Saint’s Row 4 Review
So you have finished Saint’s Row 3. Once again you have conquered Steelport. The leadership of your rival gangs have either fled, perished, or now work as your subordinates. The PMC occupation has withdrawn, ceding control of the region to the superior forces of the Third Street Saints. It has been a wild ride, but what could be next for your nameless protagonist and ensemble cast of gangsters-cum-entrepreneurs.
Volition has a history of taking the idea of a sandbox to it’s illogical conclusion. Large amounts of power, weaponry, and ridiculous plot armor are afforded to you right at the beginning. While this is a massive departure for the typical gaming formula. they make it work for the game.
In Saint’s Row 4 you play the leader of the Third Street Saints, a highly publicized and syndicated gang who your (extremely customizable) protagonist has spent the last three games taking to the heights of power and social and political influence, requiring your defeat of an Italian mafia, a gank of cyberpunks, and a squad of heavily-armed luchadores to claw your way to the top.
After a movie deal, an energy drink sponsorship, and an alliance with the city mayor, you may wonder where they have left to go. The answer is, of course, the presidency of the United States. But that is just the start of your shenanigans.
Fighting is immensely satisfying as the game carries the same run and gun mechanics and over the top melee maneuver. These are enhanced by the addition of some crazy new weapons, superpowers, and new enemies.
The dramatic change in setting from your beloved Steelport to a Steelport simulation provides unique opportunities for missions. Typically your mission objectives are to undermine the code of the system and, rather than being rewarded with unspecific “influence” in that area, you are literally seizing control of the code in that area of the simulation. Likewise all nonlinear quests benefit one of your subordinates and may either be done as part of a structured side story or whenever it is most convenient to you. A system that makes so much sense I’m not sure why no one had implemented it until now.
Your protagonist maintains the same irreverent and irresponsible dispositions you refined in Saint’s Row 3, providing you with many opportunities to defy conventional plot devices and violently headbutt your way through even the most insurmountable obstacles. Similarly your subordinates are just as entertainingly violent, dysfunctional, and, well, insubordinate as ever before.
After a year of many serious titles, it is refreshing to see a game that doesn’t take itself too seriously. If you are a fan of sandbox environments and occasionally wish you could just jump right over a building rather than drive around it or are seriously jonesing for a nice blend of violence and humor, then Saints Row 4 is a must play.
Peter Fobian