Dunes

This article contains spoilers. Read at your own risk!

"Dunes" is the sixth level of Serious Sam: The First Encounter, Serious Sam: Xbox, Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter, Serious Sam VR: The First Encounter, and Serious Sam Classics: Revolution.

Plot

With all four elements in possession, Sam is now close to the city of Memphis, where he hopes to find answers on how to activate the spaceship the Sirians left, but must first eliminate the enemy resistance guarding the entrance to the city.

Secrets

1. Past the starting hill (the starting area), turn and walk right until you see a Large Health. Pick them up to register the secrets and spawn some enemies.
2. From #1, continue walking right to some oasis with palm trees and some collectable items. There is a specific spot on which you must stand to register this secret, specifically near the rightmost position/tree of the oasis. Hurry up to get it registered though, as Harpies will spawn and you will receive heat damage if you stay too long there. For this reason, this secret should be skipped entirely when doing no damage runs on classic versions of the game.
3. As of #1, turn and walk left instead, there are some power-ups. Picking them up will register the secret, and like #1, spawn some enemies.
4. From the wall by the city entrance, follow it to the left. You'll see a tree. Blow it up or cut it with the knife to spawn enemies and items.
5. (HD and VR only) Opposite of #4, there is a +1 health pill next to a ledge attached to the wall. Pick it up to spawn some enemies. This will only register as a secret in the HD and VR versions of the game.
6. When inside the city walls, in the area with the XL2 Lasergun, head for the left corner and rocket jump to the building/platform (can only be done on Normal or higher difficulties) or jump on top of an enemy and then on the building (on Tourist difficulty). There's a small "hallway"/corridor in it, with some ammo. Pick up the ammo to register the secret. In Classic version, slope jumping boost can be used to get onto the building instead.
7. Opposite of #6, rocket jump onto the right building/platform (or jump on top of an enemy and then on the building (on Tourist difficulty), and then get off it immediately, but head for the center of the area, as a pair of Major Bio-mechanoids will spawn near the rubble. After the rubble vanishes, pick up the Extra Large Health to register the secret (in Serious Sam Fusion, a platform will spawn on the left and right walls that can be jumped on). Alternatively, shooting the building with 20 rockets will destroy the building immediately.

Trivia

• The "medium" music of 'this level is referenced several times in the Serious Sam series as a recurring leitmotif:
  • The "medium" music of "Greendale" from Serious Sam 2 is based on "Dunes".
  • Ugh-Zan IV's boss fight theme in Serious Sam 3: BFE is a remixed version of the theme.
  • The "medium" music of "Anathema Unto God" from Serious Sam 4 features a "Dunes"-like part just before the middle of the music.
  • The unused menu music of Serious Sam Classics: Revolution features the Dunes leitmotif.
  • Both the peace and fight tracks of "Trouble in Troy" from Serious Sam's Bogus Detour use parts of the theme.
  • The first level in Serious Sam: Tormental set in Mental's mind, "Mental Woods", also uses a variation of this theme.
  • It is referenced again in the 2023 Croteam game The Talos Principle 2, as one of the songs ("Damjan 112") can be heard playing on his guitar. Fittingly, "Damjan (112)" is named after Damjan Mravunac, composer for the both Serious Sam and The Talos Principle series.