Choose Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter
Choose Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter if it carries the stronger Steam consensus at 89.3% positive across 319 reviews.
Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter vs The Haunted: Hells Reach
Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter and The Haunted: Hells Reach 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 Second Encounter (2010) is 1 year older than The Haunted: Hells Reach (2011). Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter scores higher on Steam reviews (89.3% positive) than The Haunted: Hells Reach (83.5% 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 The Haunted: Hells Reach
Choose The Haunted: Hells Reach if you want the LAN PvP and LAN Co-op side of the pairing. On Steam, it's currently about 55% cheaper on the Steam Store. The Haunted: Hells Reach launched in 2011.
Both Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter and The Haunted: Hells Reach 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. Use the side-by-side table for the feature view, or follow the "Games like" links below to see ranked alternatives for either title.
Side-by-side comparison
 Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter |  The Haunted: Hells Reach | |
|---|---|---|
| Released | 2010 | 2011 |
| Genres | Action, Indie | Action, Indie |
| Platforms | Windows | Windows |
| Steam Deck | Unrated | Unrated |
| Price | 19.99 USD | 8.99 USD |
| Steam reviews | 89.3% positive (319 reviews) | 83.5% positive (266 reviews) |
| Multiplayer | Multi-player, Online Co-op, Co-op | Multi-player, Online Co-op, LAN Co-op |
| Developers | Croteam | KTX Software |
Side by side
- Both share Action, Indie on Steam.
- Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter (2010) is 1 year older than The Haunted: Hells Reach (2011).
- Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter scores higher on Steam reviews (89.3% positive) than The Haunted: Hells Reach (83.5% positive).
- The Haunted: Hells Reach is currently ~55% cheaper on Steam than Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter (8.99 USD vs. 19.99 USD).
- Both support cooperative play.
Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter vs The Haunted: Hells Reach — FAQ
- Which is better, Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter or The Haunted: Hells Reach?
- On Steam reviews Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter scores higher (89.3% positive) than The Haunted: Hells Reach (83.5% positive). Both have enough reviews to trust the signal, so for players using reviews alone, Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter is the safer pick. Genre fit still matters — check the side-by-side table for the categories each game lands in.
- Should I play Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter or The Haunted: Hells Reach first?
- If you want chronology, Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter (2010) came out before The Haunted: Hells Reach (2011). 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 Second Encounter and The Haunted: Hells Reach 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 Second Encounter and The Haunted: Hells Reach have co-op?
- Yes — both list a co-op category on Steam. Specifics differ: Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter ships Online Co-op, Co-op; The Haunted: Hells Reach ships Online Co-op, LAN Co-op.