Saints Row 2 puts a hit out on GTA

We get six hours alone with Saints Row 2's single and co-op modes. Can it beat out the year's best game?

If I have to spend a day cooped up in a Las Vegas hotel, it better be a swanky one. If I have to spend a day with one game, it better be deep and entertaining. Thankfully, the room was at the Four Seasons at Mandalay Bay, which is one of the nicest hotels in Vegas, the room offering a great view of the electric city. Thankfully, that game was Saints Row 2's near-GTA quality single-player and co-op modes.

The first point of order was to create a character. Having played dozens of minutes of the original, I wasn't too keen on making another 3rd Street Saint that stuck out like a sore thumb. I had a tough time getting into the original when my character looked stiff and unrealistic amongst THQ's well-designed Saints. Imagine my surprise when I ended up piecing together a character that actually looked more realistic than the cast of Saints Row 2. There were a whole host of categories that allowed me to create deeper personality for my avatar, including voice--including cockney gangster--facial expression, and walking style, which included no less than four variations of "thug walk". Sadly, the gang-infested streets are no place for the curly-haired, as I couldn't find a reasonable facsimile of my "white guy 'fro". Ah well.

Saints Row 2 puts a hit out on GTA

When in doubt, use a chainsaw.

Row Row Ronin

My character's journey started off where the last game ended, with SPOILER--my character awakening from a three-year long coma after the yacht explosion at the conclusion of Saints Row, my charred carcass having been shipped off to prison as well. The first mission was a doozy--breaking out of the clink with an operative from the now-depleted Saints. The first few missions required me to re-establish bonds with old allies, recruiting new members, and establishing a new base. From there, I challenged various gangs--most of which were new. My focus was on two in particular--the voodoo-practicing Sons of Samedi and the katana-wielding sport-bike riding Ronin. The early missions were pretty entertaining, including some interesting premises such as interrupting a trial and freeing its defendant, towing a rival's car, and returning to your place of incarceration to free a cohort in the middle of a prison riot. These missions were made way more enjoyable with the addition of checkpoints, as well as a neat post-mission screen that includes a mocked-up newspaper page noting your actions. It's a small addition, but it really gives meaning to every mission in the game.

Saints Row 2 puts a hit out on GTA

Water traversal doesn't completely suck in Saints Row 2!

Misson Mash

Once again, missions can't be tackled immediately in Saints Row 2--from time to time, you have to earn respect in order to play new ones. The respect-earning activities in Saints Row 2 have been made much more enjoyable, with two new ones in particular capturing most of my attention. One involved commandeering a sewage truck and spraying local homes, businesses, cars, and people to lower property value. Another favorite had my character riding an ATV while on fire, tasked with completing a course. Of course, the more things you set ablaze, the more time you were granted. The designers also made a smart decision to attribute respect for non-activity actions like adventurous driving (going against traffic, achieving near misses, getting airborne) and killing random gang members creatively. While I'm still of the mindset that making side missions mandatory isn't the best plan of action, the new additions made getting respect much less of a chore.

Those expecting the lay of the land to be familiar when playing Saints Row 2--much in the same way that the PSP GTA games slightly tweaked its cities-- should think again, as the city has been completely overhauled at the hands of the Ultor Corporation. I wouldn't consider myself Stillwater's finest cartographer, but I could get around pretty easily after awhile. Saints Row 2's big city is filled with new buildings and locales that played tricks on my memories. It's slightly familiar, but changed enough to feel new. Other slight tweaks have made Saints Row much more endearing, like allowing dual wielding and including cars with Lamborghini-like scissor doors. They may not be game-sellers, but they make the fake-crime experience all the more enjoyable.

Comments [27]

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iamthegamepro

clones will never be better than the originator.

"I'll answer the question all of you have right now. No, Saint's Row 2 is not better than GTA IV." thank you

slinger420

No game will ever be better than the masterpiece that is GRAND THEFT AUTO 4. If Quentin Tarantino of Martin Scorscese ever made a video game, it would be GTA4, enough said.

monkbaine

The game looks good. We'll see if it'll be better than GTA4,even though that wouldn't be an impossible feat seeing as GTA4 could've been way better with more development time.

monkbaine

Before anything getz said about what I wrote,I love GTA 4 as much as anybody else does,but am I the only one that feels as if the game was rushed? Everything about it screams great video game,and at the same time everything about it screams wish I had more time to blossom.

partTimeNERD

I enjoyed the first game and it still was not better than GTA:SA, though with 360 graphics it looked a whole lot better... so I will at least rent Saint's Row 2.... it is a tall order trying to make another crime based sandbox game better than GTA4, not surprising that the preview by Dave states this title quite doesn't measure up to GTA4.

nickbruser

It looks very promising people. I'm hearing alot of things from this game from just about every website that i go. A GTA4 killer? Maybe! well we're gonna mave to wait and see for sure.

Sire

Please. It was because of this same kind of undeserved HYPE that I ran out and bought GTA4 on Gamepro's and other sites recommendation that it was SOoo good that it deserved a 10. . .

Yeah well not in my world man. . GTA4 is like a solid 7.5 , maybe an 8 lite. . so now you want me to believe that this GTA4 ripoff is worth another 60 of my dollars when games like Silent Hill and Dead Space, Resistance 2, Gears 2, Socom, Fable 2 are all coming out within a month or so?

Fat chance. . Never again will I listen to the hype of a big name site, and never again will I take any sites ratings seriously, or I would of never played and loved Too Human. There is one or two magazines and sites that actually have 4 or 5 people rate it from the staff and they average it out, . . which is exactly the way to do it.

I love horror, so what if the rating for Silent Hill was given out by someone that hates horror, . . it just doesn't make sense. I'll read player reviews and check the forums from now on

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