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Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter vs Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter

Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter and Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter both land in Action, Indie on Steam, which is why they keep getting compared. The comparison below is built from each game's Steam metadata — release year, genres, categories, Steam Deck status, price, and review score — refreshed daily by imho.run's scraper. Headline differences: Both share Action, Indie on Steam. Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter (2009) is 1 year older than Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter (2010). Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter scores higher on Steam reviews (91.1% positive) than Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter (89.3% positive). No login or purchase needed — scroll for the full table, the verdict FAQ, and links to ranked similar games for both titles.

Which should you pick?

Choose Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter

Choose Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter if you want the Shared/Split Screen, Shared/Split Screen PvP, and Shared/Split Screen Co-op side of the pairing. On Steam, it's currently about 25% cheaper on the Steam Store. 2,396 Steam reviews back the pick.

Choose Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter

Choose Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter if it matches what drew you to this matchup. Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter launched in 2010.

Both Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter and Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter sit in Action and Indie on Steam and both list Multi-player, Steam Leaderboards, and Online PvP, so either pick lands in the same broad neighborhood. Steam reviews are nearly tied (91.1% vs 89.3% positive), so genre fit is the cleanest tiebreaker — scroll the table for the feature-by-feature view.

Side-by-side comparison

Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter vs Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter — Steam metadata comparison
Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter — Steam game coverSerious Sam HD: The First EncounterSerious Sam HD: The Second Encounter — Steam game coverSerious Sam HD: The Second Encounter
Released20092010
GenresAction, IndieAction, Indie
PlatformsWindowsWindows
Steam DeckDeck PlayableUnrated
Price14.99 USD19.99 USD
Steam reviews91.1% positive (2,396 reviews)89.3% positive (319 reviews)
MultiplayerMulti-player, Online Co-op, Shared/Split Screen Co-opMulti-player, Online Co-op, Co-op
DevelopersCroteamCroteam

Side by side

Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter vs Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter — FAQ

Which is better, Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter or Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter?
On Steam reviews the two are nearly tied: Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter sits at 91.1% positive (2,396 reviews), Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter at 89.3% (319). The choice usually comes down to genre fit and the platform features each one supports — see the comparison table above.
Should I play Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter or Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter first?
If you want chronology, Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter (2009) came out before Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter (2010). If neither is a sequel to the other, order doesn't really matter — start with whichever fits your current mood, since both share enough on Steam to make either a reasonable opener.
Are Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter and Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter similar?
They overlap on Action, Indie on Steam, so the catalogue groups them together — but "similar" depends on the specific mechanics. Use the genre + category rows above to decide whether the overlap matches what drew you to the one you've already played.
Do both Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter and Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter have co-op?
Yes — both list a co-op category on Steam. Specifics differ: Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter ships Online Co-op, Shared/Split Screen Co-op; Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter ships Online Co-op, Co-op.
Does Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter run on Steam Deck?
Yes — Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter is rated Deck Playable by Valve. Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter doesn't have a Deck rating yet, so its Deck behaviour is currently unverified.
Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter vs Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter · imho.run