The XPMR Raygun, nicknamed the "Burner", is a powerful energy weapon used by the Earth Defense Force. It is exclusive to Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem and replaces the XL2 Lasergun from Serious Sam 4 in the former game's normal campaign.
Overview[]
The Burner is an experimental weapon developed by the Earth Defense Force's Armaments R&D. Even though the weapon is still in its early development stages, it may eventually become a game changer in modern laser warfare. The weapon has been reverse-engineered from captured Draconian Burner technology and retrofitted to be usable by EDF personnel.[1] The weapon's body is made from titanium, which makes it lightweight and impervious to overheating, while some structural changes, such as the new hyperboloid-based light ray concentrator, allow for more precise aiming.[1]
Due to its origins, the Burner is backwards compatible with Draconian chem cells in addition to EDF-produced ammo packs. Despite promising initial tests, the weapon's future is uncertain, as its designer, Pyotr Zharin, was killed in an attack while trying to deliver the new prototype to the EDF headquarters in Siberia.
The Burner shoots a highly-collimated thermal beam when the fire key is pressed. Continuously firing the weapon at an enemy will gradually heat the target up to 2500°C, and it will eventually combust from an internal flash-burn.[1] The larger the enemy the weapon is used on, the more powerful the explosion will be. Note that in the same manner as the XM214-A Minigun, there is a slight delay between pressing the fire key and the Burner unleashing its thermal beam, as the weapon needs to be spooled up.
The Burner is very similar to the XL2's death laser mode in Serious Sam 4, as well as the XL4-P 'Ghostbuster' Beam Gun from Serious Sam Classics: Revolution and the Beam Gun from Serious Sam 2, with virtually the same accuracy. The main difference between these weapons is that the Burner, as its name implies, causes enemies to heat up and explode when they are killed, dealing damage to other enemies around them.
There is an unlockable skin for the Burner. It can be obtained by unlocking and completing all five Christmas areas in New Game+. It fires a blue ray as opposed to the usual orange, and instead of heating up enemies, it cools them down and causes them to explode. This version of the gun is called the "XPMR "Freezer" Raygun".
Appearances[]
The Burner is first obtained in Roadside Picnic shortly after meeting Igor Ledov's team. Ammo for the Burner is plentiful, allowing the player to use it very often. It can be used in the first three levels of the game via the New Game+ gamemode as well.
Tactics[]
- AS with the minigun, tap the trigger to keep the Burner ready to fire, but only attack once hordes of enemies begin to spawn.
- The Burner comes in handy when facing a group of weak enemies, as one enemy exploding often causes other enemies around it to die as well, killing many of them at once.
- The Burner is a very useful weapon against groups of weak enemies, such as Gnaars, Processed Anthropolyps, and Kleer Skeletons. It quickly causes one of these enemies to explode, which is very useful when fighting groups of them, as Gnaars, Processed, and Kleers that are around the exploding enemy often die as well or become heavily wounded, allowing the player to kill them faster.
- It is one of the best weapons to use against groups of Octanian Commanders, especially when they are lined up together. The Burner's beam can quickly penetrate through the Commander's shield and cause him to explode, and the resulting explosion can destroy all the Commanders next to him.
- Aludran Microhoppers can easily be destroyed with this weapon, as their health is low and the resulting explosions can kill more Hoppers easily.
- It is not recommended to use the Burner against Beheaded Kamikazes, as they explode and cause other enemies around them to take damage on their own anyway. The AK-74MX, Autoshotgun, XM214-A Minigun, and XL2 Lasergun are more useful against them.
- The Burner also ignores the armor of Octanian Legionnaires and Octanian Zealots, since it heats them up even if the beam hits an area where the Zealot or Legionnaire is otherwise immune or resistant to damage.
- When dual-wielded, it is incredibly useful against strong enemies, such as Adult Arachnoids, Common Aludran Reptiloids, Draconian Pyromaniacs, Khnums, and Major Bio-mechanoids. The dual-wielded Burners' high damage rate allows the player to kill groups of them quickly, especially if aiming for a weak point.
- Dual-wielded Burners are very useful when used with a Rage Serum against Howard Brand. They can deal massive damage to him while the rage effect is active, which is useful if the player wants to defeat him quickly or unlock the Veni, Vidi, Vici achievement for beating him on Serious difficulty without loading mid-battle saves.
- In New Game+, the Burner is a suitable weapon to use against the Cryomorph Gnaar Pair. It can deal sizeable damage to one Gnaar or even destroy the Gnaars' ice projectiles.
Related achievements[]
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| Kill 10 enemies with one Burner explosion |
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| Kill Draconian Burner with a Burner gun. |
Bugs/glitches[]
- A visual glitch exists in the Xbox Series X/S version of Siberian Mayhem where a second Burner beam appears on screen while firing the weapon in single-wield mode.
Trivia[]
- The Burner's designer name, Pyotr Zharin, and "hyperboloid-based light ray concentrator" mentioned in the weapon's description are references to The Garin Death Ray, a science fiction novel by the Russian author Aleksey Tolstoy.
- If picked up, the Burner reuses the minigun's pickup sound.
Gallery[]
List of appearances[]
- Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem (First appearance)