The more things change, the more they stay the same. This rebrand isn't entirely superficial but it hangs on to a surprising amount of the old formula. Some bits have been better gated, helping to pace gameplay, and it's almost refreshing to be around new personalities. They can feel out of place sometimes, but that's because they're such a nice bunch of mass murderers.
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Visuals
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Variety
The Saints Row reboot was always going to be divisive. Agents of Mayhem, the last time the concept was mucked with, didn’t go over so well. And that game actually kept Johnny Gat. Chucking out the old crew and replacing them with a set of youngsters, with a different set of values, was always going to mess with players.
Turns out, you really didn’t have to worry. This Saints Row reboot certainly has a few issues, which we’ll get to in a moment. But it’s still just a bunch of loveable scamps getting up to unlikely adventures that happen to involve tremendous amounts of violent behaviour. Even the gameplay loops haven’t altered significantly.
I woke up for this
It’s easy to see where objections to this game will come from. Saints Row, previously, was the home of offence. The double-handed dildo-bat from SR 3 is particularly infamous. That’s been damped down here somewhat but mostly because it doesn’t make sense in this new world. Instead, there’s a new Boss and a new crew. There’s Kevin, a buff bisexual who likes to cook. There’s Neenah, a hipster Hispanic with a thing for all things motorised. And then there’s Eli, a seriously nerdy African American who goes larping and listens to classical music. Taken together, they’re as nice a bunch as you might ever hope to meet. Except for the casual attitude towards manslaughter, murder, theft, bribery… you know, all the things that make the Saints the Saints.
This is where things get a little incongruous. It’s hard to reconcile the tolerant attitudes and actually care about the new Saints’ employees (you attempt to look after them, as an employer) with the rampant criminal activity you’ll carry out without batting an eye. Violence is frequently the first answer, if only because it’s the fastest way to run over the obstacle in your way. It doesn’t always make sense, going from the warm, nurturing environment of the Saints’ home life to a bloody and brutal rampage. But it’s still a fair amount of fun.
Take your custom elsewhere
Developer Volition has made its character creator as inclusive as possible. Players can create literally any sort of character they want. A straight white guy, a black lesbian, and any permutation in between, up to and including transgender folks may be created. That’s all on you, though. You can look how you want and the folks around you will just accept it.
Inclusivity continues through body types, skin conditions, and prosthetic limbs. There’s almost certainly something the developers have forgotten, but it’ll be because it was overlooked. Not because anybody was feeling malicious. A certain sort of gamer will take these options personally, conveniently forgetting that they could roam Steelport as a homicidal clown with his junk flapping in the breeze in previous games.
In reality, the Boss creator is fantastic. Players can create the body type they want and, as far as we can see, it’ll move and react in exceedingly fluid ways. This is some of the best character modelling we’ve seen in an open-world game. If you want a demonstration, create a character with excessive muscle tone. Muscle movements, when dressed in one of the numerous available skin-tight outfits (or fully nude, if that’s your thing), are exceedingly realistic.
It’s possible to create a character that looks like anyone and at any age. This is played out in NPCs as well — there’s plenty of variety on the streets. There’s only one problem. If you create a character that looks a little older, it’s easy to feel like Steve Buscemi around your young crew.
We’re going in circles
Saints Row pits a plucky, up-and-coming crew against two established gangs and a private military company. Along the way, there are all manner of wacky adventures, a spot of constructing a burgeoning criminal empire, and a whole lot of car theft. This could describe Saints Row 3 just as well. The main difference between the two is the execution. The reboot is a more modern world. Visuals are more reality-based, even if the game engine’s physics often disagree. It’s still a cartoon, but it occasionally nods more in the direction of Grand Theft Auto when it comes to portraying characters and situations.
For instance, wave-based combat is still present. It’s just that this is triggered by leaving bad reviews at venues around the city. The lower the review, the more violent the response. Sometimes these events are noted on in-game news reports if they’re particularly violent. It’s the same gameplay, but the triggering mechanism has shifted.
Taking over parts of the city involves visiting the Saints’ church hub area, taking over vacant lots (that you stole from a real estate mogul — you’ll see) with businesses, and upgrading them. Complete the upgrade, and you own that bit of the city. It’s a lot of legwork, but it tends to be mindless fun at the very least. It also gives you a chance to upgrade yourself and your kit.
Upgrades, for cars and weapons, are locked behind two barriers. There are special, objective-based abilities for each gun and car. Complete those, and you can assign them at garages and weapon stores. Paid upgrades are locked behind player level. You can upgrade at Levels 5, 10, and 15, instead of just whenever you have cash. This helps maintain a level of challenge so you’re never really overpowered.
New year, new you
There are some entirely new features. The in-game phone has been given a much larger emphasis. Because this is the new Saints Row, after all. Players assign skills that can be triggered here. These use something called Flow, which regenerates. Players can lob grenades or smoke bombs, equip temporary armour, or unleash a hail of bullets in a tight spot. There’s also a perks system that grants players set benefits. It takes significant cash investment to properly use this tree, but the ability to sprint out of danger or retain Flow until it’s needed is worth it.
The phone is also where players can customise their appearance, at basically any time. Decide you want to be female after playing the first few missions as a male? Done. Want a whole new appearance? Sure. The only exceptions seem to be missions where you’re wearing specific outfits. If they want you wearing a Marshall (the paramilitary group) outfit, you’re going to wear it. Happily, you’ll go back to your standard threads when the mission is over.
The Saints’ base can also be customised, to a certain extent. This is done by finding items out in the world and photographing them. These can then be placed around your base, as mementoes. Some are awarded for completing certain missions, so you can skip the make-work element of finding the hidden items in the world. Still, if they’re in the vicinity…
Be better
There are some problems with Saints Row, however. While you’re battling the Panteros, the Idols, and Marshall for supremacy over the city, you’ll find out that the game’s engine can be a little… wonky. Some of this will be corrected by later patches, but occasionally players and cars go totally haywire. Bouncing around the screen haywire. You know the sort of thing.
Other issues are based on design. The game equipped items we didn’t own after visits to the store. Some missions transport players back to the Saints’ base when they shouldn’t. Garages don’t work when on missions — this makes sense, but it’s irritatingly arranged. Stopping at the garage on the way to a mission briefing should be allowed. This is one of several minor instances of shoddy game design. The game makes up for it in other areas, but there you go.
There are also gameplay elements that are borrowed liberally from Just Cause — which makes a kind of sense, based on the intro mission. The ability to shoot at enemies from the roof of a car is impractical but cool. The wingsuit that players start with is just… there. It’s not really addressed or explained, players just have a wingsuit. Fun for getting around the city, but about as incongruous as being quite civil to everyone until you’re ready to shoot them in the face.
Saints Row verdict
It’s really fine if you want to hate these characters. Then don’t play the game. But they’ll grow on you. It’s obvious that they were written with the idea that you shouldn’t be a dick to your friends. Writing them off for that reason is to deny yourself a bit of fun. Saints Row is at its best during story-based missions, especially those where you get to know the oddball members of your crew. They’re an entertaining, surprisingly heartfelt bunch once you get to know them. Unless they’re shooting at you.
If you’re a fan of Saints Row as a series, you’ll immediately feel at home with the game itself. It’s a slightly more serious take on Saints Row III, with similar gameplay loops, antagonists, and challenges. The world is different, and names have changed, but you’re still covering familiar territory. Sometimes the journey doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, but that’s standard for the series. Check your brain at the door and go on an inexplicably violent rampage because a store owner doesn’t like your one-star review.
