The Hatchling Antaresian Spider is a small, common enemy introduced in Serious Sam 3: BFE. It later appears in Serious Sam 3 VR: BFE, Serious Sam VR: The Last Hope, and I Hate Running Backwards.
Overview[]
Hatchling Antaresian Spiders are newborn Antaresian Spiders, a species of arachnid-like aliens that originate from Antares Prime, a planet orbiting a red supergiant. Since their homeworld orbits such a large star, this has to the planet's lifeforms evolving to reach sizes of massive proportions.[1]
Appearances[]
Hatching Spiders are fairly common enemies, and have a tendency to appear in groups. They can also be found in cocoons, which are relatively common in urban areas such as Cairo. They also sometimes appear from beneath the sand, such as in "The Lost Temples of Nubia".
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
An Antaresian Spider's cocoon.
Hatchlings are relatively common throughout the game, appearing on the second level up until the eleventh level of the campaign. They are absent from the final level, where they are instead replaced with swarms of Juvenile Antaresian Spiders.
Jewel of the Nile[]
They are first encountered in "Together Forever" past the parking lot where the player is forced to destroy the barricades with C-4 Demolition Charges. Tiny Hatchlings also appear in a secret 'spider cave' in the level "Gathering of the Gods" behind some wooden planks.
Serious Sam VR: The Last Hope[]
Hatchling Spiders are common enemies in this spinoff title, and are often seen in small to medium-sized swarms.
I Hate Running Backwards[]
Hatchling Spiders are very common enemies in this game, appearing as early as the "A King's Tail" environment, the first stage in the game.
Behavior and skills[]
Hatchlings are much weaker and smaller in comparison to Juvenile Antaresian Spiders. As they are very young and their bodies are still developing, they have weak jaws and undeveloped exoskeletons, so if the player is close to a spider, pressing the Use button (E by default) will have Sam squash the spider with his foot, killing it instantly. Though an individual Hatchling is not dangerous, a swarm of them can be deadly.[1]
Hatchlings are often found in eggs. These eggs are very sensitive to noise, and can detect sounds up to 89.5 dB.[2] Thus, if a firearm is shot within the vicinity of an egg, it alerts other Spiders in the area, causing other eggs to hatch, which in turn spawns more Hatchlings. This can very easily lead to the player getting swarmed if they happen to fire in a area infested with eggs.
Like arachnids, Hatchlings have adhesive surfaces on their feet, which gives them the ability to climb walls and latch onto ceilings.[1] Its primary attacks are to fire acid balls at the target, which are produced by poisonous glands in their tail, and to bite the player should they get too close to them. On Hard or Serious difficulty in Serious Sam Fusion, Hatchlings can fire green acid balls that bounce off walls and ceilings, in the exact same manner as the Exotech Larva's plasma orbs, although they can be destroyed with weapons fire.
The Hatchling Spider's behavior has been altered in I Hate Running Backwards; they don't fire acid balls at the player from a distance, and their AI is limited to only chasing the player and damaging them with a melee attack.
Tactics[]
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
- Due to their low health, a single Hatchling can be killed with any weapon. However, the SOP38 Pistol, Sledgehammer or 12 Gauge Pump-Action Shotgun work best, as they use very little to no ammo.
- The melee attack is very handy for killing a single Hatchling or against small groups of them without using any ammo. This should only be done if there are no other enemies close to the player, as the melee animation renders the player briefly vulnerable.
- When playing on the level "Into the Spider's Nest", be aware of any eggs or Hatchings on the ceiling, especially in the basement segment; it is very easy to be hit by a Hatchling's acid spit without realizing where it's coming from, which can be somewhat troublesome when playing on Serious difficulty.
- When in an area with lots of eggs containing Hatchling Spiders, a combination of sledgehammer and melee attacks work best to eliminate them. They should be shot only when there are a few of them left, as a small amount of Hatchlings are easy to deal with.
- Groups of Hatchlings can easily be dispatched with either the pump-action shotgun or M29 Infantry Assault Rifle. One shotgun blast can easily kill multiple Hatchlings, while the assault rifle can slice through a group of them thanks to its good rate of fire and damage.
- Although the XL2 Lasergun and XM214-A Minigun may be tempting to use against swarms of Hatchlings as they kill Hatchlings in one hit, they shouldn't be used except as a last resort especially due to the rarity of their respective ammo sources.
- With groups of enemies, the Hatchling is little more than a nuisance. As long as the player is moving in a direction, they're harmless. If they get close, the player can simply sprint away from them. Therefore, they are a low priority target when mixed with other enemies.
Serious Sam VR: The Last Hope[]
- The same tactics for dealing with Hatchlings in this game is pretty much the same as in Serious Sam 3. Any small-arms fire like the SOP38 or the Laser Pistol is enough to kill individuals or small groups of them.
- When being swarmed by Hatchlings, the P-LAH Chainsaw and Laser Sword can eliminate them instantly.
- With larger groups, dual-wield pump shotguns, XPML21 Rocket Launchers or assault rifles are great for taking them quickly, especially when paired with Juvenile spiders.
I Hate Running Backwards[]
- The Spider is a basic enemy with very low health. Their behaviour is limited to constantly following the player and trying to do so until they die, either by damaging the player or being shot. The Antaresian Spider has no ranged attacks to speak of.
- Virtually every weapon is able to kill a Spider in a single shot. However, their strength is in numbers. While they are slower than the Marsh Hoppers, they like to swarm the player - so the best way to counter them is by using weapons with high rate of fire, such as the Minigun - or weapons with area damage like the Shock Blaster.
Related achievements[]
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
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| Squash 10 Hatching Spiders. |
Serious Sam Fusion[]
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| Squash 10 Hatching Spiders. |
Trivia[]
- A large number of Hatchling cocoons can be found inside the Egyptian Museum's basement in the level "Into The Spider's Nest" after the phone cutscene. Disturbing the cocoons will cause the Hatchlings to erupt all at once and they will begin swarming the player.
- Hatching Spiders have a brief period of invulnerablity (lasting approximately half a second) if their cocoons are destroyed while they are inside them. Once they have finished their animation, they are able to take damage and be killed.
- The Hatchling does not appear in Serious Sam 4; it is instead replaced by the Zubenhakrabian Spider Nymph.
Gallery[]
Serious Sam 3: BFE[]
Serious Sam VR: The Last Hope[]
I Hate Running Backwards[]
List of appearances[]
- Serious Sam 3: BFE (First appearance)
- Serious Sam VR: The Last Hope
- Serious Sam 3 VR: BFE (non-canonical appearance)
- I Hate Running Backwards (non-canonical appearance)
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 NETRICSA description
- ↑ Serious Sam Fusion loading screen trivia