguns, and he addresses the 12 Gauge Pump-Action Shotgun or the minigun as "his old love". He is also a fan of rocket launchers.

Like many men, Sam has standards when it comes to women. He likes women who are powerful or have large breasts, as shown upon inspecting the statue of Isis while on Philae, and upon seeing the Witch-Bride of Achriman's psychic abilities.[74] When he found the statue of Isis, he tried amusing Quinn when he said that "Hellfire better watch out, this one is stacked like a tree on Christmas morning".[75]

Powers and abilities[]

  • Immense Physical Condition: Sam has shown to possess immense physical prowess which is far beyond that of an ordinary human being.
    • Immense Durability and Endurance: Sam is extremely durable, even on human terms, being able to survive injuries which would otherwise be fatal to an ordinary human being. He has been wounded countless times by many enemies, but even when he has been severely injured to an extent, he carries on fighting. Sam is also able to endure temperatures that would be unbearable or even life-threatening for a human, like wandering in the desert under the intense heat of the Sun, or traversing through the harsh cold of the Siberian wilderness. He can still, however, take heat damage from the heat of the Sun, and he has noted that he felt "cold" on several occasions whenever he is in a snowy environment. Despite this, it doesn't appear to slow him down or impede his progress.
    • Immense Stamina: Sam has incredible stamina, a lot more than what should even considered possible for a human. He is able to sprint long distances without breaking a swear, jump further than the average person, and can even survive falls from high places such as multi-story buildings that would end up breaking someone's legs or resulting in their death (this still injures him to an extent, however). Another one of Sam's inhuman abilities is being able to hold his breath underwater for a long period of time, as seen several times throughout the series where he is forced to swim in aquatic environments.
    • Immense Strength: Sam is incredibly strong. Compared to other soldiers in the EDF, he is seen as the strongest and must enduring, which are testaments to his inhuman abilities. Instances of Sam's strength are shown with the Melee Grab feature in Serious Sam 3: BFE; he is able to snap a Cloned Soldier or an Hatchling Arachnoid's neck, tear a Kleer's skull off by its horns, pluck an Gnaar's eyeball from its socket, rip a Beheaded Rocketeer's heart from his rib cage, or tear off the casing of a Juvenile Antaresian Spider (the latter of which requires a force of at least 50 pounds).[76] Sam can also throw C-4 charges very far distances of up to several meters or more.
    • Expert Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Thanks to Sam's military training, he has become extremely adept in the skill of hand-to-hand combat. In terms of physical prowess, Sam is the most skilled EDF soldier in hand-to-hand combat. Although he rarely uses melee attacks like punches, throws or grappling holds, he is equally as proficient with melee weapons such as slegehammers, axes, or his trusty combat knife, as he is with firearms.
    • Weapon Proficiency: Sam is highly proficient with the use of firearms and heavy weapons, though this is most likely a result of his training during his time serving in the EDF. He is able to mow down hordes of enemies with any automatic or long-ranged weapon, be it an assault rifle, submachine gun, sniper rifle, or his signature weapons, the minigun and cannon, without breaking a sweat. With help from NETRICSA, Sam is able to fire incredibly accurate, no matter how far away the target is from him.
  • Expert Hacker: While it may not be one of Sam's strong suits, he has demonstrated some skills in hacking. This was shown when he hacked into the Propaganda Drone's database and reprogammed them.[77]
  • High Intelligence: Sam has been shown to be highly intelligent. While he has on occasions struggled to find the solution to complex riddles and puzzles, he is able to overcome them. He does, however, occasionally need assistance from Quinn or NETRICSA to help him overcome his objectives or the obstacle in front of him.
  • Spacetime Anomaly: Sam is a very strong anomaly in spacetime. This is due to continuous time travel through various eras and time periods when Sam has to save humanity from the clutches of Mental and his evil alien armies. Sam's effects on the past have not gone unnoticed either, as a stone tablet depicting him on a pile of dead creatures was engraved by the Arc-Al-Magi, and Sam's accomplishments in the past were noted and mentioned by Professor Stein.[78][79] According to Professor Kiesel's study on the Space Time Oscillatory Noncohesion Effect, Sam scored 0.9 on the Kiesel scale, indicating severe quantum chronological disentanglement.[80]

Appearance[]

Sam SS4

Sam's current appearance as of Serious Sam 4.

Sam's appearance has varied to some degree throughout the series. In most of his appearances, Sam is a young Caucasian man with short black hair and (depending on the game) either blue or brown eyes. In his appearances, Sam wears a white t-shirt with the Serious Sam logo on it, fingerless gloves, blue jeans, and his infamous red sneakers. Sam is often seen wielding his signature weapons, the minigun or the cannon. In most of his appearances, he sports a pair of shades.

Serious Sam: The First Encounter[]

In The First Encounter, Sam wears shades and has a shirt. He also wears jeans and his red sneakers.

Serious Sam: The Second Encounter[]

In The Second Encounter, Sam does not wear shades, but still retains his overall look from the last game.

Serious Sam: Xbox[]

Sam has a whole different look, new face, new shirt, same jeans and red sneakers. Like in The Second Encounter, he doesn't wear shades.

Serious Sam 2[]

Sam has (almost) the same appearance as he did in Serious Sam: Xbox, only with ""Serious Sam II" written on the back of his t-shirt.

Serious Sam HD[]

Yet another new look, Sam looks unshaved, he has a t-shirt with sleeves, except for the right sleeve, which was ripped and he had a Serious Bomb tattoo on his right arm. No shades. Jeans and red sneakers are the same, of course.

Serious Sam: Double D[]

For some reason, Sam appears to be much older than in the other games. He is a lot more thiner, has a white beard on his chin, longer hair, the same t-shirt from Serious Sam 1, and his signature jeans, but the jeans seem to be longer. He is also covered in bandages.

Serious Sam: The Random Encounter[]

Sam wears the same outfit from Serious Sam 2, but he is much fatter and bigger than in the other games.

Serious Sam 3: BFE[]

Sam looks younger than in the past titles, most likely because the game takes place before The First Encounter. He can be seen wearing orange shades, leather gloves, a watch on his left hand (later covered by the Sirian Mutilator), a simple white t-shirt with his logo faded on the back, jeans with two pockets, kneepads on both legs, and tan colored shoes. He also carries a utility belt with an in-built flashlight.

If the player manages to find Sam's "classic outfit" in the level Summer in Cairo, Sam's brown shoes are replaced with his red sneakers, and can be seen wearing them for the remainder of the game (this is easily seen when playing in third-person). This doesn't carry over to Jewel of the Nile, since the DLC uses a different save file.

Serious Sam's Bogus Detour[]

Sam wears a similar outfit to the one he wears in Serious Sam 1, though he appears much more muscular in build, and wears a white vest instead of his usual t-shirt. He doesn't wear shades this time around.

Serious Sam: Tormental[]

He looks exactly the same as he does in Serious Sam 3 (although he wears black shades instead of the orange tinted ones, and his hair is noticeably more brown). His appearance has been altered to match the 3D, blocky theme of the game.

Serious Sam 4/Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]

Sam gets another major redesign, now more closely resembling his classic look in terms of appearance. He sports the usual white t-shirt with a new and more vibrant Serious Sam logo, blue jeans, his red sneakers, and black shades (similar to the ones he wears in The First Encounter). He also has a different hairstyle that's very similar to the one he has in Serious Sam 2. He also looks a lot younger, as these games are set one year prior to the events of Serious Sam 3.

Behind the scenes[]

  • Sam had a different look in Test 1. He had a more tanned body and didn't wear shades.
  • An early concept design of a Cloned Soldier shows Sam wearing a different outfit and having slightly longer hair than he usually does.
  • Sam was intended to appear in the Duke Nukem Forever singleplayer DLC as a small Easter egg, but was cut. Sam's appearance in the DLC was to be just a severed head with a Joker-like smile drawn on his face and Duke was to say "Why so serious?" to Sam. Later, in Duke Nukem 3D: 20th Anniversary World Tour, Sam appears as he did on The First Encounter boxart as a limbless carcass without the Joker makeup (likely due to copyright reasons). Duke then says to him, "Why so serious, Sam?".
  • The first name "Sam" transliterated in Croatian means "by myself/by himself". It might be a pun on the fact that he's mostly shooting down Mental's armies one against the army.
  • "Samuel" is a male given name. It means "name of God". It also refers to a figure who appears in the Hebrew Bible.
  • In Serious Sam: Kamikaze Attack!, as the Kamikaze is the player character of the game, Sam is an enemy and the main goal in each level is reaching him and blowing him up.

Trivia[]

  • His middle name is Herbert, but he had it 'surgically removed'.
  • Sam wears sneakers that are very similar to Chuck Taylor All-Stars.
  • Based on his appearance, it can be assumed that he is in his late thirties or early fourties, and was probably born around the same time as Jones and Rodriguez.
  • Standing at 6 feet 5 inches, Sam is one of the tallest characters in the series.
  • Sam has a habit of saying one-liners in all of his appearances. Some of the enemies Sam has encountered, most notably Lord Achriman, have mocked him for his overuse of one-liners. An Aurigan Haemovore that appears in a secret in Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse also makes a reference to this.
  • He doesn't like The Da Vinci Code, as he believes the movie has "no literary merit".[81]
  • His favorite writer is Philip K. Dick, an American science fiction writer.
  • Sam harbors a deep resentment towards Mental's forces, but he also likes to joke around with them and mock their appearances, as well as the sounds they make. Instance of this include Sam mocking a Beheaded Kamikaze's scream and calling a Scythian Witch-Harpy "ugly" after she reveals her true face to him.
  • He 'accidentally' ran over a nun during a mission in Oslo, but claimed that she allegedly "came out of nowhere". It's unknown what the outcome of this was, but after this occured, Sam couldn't be trusted with driving his friends in vehicles afterwards.[82]
  • He hates keys and puzzles, according to a quote from Serious Sam: The Random Encounter, where in the second level he must acquire a key to open a door, and in Serious Sam 3 and Serious Sam 4, when he runs into locked doors.
  • He hates crates, as heard when he finds Croteam's secret crate bus in Sierra de Chiapas.
  • He seems to understand alien language, such as the language Mental and his daughter Judy speak in, as well as that spoken by Gnaars and Octanians. This may be just NETRICSA translating the languages for him.
  • He prefers not to wear his seatbelt when flying helicopters. As it turns out later, this saves his life more than once when a helicopter is seen riding in is shot down and crashes.
  • He finishes off two antagonists with shotguns. The first instance of this is when he blew off Achriman's head with the pump action shotgun, and the second time was when he blew a hole in Brand's face with the coach gun.
  • His left foot is bigger than his right foot, and he also has a birthmark in a "very delicate spot".
  • He is a fan of bananas, as mentioned multiple times in Serious Sam 2.[83]
  • He was nicknamed 'Hairy' by his friends in high school, which apparently had something to do with goats.[84]

References in other media[]

  • The Talos Principle features an Easter egg with Sam frozen in carbonite, which is a reference to Han Solo's fate in Return of the Jedi. For the same game, an addition was released, adding an alternative voice of the central character of Elohim in the person of Sam, performed by his original actor.[85][86]
    • Also in The Talos Principle, there is an 'Elite Serious Sam room' that features images of Sam from both Serious Sam 2 and Serious Sam 3. There are also two display cases on each side of the room that feature enemies and weapons from Serious Sam 3.[87]
  • In the independent game Combat Force, there is a main character named Sam, depicted as a young man in a white T-shirt. According to the developer, this is a reference to Serious Sam.[88][89]

Gallery[]

Artwork[]

Serious Sam 1[]

Pre-release[]

Retail[]

Serious Sam 2[]

Pre-release[]

Retail[]

Serious Sam: Double D[]

Serious Sam: Kamikaze Attack[]

Serious Sam: The Random Encounter[]

Serious Sam 3: BFE[]

Serious Sam's Bogus Detour[]

I Hate Running Backwards[]

Wild Buster[]

Serious Sam: Tormental[]

Serious Sam 4/Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]

Game covers[]

DLC covers[]

List of appearances[]

References[]

  1. He says that his middle name is Herbert, according to a conversation he has with Michelle in Serious Sam 4
  2. The Art of Serious Sam 4, page 163
  3. 3.0 3.1 Ia icon Serious Sam official website (Archived)
  4. Serious Sam VR: The Last Hope
  5. Serious Sam 4
  6. Serious Sam 3: BFE
  7. Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named SS3
  8. Serious Sam 4 level: Death from Above (ending cutscene)
  9. Serious Sam 4 level: Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
  10. Serious Sam 4 level: Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (ending cutscene)
  11. Serious Sam 4 level: Gates of Hell
  12. Serious Sam 4 level: The Die is Cast
  13. Serious Sam 4 level: Morituri Te Salutant
  14. Serious Sam 4 level: When in Rome
  15. Serious Sam 4 level: Machina Ex Deus
  16. Serious Sam 4 level: Machina Ex Deus (ending cutscene)
  17. Serious Sam 4 level: A Breakfast in France
  18. Serious Sam 4 level: One for the Road
  19. Serious Sam 4 level: Vive la Résistance
  20. 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 Serious Sam 4 level: Anathema Unto God ("What the Hellfire" side objective)
  21. Serious Sam 4 level: Anathema Unto God
  22. Serious Sam 4 (church cutscene)
  23. Serious Sam 4 level: The Package (opening cutscene)
  24. Serious Sam 4 level: From Earth With Love (opening cutscene)
  25. 25.0 25.1 25.2 Serious Sam 4 level: From Earth With Love
  26. Serious Sam 4 level: From Earth With Love (Ugh-Zan VI cutscene)
  27. Serious Sam 4 credits
  28. Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem level: A Smell Of Petroleum Prevails
  29. Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem level: The Song Of The Stormbringer
  30. Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem level: Siberiade
  31. Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem level: Siberiade (Ledov's message to Sam)
  32. Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem level: Roadside Picnic
  33. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: Summer in Cairo (opening cutscene)
  34. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: Into the Spider's Nest
  35. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: Broken Wings
  36. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: No Place to Hide
  37. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: Under the Iron Cloud
  38. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: Under the Iron Cloud (ending cutscene)
  39. 39.0 39.1 39.2 Serious Sam 3: BFE level: The Silent Riddler
  40. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: The Silent Riddler
  41. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: The Lost Temples of Nubia (opening cutscene)
  42. 42.0 42.1 Serious Sam 3: BFE level: The Last Man on Earth (opening cutscene)
  43. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: The Guardian of Time (opening cutscene)
  44. 44.0 44.1 Serious Sam 3: BFE level: The Guardian of Time (ending cutscene)
  45. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: Gathering of the Gods (opening cutscene)
  46. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: Gathering of the Gods
  47. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: Together Forever (ending cutscene)
  48. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: Born Again
  49. Serious Sam: The First Encounter - NETRICSA - Strategy - Temple of Hatshepsut
  50. Serious Sam: The First Encounter - NETRICSA - Strategy - Memphis - Metropolis
  51. Serious Sam: The First Encounter - NETRICSA - Strategy - Thebes - Luxor
  52. Serious Sam: The First Encounter ending cutscene
  53. Serious Sam: The Second Encounter - NETRICSA - Strategy - Sierra de Chiapas
  54. Serious Sam: The Second Encounter - NETRICSA - Strategy - Palenque - Valley of the Jaguar
  55. Serious Sam: The Second Encounter - NETRICSA - Strategy - Ziggurat
  56. Serious Sam: The Second Encounter - NETRICSA - Hints - Persepolis - The Elephant Atrium - Elephant Square
  57. Serious Sam: The Second Encounter - NETRICSA - Strategy - Persepolis - Courtyards of Gilgamesh
  58. Serious Sam: The Second Encoumter - NETRICSA - Strategy - Tower of Babel
  59. Serious Sam: The Second Encoumter - NETRICSA - Strategy - The Citadel
  60. Serious Sam: The Second Encoumter - NETRICSA - Strategy - Land of the Damned
  61. Serious Sam: The Second Encoumter - NETRICSA - Strategy - The Grand Cathedral
  62. Serious Sam: The Second Encounter level: The Grand Cathedral (ending cutscene)
  63. Serious Sam: Tormental level: Egypt
  64. Serious Sam: Tormental level: Tomb
  65. Serious Sam 2 ending cutscene dialogue
  66. Serious Sam 3: BFE level: The Silent Riddler (ending cutscene)
  67. Serious Sam 4 level: Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse (conversation between Rodriguez and Hellfire)
  68. The Art of Serious Sam 4, page 170
  69. Serious Sam 4 level: The Die is Cast (opening cutscene)
  70. Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem level: Crime And Punishment (Brand holding Ivan hostage cutscene)
  71. Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem level: Crime And Punishment (ending cutscene)
  72. Serious Sam 4 level: Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse ("Amateur Archeology" side objective) (conversation between Sam and Professor Kiesel)
  73. Serious Sam 4 level: Gates of Hell (conversation between Sam and Professor Kiesel)
  74. Witch-Bride introduction cutscene in the level The Dark Bride
  75. Serious Sam 3: BFE level The Gathering of the Gods (conversation between Sam and Quinn)
  76. Serious Sam Fusion loading screen trivia
  77. Serious Sam 4 level: A Breakfast in France ("Droning On" ending cutscene)
  78. Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem level: Roadside Picnic (stone tablets found at Dig Site no.36)
  79. Serious Sam 4 - NETRICSA - Dossiers - Notes - "Letter to Gabriella"
  80. The Art of Serious Sam 4, page 163
  81. Serious Sam 4 level: Death from Above (opening cutscene) (conversation between Kenny and Sam)
  82. Serious Sam 4 level: Death from Below' (ending cutscene) (conversation between Hellfire and Sam)
  83. I am John J Dick, Horror Photographer and voice actor who portrayed Serious Sam. AMA!
  84. Conversation between Sam and Quinn in the level Together Forever
  85. https://store.steampowered.com/app/360820/The_Talos_Principle__Serious_DLC/
  86. https://3dnews.ru/911991
  87. YouTube favicon The Talos Principle - Elite Serious Sam Room Easter Egg on YouTube
  88. https://gamejolt.com/games/combat-force/3442#close
  89. https://gcup.ru/forum/28-7060-7

See also[]

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