Croteam experiments with the level design on this one quite a lot, and it usually doesn't pay off. I played the first 2 levels on Normal and that difficulty is still too hard for me, yet Easy is too easy (which is an issue with the other games in this series that I've played). The approach taken by this DLC seems to be placing more of a focus on fewer hordes of enemies and more heavy enemies that fire at you from a distance, encouraging the use of the sniper rifle much more. The fact of the matter is that staying at range and chipping away at enemies isn't nearly as fun as trying to back away from a swarm and cleaning them up with a big arsenal of weapons.

The level and encounter design got some SERIOUS upgrades this time! The visual enhancements are also a welcome change, along with fewer outdated game design tropes (though a few are still present).

BFE maintains the series' sense of identity and core gameplay with its fast-paced encounters, but it does a far better job and pacing these encounters between each other. For example, the game sometimes presents subterranean sections where you're forced to move slower and fight jumpy enemies in the dark, relying only on your flashlight to see them. It seems unusual in theory but I think it fits right in.

Much like the First and Second Encounters, it culminates in a gauntlet level leading into its final boss. And I'm happy to say that both the gauntlet and the boss are significantly better than those in the previous games. The boss isn't anything too special, but it has easily the best sense of scale and unique mechanics which are required to beat it.

It's safe to say that, despite numerous flaws, I am now a serious fan of Serious Sam.