Saints Row 2 Review (PS3)

Title: Saints Row 2
Platform: PS3 (Also on 360 and PC)
Genre: Action
Release Date: 17 October 2008 (PS3 and 360), 7 November 2008 (PC)
Developer: Volition
Publisher: THQ
Rating: BBFC 18+

WHAT IS… Saints Row 2?

There are plenty of game developers trying to get in on Rockstar’s success with their multi-award winning Grand Theft Auto series and so, we have seen many open world, sandbox games. Usually, and I’m trying not to generaise too much to be honest, these have not been too great. When GTA4 was released earlier this year many gamers were unsatisfied with the new direction the series took towards a more realistic game style, abandoning the over the top ‘cartoony’ style the series has been known for. With Saints Row 2, volition saw this and took a decision to try and capture and build upon this style that has made Grand Theft Auto so popular for so long.

GRAPHICS 7/10

Within this generation of consoles we have seen graphics converge greatly, with many new games looking very similar, and by that I mean shiny brown. There have been some notable exceptions such as Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune (shiny green) and No More Heroes (which may not be as technically proficient as many games but was very very stylish). Sadly Saints Row 2 does not do anything particularly stylish and seems pretty content to have the same level of graphics found in many other titles, which it should be pointed out aren’t exactly bad. The gameplay area is a large area with many places to see however it does not seem to be as large or as detailed as the map in Grand Theft Auto 4. Also throughout the game I have encountered numerous graphical bugs and glitches as there are regular clipping issues as well quite a bit of popup in more populated areas. These problems, whilst annoying, are not game breaking.

+ Well it is a current-gen game so it is pretty
– Doesn’t do anything particularly special
– Clipping Issues and other graphical glitches

STORY 8/10

The story is a pretty standard gang land rags-to-riches story which we have all seen many times before but in this game it is both well written and well acted. Many parts of the story will make you laugh and there is some really good character development as well as some really profound moments. All this said it lacks some of the subtle social commentary seen in other games (yes I am going to mention it yet again) such as GTA4.

+ Well acted and well written
– Lacks the amount of depth and social commentary found in GTA

LONGEVITY 9/10

It is a very long game with a huge array of activities to do. You can have plenty of fun doing some absolutely crazy things such as stealing a septic truck and spraying the neighborhood with sh…. , erm brown goo. Or you can get a helicopter and cover your allies as they deliver ‘packages’ around the map. Or even partake in underground boxing events. I guess what I am trying to convey (and pad out as much as possible) that there is lots of things to do on the side along with the fairly lengthy story missions (took me around 20hrs). One thing that should be mentioned is that whilst there are a lot of things to do you generally find yourself gravitating more to the things you know you can do and simply repeat them an awful lot which of course can get a bit boring.

+ Long story mode
+ Huge array of side missions
– A little big of repetition can get a little stale

GAMEPLAY 8/10

Most of the gameplay mechanics have been lifted from Grand Theft Auto, if you have been playing GTA4 on PS3 and were annoyed by the controls (mostly due to the sixaxis’ rubbish triggers) then you will be pleased to know it uses the ‘old-school’ PS2 GTA control setup which has worked well in the past and continues to work well now. In between missions you have to earn respect in order to play more missions, in order to get the respect you have to take part in one of the many side missions, which to me kind of negates the point in OPTIONAL side missions, and kind of feels like arbitrary lengthening but seems as many of these side missions are really fun and absolutely crazy in their own right you feel tempted to let it off.

+ Solid and familiar controls
+ Many different gameplay mechanics in play
– Pointless repetition involved

FUN 9/10

This is a very fun game, many of the things you do throughout the game are inventive fun and at times downright crazy, there is pretty much something just about anyone will find fun in this game (so long as you are over 18 and so old enough to play it). This fun craziness is prevelant throughout the game so if you played GTA4 and were disappointed at the serious turn it took and wished to return back to the days of vice city insanity then Saint’s Row 2 is your answer.

+ So much to do, just about anyone will find something they like
+ Fun for the same reasons GTA: Vice City was

OVERALL 8.2/10 

If you can’t tell by now this game is very much like Grand Theft Auto, whilst most game developers simply look at GTA and say ‘hey lets copy those guys’, however when making Saint’s Row 2 volition actually seemed to think that this wasn’t good enough to just copy so have actually made an attempt to put some fun and original things in. This is probably because as we have seen many many times before whenever someone simply tries to copy GTA it never ends up anywhere near as good so some originality thrown into the wholly unoriginal mixture is a welcome addition. I also like the ability to take down the Ultor Corporation 200 years before they start pissing people off on mars (And if anyone else understands that game reference I will send them some cake).

BETTER THAN: True Crime: Streets of LA

WORSE THAN: GTA 4