Saints Row: The Third Review

Can somebody overdose on purple? I’m being serious! Okay, ignore the fact I have purple coloured hair and it’s my favourite colour, but Saint’s Row: The third takes the cake and eats it along with some rainbow sprinkled ice cream when it comes to incorporating purple into the whole theme of the game. Now I’m a firm believer that too much of something is never a bad thing.

The overall tone of Saint’s Row: The Third is fun, humours and something that you shouldn’t take too seriously. The introduction based Star War’s parody made light of that fact. If you have never played a Saints Row game before, it is similar in alot of ways to Grand Theft Auto in terms of controls/gameplay and settings. Beginning with the first half of the game you are thrown into the action as the Saints try to rob a bank and steal the vault inside, but of course, not everything goes according to plan and the Saints are left to fight their way out. Sadly, there is no tutorial in the beginning to teach anyone not familiar with the controls how to shoot/move around/etc, thankfully though the controls are simple to grasp and easy to manoeuvre. Everything is too the point, you aim and shoot or you melee the crap out of someone. Always make sure to shoot your enemies quite a bit as they take a while to go down. Unless you get a head shot, then you’re all set on killing them. You will even receive a little compliment from your homies and that’s always a good thing.

A feature that this game has that was thoroughly enjoyable to spend a whole bunch of time on was the Character Creation! There are tons of varieties to choose from which makes each character unique no matter how many times you play. After you choose your character’s base (Or how I see it - The outfit they will wear) you can then change and alter the basics from – gender and race to their weight and age. Hairstyles, hair and eye colour have a few odd choices added in that would definitely make sure your character stood out from the crowd. You also have the choice to add ‘items’ to their face or even whole face paint. Anyone feel like walking around the city with a beat up and bloody face? No? How about a small trickle of blood on their mouths? No one wants to mess with a famous gangster, wanna be vampire! Scary stuff right there. Keeping up with the silliness, you even have the choice of customizing your character’s voice and their taunts and compliment. One of the voice choices available can even be a zombie voice! Oi, stop it SR, your cheating in earning my love for you! Taunts and compliments have a wide range of different of options, from the basic ‘fuck you!’ to pulling the sophisticated ‘Dumper’ they are all humorous and entertaining to watch. Whatever choice you make with your characters voice, it will have an impact on the dialogue and/or accent your character will speak and have during the game, adding a spark to each creation you make.

If you feel like taking a break from the Main Campaign, you can have a change of pace by playing the ‘Whored’ mode. Now be prepared, this mode is beyond sense at this point. Whored mode is about surviving and completing the many different Waves while killing every single kill that is set for that level. Some of the waves are ridiculous and good for a laugh. I mean where else can you kill or be killed by prostitutes and men dressed in BDSM attire with a huge purple dildo? Nowhere that’s where! Unless you know where to find that side of town, then cool.

Also, if you’re a Dead Rising fan, be prepared for a little homage to our dear Mr. Frank West!

The ‘Whored’ modes is a fantastic feature and add in to the game, I enjoyed it a lot and now spend most of the time on it trying to beat my own personal time.

Saints Row doesn’t have ground breaking realism or a WOW factor. It is a gorgeous game to look at, don’t get me wrong. I would say they are mediocre in terms of other recent games, which is okay, because the superb voice acting and script more than make for that boo boo. Each character is brought to life by their dedication and talents, making you feel more connected to your bros and broettes (Shaundi, how can I forget you?) A stellar cast and a few celebrity voices really complete the game. Though I felt some of the player’s character’s voice actors/actresses lacked in emotion or belief when paired against minor and major character’s voice actors. The music used in the game is phenomenal, it really adds to the environment. I have to say, I felt incredibly epic when Kayne West’s POWER came on while my character jumped out of a helicopter, swooping down into the Morningstar Pent House.; I purposely killed my character over and over again to replay it.  The world is large and expansive, offering free time to go run around, steal cars, shoot up random gang members or whatever takes your fancy. Missions can be accessed via your cell phone, as well as a handy GPS system to help guide your way around.  Another good thing about the cell phone is that you can call your homies to come help you if you are ever in a pickle, and even ring to have your car delivered to you, saving you time in hijacking some poor person’s car. Though that is always fun.

SUMMARY

Saint’s Row: The Third is a fantastic game with simple gameplay, in your face hilarious characters and a storyline that makes you want to take on the streets as the boss of the whole City.

RATE

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
8/10