Saints Row: The Third

So I loved Saints Row 2 and have been waiting for The Third to come out ever since. How does it compare? Well - its similar but different; it keeps most of the good bits of SR 2 and improves on them and bins off the less good bits. There are a couple of disappointments, but I'll come to them later...

So the plot is fun - silly and occasionally jaw dropping. The second mission on the plane (I will say no more) is one of the most genuinely awesome gaming experiences that I've had; the gameplay was simple, but the visual effect... wow! Having worked my way through around two thirds of the main plotline, it is funny, kinda clever in parts. Not quite as engaging or dramatic as parts of SR2 (nothing to touch the SR2 Brotherhood plotline, certainly), but solid. Another nice touch is that, as well as the better graphics, customisation goes a bit further than SR2. As well as boosting your characters resistances and skills (with money, rather than by completing the minigames, with certain boosts locked until higher levels), you can customise your weapons to be better, including (in some cases) being able to shoot explosive or incendiary ammo.

One of the things I liked most about SR2 were the minigames and these are back in abundance - and most of them are a lot more polished and good fun than the ones in SR2. As well as the old favourites, there's also a version of Mayhem played with tanks, a survival maze where you shoot people dressed as hotdogs and a truly brilliant version of Escort which I won't spoil for you (but anyone who has seen Talladega Nights will love the reference). The tasks are all engaging but not of them are too taxing.

This touches on one of the issues that was a bit disappointing - the game difficulty (at least on normal) is very low. While this is kind of nice and means you don't end up playing the same tasks over and over again (like the higher levels of Trail Blazing in SR2), there isn't much of a challenge. Maybe the harder difficulty levels will be different.

Other good bits - better soundtrack than SR2 I reckon, less fiddly vehicle customisation, fun new characters (Oleg and Kinzi are both ace; Zimos is good in a quirky, Marmite-love-him-or-hate-him kind of way). Although some reviews elsewhere have criticised the cityscape as being too samey, I don't think this is the case; it isn't as varied as SR2, but that always seemed a bit over-artificial to me anyway. There is some variation, and it isn't as dull and samey as Liberty City in GTA 4 was.

Bits I didn't like - Shaundi has turned from cute stoner babe to Cheryl Cole semi-lookalike with a chip on her shoulder (although minus the Geordie accent) and the character is less engaging for it. There isn't as much out and out silliness in the same way that SR 2 had (fewer weird secret locations) and the gameplay isn't as rude or, for want of a better word, 'edgy'. This is played up to in some parts (when doing the minigame in SR3 that was, in SR2, drug dealing, your character is distributing naff Saints Row merchandise), but there is a definite feeling that aspects of the game have been toned down to avoid criticism. There aren't the same options to customise your cribs to the same extent either, which is a bit of a shame, but they're actually pretty sweet anyway so that's not so bad.

All in all - worth the wait and worth buying new. Great for dipping in and out of and playing casually, if you liked SR2 (and/or thought that the GTA series has started taking itself too seriously), then you should buy this game.

I have a confession to make: I don't usually buy this sort of game and I'm definitely not its target audience, being more of an old-school RPGer. It just so happened that I was in a gaming doldrums of sorts, willing to try out something different, and let myself be dazzled by all the hype surrounding SR3 as well as the flashy aesthetics surrounding the game (great job from the marketing department, it has to be said).

Contrary to all expectations and much to the surprise of those acquainted with my tastes, this... ended up being a lot of fun. A whole 40+ hours lot of fun. The story is largely forgettable, the graphics aren't really up to today's standards - for an updated engine, no less - and the game can be a bit too silly at times, but it really just is a *fun* game. It gives you all the toys you could want on a city-sized playground and simply lets you have a go with the playstyle you feel most appropriate. A retro cybersteampunk dilletante? Check. A matrix-style vamp femme fatale? Check. Jason Statham wannabe? Check. Hardcore gangsta rap pimp with a zombie voice? Check. SR3 lets you go wild with your in-game persona and that's just the beginning. The over-the-top setpieces have been lauded time and again, and rightly so, and the voice acting is all-around excellent, with the main character voice sets (all six of them, plus zombie grunts) filled to the brim with personality, almost granting a new experience all by themselves should you choose to have another playthrough with a different voice.

Saints Row: The Third is not the type of game you commend or respect. It doesn't want to be respected, nor does it need to. It's unapologetic in its craziness but somehow manages not to be gratutious on its own (that's up to the player). What it lacks in memorable characters it mostly makes up for with nice character moments and a number of quotable one-liners. It's an easy game with fluid controls and a gameplay that seldom - if ever - gets in the way of fun and will never be a top game contender in any chart, nor will it be fondly remembered as a great piece of storytelling. It's the gaming equivalent of the craziest, booziest night out you've ever had, of which you can only recall bits and pieces.

And that is not necessarily a bad thing.

The game play is brilliant and really fun. That's pretty much all this game is about:

Stupid, funny, wild ass fun.

If your looking for a good story and such then this game isn't really for you, but if you love hectic and fun game play then give this a go. The game is actually quite short but the game adds plenty of hours if you choose to play coop and the "Whored" mode.

Great game play, descent graphics/sound, predicable/poor story. But it does what it says on the tin.