Cucurbito the Pumpkin, or just Cucurbito, is an enemy that is first introduced in Serious Sam: The Second Encounter and later appears multiple times in the Serious Sam series.
Overview[]
Cucurbito the Pumpkin is a strange creature that was genetically engineered by Mental after his time-traveling agents returned with samples of 20th century media found on Earth.[1] Among the items were Smashing Pumpkins albums, a copy of the Burt Reynolds movie Deliverance and an old copy of "Lumberjack Digest". As Mental inserted the final, 1979th part into the abomination, it sprang to life and even Mental faltered at the sight of it.[1]
Appearance-wise, the Cucurbito is a humanoid creature that resembles a heavily built Caucausian man with a pumpkin in place of a head. He wears overalls and wields a large chainsaw in his hands, which he uses as his weapon of choice in combat.
Appearances[]
Serious Sam: The Second Encounter[]
Cucurbitos are relatively common enemies, appearing from Sierra de Chiapas all the way to The Grand Cathedral. Most of them appear in close quarter areas, though there are a few times where they appear in open spaces. Tiny ones spawn in the secret pumpkin yard in The Grand Cathedral if the player ventures off the concrete path or destroys any of the tiny pumpkins.
Serious Sam: The Greek Encounter[]
In this game, Cucurbitos often appear with other tough enemies, such as Sirian Werebulls and Statues.
I Hate Running Backwards[]
Cucurbitos are quite rare and do not appear until the third environment in the game, Molty Python. They also appear later in Specific Rim, the final enviroment in the game. They usually appear sparingly and rarely show up in swarms.
Application[]
Cucurbitos are common units in Mental's army, often serving as close-range assault troops. Their purpose is to get as close to the target as possble and corner them. However, as they have no ranged attacks, they can be easily dispatched with firearms or explosive projectiles from a safe distance unless they are encountered in large numbers. When Cucurbitos do appear, they usually spawn with other enemies, such as Gnaars and Kleer Skeletons.
Behavior and skills[]
The Cucurbito's only weapon that he uses in combat is his chainsaw. Upon spotting the target, he will begin revving his chainsaw and charge towards the target, repeatedly slashing at them with his chainsaw and dismembering them if he manages to kill them (this doesn't always happen in the classic releases — sometimes the player will still die normally). A Cucurbito can move at roughly the same speed as a Kleer, so the player cannot outrun him except with Serious Speed active. He can, however, be easily dodged by strafing sideways. When the Cucurbito misses, he will turn around and try again. In Serious Sam HD, Cucurbitos can sometimes rapidly slash the player, dealing the same amount of damage but in a rapid succession, which can quickly kill a player with low health. This usually occurs if the player is close to them after their charge attack is finished.
Like other enemies that use melee attacks, Cucurbitos lack any tactics and do not use flanking manuevers, and will usually charge towards the player in a straight line. They will not stop pursuing the player until either the Cucurbito or the player is dead or the Cucurbito has lost sight of the player for a while. In the same manner as the Sirian Werebull, the Cucurbito can inflict Kicking damage to a player by merely touching them, although this only happens in the classic releases.
I Hate Running Backwards[]
In I Hate Running Backwards, Cucurbitos are much larger and more durable, having the highest health points out of any non-boss enemy in the game. They also behave differently from The Second Encounter ; they will react the same way upon noticing their target just as they do in the previous installments, though when attacked, they will become enraged, raise their chainsaw, and increase their speed to reach the target faster, which makes them even more dangerous.
Tactics[]
Serious Sam: The Second Encounter[]
- Cucurbitos are easy to dodge, making them not a major threat when encountered with other enemies. The player can easily dodge Cucurbitos while taking out more serious threats, such as Major Bio-mechanoids, Common Aludran Reptiloids, and Arachnoids.
- Cucurbito is very similar to a Sirian Werebull albeit with less knockback from charging attacks and less health, and so should be treated as such.
- A grenade fired by the MK III Grenade Launcher or a zoomed in RAPTOR Sniper Rifle shot can kill a Cucurbito in one hit, making the latter very effective against groups of Cucurbitos.
- For obvious reasons, one should not use melee weapons against a Cucurbito, unless as a last resort and the player sidesteps to avoid his attacks.
- A single Cucurbito can be taken out with the 12 Gauge Pump-Action Shotgun, although several shots are needed to kill one. It is best to the stronger weapons like the Double Barrel Coach Gun or Military Knife.
- A single or small group of Cucurbitos can be killed with the Double Barrel Coach Gun or XPML21 Rocket Launcher.
- Groups of Cucurbitos can be easily taken out with the XM214-A Minigun, XL2 Lasergun, XOP Flamethrower or a charged up cannonball. The minigun and flamethrower's high rates of fire and high damage outputs can quickly kill multiple Cucurbitos, while a charged up cannonball can kill a large group in one hit, making them very useful against Cucurbitos.
I Hate Running Backwards[]
- Cucurbitos rarely show up in swarms, although one is enough to keep the player distracted from the many other enemies that may be appearing on the screen.
- In a sense, it is easy enough to dodge the Cucurbito's attacks with frequent use of a melee attack, which will not kill the Cucurbito, since that is not powerful enough, but will at least knock him back, and allow for "kiting" - constantly pushing him back while peppering him with a powerful enough ranged weapon.
- This constant knocking back is also a great way to quickly unlock the "Homerun!" achievement.
- The Dandelion works very well against Cucurbitos, as it can push them back and deal a good amount of damage.
Behind the scenes[]
- The Cucurbito, along with the P-LAH Chainsaw, RAPTOR Sniper Rifle, and XOP Flamethrower, were originally meant to appear in Serious Sam: The First Encounter, but were scrapped before the game's final release.
Related achievements[]
Serious Sam VR: The Second Encounter[]
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| Kill 50 Cucurbitos. |
Serious Sam Fusion[]
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| Kill 50 Cucurbitos. |
Trivia[]
- According to NETRICSA, Cucurbito is a vegetarian.
- He is referred to as
ChainsawFreakin the game files of the classic version of The Second Encounter. - The Xbox version of the Cucurbito has a slight change in appearance. His chainsaw also uses a different model.
- The chainsaw used by Cucurbito is a variant of the same chainsaw used by Sam. This is shared with the Beheaded Firecracker in Serious Sam HD.
- In The Second Encounter, tiny Cucurbitos can be encountered in secrets. The first instance of this is in The City of the Gods in the underground portion of the level, and the second time is in The Grand Cathedral in the secret pumpkin field.
- The Cucurbito's AI sometimes makes him fall off of cliff edges or near obstacles when chasing the player. This is shared with Kleer Skeletons and Sirian Werebulls and can sometimes be used to the player's advantage if timed correctly.
- In Serious Sam: Xbox, the Cucurbito only has the death animation for dying while stopping moving and being killed with small firearms. His death animation while running or being killed with strong attacks is cut.
- The Cucurbito can be gibbed with the SBC Cannon in Serious Sam HD and Serious Sam VR, but not in the original The Second Encounter or Serious Sam: Xbox.
- If gibbed, he will play his death sound again even after he was previously killed with any other weapon.
- In the original version of The Second Encounter, the Cucurbito has a wound sound that will play if the player damages him before he sees them. This sound was not carried over to Serious Sam HD.
Gallery[]
Serious Sam: The Second Encounter[]
Serious Sam: The Greek Encounter[]
Serious Sam VR: The Second Encounter[]
I Hate Running Backwards[]
List of appearances[]
- Serious Sam: The Second Encounter (First appearance)
- Serious Sam: Xbox (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam: The Greek Encounter (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam VR: The Second Encounter (non-canonical appearance)
- I Hate Running Backwards (non-canonical appearance)
- Serious Sam Classics: Revolution (non-canonical appearance)
References[]