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Volition's latest entry for the Saints Row series has seen a mixed reception. A large portion of it is thanks to bugs and technical shortcomings. Unfortunately, the game also seems to have made many changes over its predecessors, many for the worse. With that being said, how well do these older games hold up today and how do they fare against the 2022 reboot?
Throughout the years, the open-world action-adventure series has seen some oddball entries, like the sci-fi-driven Saints Row 4, or the standalone entry Gat Out Of Hell, which literally takes place in Hell. The last similarly grounded mainline entry was 2011's Saints Row: The Third (or SR3) - but is it worth a revisit in 2022?
Disclaimer: This article contains the author's opinions.
The Saints Row series has come a long way and carved its own identity starting with The Third
While the franchise began as a humble GTA-inspired clone, it was The Third where things began to diverge. With the introduction of over-the-top humor, bizarre weaponry, and hilarious gameplay, this was the moment the series really grew to what it is now. But first, what is the game really about?
Acting as the third mainline entry in the series, The Third sees players step back into the shoes of the Boss. It takes place five years after Saints Row 2 and sees the 3rd Street Saints rise up the ladder to emerge as a massive brand name.
The narrative sees the gang trying to compete with a massive criminal organization known as the Syndicate, which reigns supreme over the setting of Steelport - so in a nutshell, the ultimate goal is to take over the city.
Chaotic extravaganza
Despite its age, The Third feels like a wild ride even more than a decade later. The game pulls no punches when it comes to bombastic set-pieces. From hanging off a helicopter to taking out SWAT teams to trying to take back your penthouse base run over by criminal forces by skydiving onto it, there is rarely a dull moment to be found with its pacing.
The map of Steelport is quite boring, with most of it being nothing but copied and pasted rows of grey and brown buildings. Despite being inspired by New York, nothing comes close to the diversity of Saints Row 2's diverse locales in Stillwater. Thankfully, the Third makes up for its shallow open world with nearly everything else.
The character creator is still a strong contender to this day, same for the vehicle customization. This is without factoring in the plethora of clothing and vehicle options. There truly is something for everyone here. Players will also be able to customize their crew and partake in various side activities with allies like Shaundi and Pierce, and even make different story choices that affect the world at large.
Taking a moment to reflect on the characters, these two are a couple of many longrunning names in the series. As such, they have pretty strong personalities and players have come to love them as well. The Third might be over-the-top, but it knows when to snap back to reality when concerning scenes featuring these NPCs, and more importantly, it does it well.
On that note, antagonist groups are fairly memorable as well. There are brute-forces worshipping Luchadores, the powerful Morningstar, and the techy Deckers. Volition definitely drew some parallels to these with the reboot's factions of Los Panteros, Marshall and The Idols, but the older villains just blew the new ones out of the water.
Then comes the fun factor. This is where Volition went all out. WIth over a dozen Activities and Diversions to engage in, each was fun in its own way. The destructive Trail Blazing was challenging yet fun, while Professor Genki's Super Ethical Reality Climax gauntlets disguised as a TV reality show brought something new to the table.
The Gurdian Angel sniping is also a good diversion but does not make an appearance in the reboot; it instead has more boring activities, like the Bright Future toxic waste disposal. Even the power-fantasy Mayhem activity falls flat in the latest entry.
The core gameplay is equally robust and expansive (minus dated elements like the vehicle handling, of course). There are multiple Cribs, more varied weaponry (including the fan-favorite purple d*ldo bat), and combat in general is snappy with a delictable lineup of weapons - though both The Third and the reboot are on par when it comes to the vehicle roster.
The reboot's setting of Santo Ileso is far more entertaining and diverse in comparison, for sure, but it still plays second fiddle to the established foundation of The Third.
Character progression also does a great job in making the character feel powerful as the game goes on, while the reboot's reliance on Skills and Perks to perform many of the previous game's de-facto actions leaves it feeling somewhat stunted.
The bottom line is this - Saints Row: The Third is still a game that one-ups the current installment in many areas. It is, in one word, impressionable, if nothing else.
Saints Row: The Third received a remaster back in 2020 for modern platforms, so for those interested in checking out the older entries after trying the reboot should start with that one.
Saints Row: The Third Remastered is available on PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S. The Nintendo Switch, meanwhile, has the original game's port called Saints Row: The Third - The Full Package.
