Saints Row (2022) Review

What do you get when your previous entries in a franchise go a bit too “over the top” with gameplay changes and a story that is so out there that it leaves you with nowhere to go? Well, you reboot the universe into a crappy third-person shooter action game that fails so hard that you’re forced to reboot it again… Thus Saints Row was rebooted into Saints Row.

After all the criticism from Saints Row 4’s use of super-powers and then heading into a literal hell caused by Volition, and the failure of Agents of Mayhem, does this modern reboot of the first Saint Row bring the franchise back to relevance, or is it going to bury the franchise for good? Let’s take a look.

Name: Saints Row
Platform(s): PC, PlayStation 4/ 5, Xbox One/Series X|S
Developer: Volition
Publisher: Deep Silver
Game Type: Action-adventure
Mode(s): Single-player, multiplayer
Release Date: August 25, 2022

 

 

Story

Saints Row is set in the fictional city of Santo Ileso, located in the American Southwest and based loosely on the city of Las Vegas, Nevada. Santo Ileso is under the control of three criminal gangs: Los Panteros, a gritty vehicle, and fitness-oriented gang; the Idols, an anarchist gang focused on clubs and nightlife; and Marshall Defense Industries, an international private military corporation based in Santo Ileso that is known for advanced high tech weaponry.

The player-character, “The Boss”, is a former member of Marshall Defense Industries and assembles a new gang from dissatisfied members of these gangs to seize power from them. These new members include Neenah, a mechanic formally with Los Panteros who serves as the gang’s driver; Kevin, a DJ that was part of the Idols and handles the execution of their heists; and Eli, a business entrepreneur with an MBA that plans the Boss’s gang’s activities.

As you’ve probably heard by now, it’s that the story of Saints Row is pretty bad… like, cringe-worthy bad… Saints Row does try hard to re-tell the original origin story of The Saints, the gang you eventually begin to make and create into a criminal empire. While we know about this type of origin story already as its the same type of story that most first games tell, what makes this version of Saints Row bad is that it’s trying to be Saints Row 1 & Saints Row 2 while updating it to appeal to the current 20-something gaming crowd (Yes, this is a Gen Z game) and relating to things that they would find horrible to do in the world: Crippling student debt, working for corporate companies, having to make rent, destroy the current establishment, etc.

In this sense, I found the biggest disconnect with Saints Row. As an adult, I understand the whole “necessary evil” part of having to live in the world and abide by what is required to keep the world moving. Saints Row frames these things as something “bad” and makes it the main reason why the gang comes together in order to be The Saints. I understand wanting to give a middle finger to modern society, which is something the Saints Row series did really well from Saints Row 2, but with Saints Row, it just doesn’t feel the same. The Boss (your player character) would go through the game with a “Fuck the world because why fucking not?” attitude, but with Saints Row, your motivation comes because you got fired from a Mercenary company and just don’t want to work anymore. This depression-based lack of motivation comes through more in everything, taking a lot of fun out of the game.

The tone is a constant issue with Saints Row. Just when the game gives you a fun mission with a lot of the DNA of Saints Row 3/4, you’ll get a story or moment that just drags it back down into depression. Two examples come from early missions where you have to take on Los Panteros in order to get auto parts back for the local JimRob’s store (Formerly the funny RimJobs auto shop), which ends with you getting “frozen out” by your roommate Neenah because she is a member of the gang and you shouldn’t be messing with the gang because it’d hurt her feelings and access to the gang’s auto shop location. The other is when you are going around to FB’s (Formerly Freckle Bitch’s) trying to get your friend Kevin a re-issued kids toy, and suddenly, in the middle of the mission, he starts talking about how he was an orphan and never got the toy back in the day. Again, Saints Row starts to show some funny and silly humor in the game, only to strip it away suddenly to appear “more serious.”

(Sorry, small rant time) Saints Row’s lack of humor comes from the backlash over Saints Row 3 & Saints Row 4, where the series went from being a GTA ripoff to a parody of the more serious crime series, making itself stand out from the crowd. People online didn’t like this tone shift, so they complained, and Volition listened, making Saints Row more serious in tone like the original and Saints Row 2 were… Which, speaking honestly, do not age well.

The original Saints Row is a completely dated crap game, and while the story of Saints Row 2 is excellent, the gameplay does not age well at all.)

Graphics

Saints Row is a decent-looking game… For something that would be made for PlayStation 3. For something that was made to be played on modern-era consoles and PC systems, the graphics look and act like they are back two generations old.

You get the usual issues that you’d got on PS3/X360, including texture pop-in, slow and limited loading of crowds and vehicles, screen tearing, and some of the worst lighting I’ve seen in decades (And I started playing in 4K-UHD mode on the Xbox Series X, but was forced to reduce down to 1440p/60fps mode to get stable gameplay). Also, try to avoid the 1080p High Quality or 1080p Framerate modes if you can, as they look like absolute trash.

Gameplay

For the most part, Saints Row plays the same way previous entries in the series did. You get a mixture of main story missions and side missions that end with you gaining money and respect. It’s these missions where Saints Row almost begins to feel like the fun entries in the series again. You’ll get a mission where you’ll use a wingsuit, tow a container through the city, or chase a convoy through a sandstorm. These missions are awesome, but they are really limited. Most missions consist of you either shooting groups of enemies on the ground or on top of a car or doing missions like Insurance Fraud and others from the previous games. With these more common missions, it feels like Volition either made Saints Row by using the Saints Row 3 and 4 system or got short on time and just ported those missions to make the release date.

The other disappointment is the big lack of anything that would be considered “non-serious”, “sexy”, or “fun.” While you do get some more interesting customization options like getting amputee prosthetic limbs, you don’t get anything that shows legs, butt, or cleavage for characters. This is more noticeable in the emotes (formerly taunts) section, where there is a lack of fun, outlandish options to be had. It’s almost like Volition made Saints Row to be the most non-offensive game on the planet.

Then there are the vehicles, which handle like they are either on ice or too heavy to move… Except for the bikes, which handle like a hyperactive child on a sugar high.

Replayability

Yeah, no… Just no. Play Saints Row once to get the whole story, then shelve it or return it. No replay value here at all, unlike the previous entries.

Closing

As a reviewer, I can see what Volition was trying to do with Saints Row, making a modern Gen Z remake of a classic game series that would establish a new story for the next generation to grow up with, much like my generation had with the original four games.

However, by trying to appeal to the one section of the market that does not buy games, especially corporate AAA titles, they have alienated the hardcore fanbase from supporting the game. The removal of the over-the-top humor and in-your-face sexual and offensive nature of the characters has made Saints Row go from standing out as a parody of Grand Theft Auto, to just being another Grand Theft Auto knock-off.

Review Disclosure Statement: Saints Row was purchased by The Outerhaven for review purposes. For more information on how we conduct and handle reviews here, please visit our Review Guideline/Scoring Policy for more info. Thank you

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