Saints Row

Saints Row is a franchise I’ve really liked but never loved, at least before. This reboot is different though, and after 20 hours in a few days, I keep coming back for more. Once the game is out in full, I’ll gladly play it all again, and often, in co-op. It’s a big, over-the-top, extremely fun game and if they can sort out the bugginess quickly it’s an easy one to recommend.

Saints Row is a decent open-world game that gets good when you forget the series it's a part of. And it runs quite well on the Steam Deck!

Anyone who was a fan of the franchise before this will likely still love Saints Row, as the comedy, goofiness, and chaotic gameplay is still at the game's core. And while I wasn't a fan of how they went about the story, there's definitely some promise in regards to its more grounded focus, as it seems clear this reboot was made to push the series into an interesting new direction.

With that illusive new idea becoming harder and harder to find, well made imitators can't be sniffed at. Saints Row even manages to show GTA a thing or two, and deserves a place in your collection.

While much of this review may seem negative, there’s a lot to like about Saints Row. Its cast quickly grows on you, it has some entertaining set-pieces, and there’s explosive fun around every corner. Customisation is also a high-point: if you like creating zany characters, you’ll be in your element. But while in many ways this this the best Saints Row game to date, there are also multiple design decisions that pull it down. For a game all about building a crime syndicate, the fact that engaging in such activities feels so optional on the main path is a crime itself. It also won’t come as much ...

Believe it or not, it's been nine whole years since Saints Row IV, and to be honest, not much has changed (minus the superpowers and alien invaders, obviously). The simply titled Saints Row is a reboot of the series, sporting an entirely new setting, new characters, and a fresh story — but the gameplay structure that the property has been peddling since day one remains. At its core, it's a mission-based, third-person shooter with a sandbox setting — but this is a sandbox that feels like it's flew straight in from the PS3 era of open world design.

After so many facelifts, there were fears Saints Row would fail to recapture the unconventional beauty of the earlier games, but this reboot proves how adept Volition is when it comes to reinventing their flagship franchise. This latest outing is my favourite game in the series to date, so while basic combat and dips in visual quality are disappointing, they did little to keep me away from Santo Ileso. You'll struggle to find anything ground-breaking though this sandbox is bursting with entertaining things to do, ideal for sharing with a partner in crime.

Saints Row is the latest franchise to get the reboot treatment, but will a tamer installment still give you the fun you remember?

Found the 3rd Street Saints all over again in the new city of Santo Ileso

While there are definitely elements of Saints Row that really annoyed me, I still generally had a good time with the game. If you consider yourself a Saints Row fan you’ll probably find plenty to enjoy in the newest entry, even if some of its elements are weaker than others. If you were hoping for a major new take on the series or what it could be, however, you’ll be left sorely wanting.

What baffles me about Saints Row, however, is that the many interesting landmarks and locations feel like window dressing and don’t factor into the story or missions in any way. Places like a massive football stadium, go-kart track, and medieval casino feel like they’d have been perfect for wacky missions, but they ultimately just sit there unused. I have to imagine the game will eventually get DLC that explores more of Santo Ileso, but as much as I enjoyed the town aesthetically, I wish it was explored mechanically a bit more. This visual breadth of the environmental design betrays a lack of ...

Saints Row is one of the worst urban open world games we've played in recent memory, a bland, janky, old-fashioned mess of a game that fails to deliver on the promise held by a reboot of this zany franchise. Whether it's the buggy combat, boring missions, cringe-inducing dialogue or cookie-cutter side activities, there's always something to feel let down by here. If you're a huge fan of the genre you may well still find something to pass the time in Santa Ileso, there's decent character customisation, a strong soundtrack and plenty of baddies to kill and cars to wreck, but for everyone else th...