Serious Sam first made a name for himself back in early 2001 in a brand new shooter that offered a light-hearted approach to an oh-so-serious gaming genre. There have been several further outings since then, but only one of them on a console platform. Now the Duke Nukem-alike has debuted on GameCube in what is the most polished Serious Sam offering yet - The Next Encounter. An abandoned mothership of Sirian origin is sending strange signals from the past, and there's only one man with guns big enough to investigate - Sam "Serious" Stone. But if Mental's forces beat Sam to this powerful time-travelling artefact, it's game over for humanity! It's a serious plot, yes, but fast-paced and sometimes comedic gameplay counters it brilliantly. In what is effectively a gold edition version of the Serious Sam series, Next Encounter combines much of the level design from previous games whilst adding a few new extras of its own. Here, new enemies, new weapons, a new story, vehicular action and combos have been delivered, making gameplay in The Next Encounter more extensive and diverse than its predecessors. The game plays host to 40 vibrant levels altogether, and thanks to the time-travelling storyline, takes place over three unique time periods - Ancient Rome, Feudal China and Legendary Atlantis. And if this massive single-player adventure doesn't grab you, there are also the obligatory multi-player options on hand for a little head-to-head gaming. Compared with Serious Sam and The Second Encounter, there's very little wrong with Next Encounter. And as the title suggest, there may be more to come...