Volition the developers of Saints Row have got their work cut out for them this time round as they embark on quite a big project in Saints Row 2. The first game had the benefit of being a) Xbox 360 exclusive and b) had no direct rival because GTA IV was but a mere twinkle in gamers eyes at the time. As an early piece of software aimed at bringing an open world experience to the Xbox 360 platform unlike anything seen before from the number of games on offer at the time, Saints Row really did hit the nail on the head. It managed to provide action gamers a world they could not only relate to, but also stepped things up from games of yore such as GTA San Andreas on Xbox. San Andreas still holds up well today, with its heady mix of story missions and side activities to mess around with, despite being something of a love or hate type of experience (mostly due to the characterization and openness not appealing to everyone). Saints Row pushed the boundaries in terms of graphics and whilst the art direction offered a similar colourful fused with realism slant, the physics were a definite step in the right direction as cars exploded and fat hookers bodies blew off down the street. It certainly offered comedy violence which prevented the game coming under the scrutiny of pressure groups and politicians looking for the next bit of controversy to latch onto. What really set Saints Row apart from its peers was the inclusion of online co-op play - although this was limited to a few set missions; and of course the online multiplayer which offered various modes for gamers to team up and blast the hell out of each other. Although modes such as "Blinged out Ride" offered an enjoyable but unusual style to proceedings. Sadly, due to a rather lacking online matchmaking system and numerous glitches, the online portion enjoyed relative success but lacked the staying power required to make it a classic.
That was then and a few years down the line, the mighty Rockstar Games unleashed the big game that every gamer seemingly wanted to play, and that was GTA IV. The game offered a similar experience to Saints Row, but presented a new flavour by stirring in the tincture of realism into the mix and stripping away the unrealistic elements and clutter (to some gamers). Heralded as the best game since the coming of Christ by the gaming press, GTA IV proved to live up to its own hype by offering a lengthy story mode, side activities and an online mulitplayer full of modes to stop even the most attention deficient youths being distracted for hours on end. However, once the initial honeymoon period was over, a lot of gamers started to see through the rose tinted haze, and saw a game that whilst very good, was lacking in the quirks that could potentially keep you playing for years - in the same manner that some gamers got hooked on GTA: San Andreas.
So, with Rockstar's behemoth game unleashed to PS3 and Xbox 360 owners the bar had been raised in certain areas, but other sections of the game were rather lacking, as Rockstar decided to focus more on story than any thing else. So coming back to Saints Row and more importantly Saints Row 2, it's obvious that Volition have their work cut out, but also have the benefit of seeing what the competition is doing and public reaction to it.
Saints Row 2 begins where its predecessor left off, and if you didn't know the ending of the game (here come some spoilers) you were left at the edge of your seat after it transpired that the gang you had joined and risen up the ranks in, decided to set you up and blow you to smithereens (although it was unclear whether you survived or not). The gang, "The Saints" we're not who they appeared to be, with one character being an undercover agent and the motives of the leader being thrown into question. Well this fits nicely into the start of Saints Row 2, because you'll be pleased to learn that your character did survive the bomb blast on the boat, and was captured slightly worse for ware. Saints Row 2 begins with you in a hospital totally disfigured and not in any position to do much other than get cut to pieces, re-arranged and sewn back together by the surgeons. This lends itself nicely to the game's biggest asset and something that instantly sets it apart from its peers. In this game you are able to customize your characters appearance, in a similar manner to the first game, although this time, you'll be able to choose to be female or male (yes the wonders of modern surgery). What's more the actual customization options will be a lot more in depth than before allowing you to create fat or thin characters that would fit nicely in a freak show to those that are more sensible, and obviously with the inclusion of females, means you'll be able to create a sassy alluring looking chic too if you so desire. Volition has taken the whole street element to a new level this time, by including options to tweak your characters style further. Such as the way he or she walks to things like fighting style and even how they talk and facial expressions. There are 6 different voices recorded in the game covering 60,000 lines of dialog throughout the story (it's also safe to assume that the voice of Halo's Arbiter will make a return as the voice of Julias the former leader of the Saints) with each offering their own take on proceedings without deviating from the underlying story of the game . What's more you'll be able to perform taunts and compliments to those around you in a similar fashion to the game Fable, which is an interesting yet slightly un-original idea; although judging from the names of some of them such as The Dumper, Dog Pissing, Ride the Donkey, The Wanker, and Tea Bag it's obvious these will be fairly diverse. The whole street nature of the game, and the undeniably tongue in cheek humor means this element will no doubt be something very funny indeed, especially as pedestrians and companions will react accordingly.
Alongside the physical attributes of your character, you'll be able to kit them out with a whole host of attire, such as chains, hats, sunglasses and of course funky purple afros if you so choose. The possibilities here are perhaps endless, and there will be something to suit all tastes. Naturally it's safe to say that more stuff will be added via downloadable content at some point, offering a further amount of customization. The fun doesn't stop there either, as you'll be able to customize your "crib" which is something that was lacking in the first game and lacking in general in games of this nature. This adds another depth to making the game a more personal experience and when you can add things like stripper poles and such like to your base of operations, you can get a picture of the kind of direction Volition are heading - we can't wait!
The Story of Saints Row 2 has been kept well under wraps, although the premise is pretty straight forward as you try and reclaim the streets once more, from a whole new wave of gangs and their leaders. New gangs include the likes of Sons of Samedi which we're not sure has any relation to the James Bond character Baron Samedi? There's also the issue of closure from the old gang, and it'll be interesting to see how the returning characters fit into this new and volatile city. Saints Row 2 will undoubtedly follow the tried and trusted formula of free roaming games, by allowing players the option to dip in and out of the story at leisure and spend time away from the plot building up respect and goofing around in the city of Stillwater, which has transformed greatly since the last game. There will be those side activities to mess around with and we're promised some new ones as well to spice things up a little; such as spraying people and buildings with a sewerage truck to depreciate the value of properties and certainly lower the tone of neighborhoods. What's more, the actual story missions will include mid mission checkpoints, offering a more fair ride through the campaign (something that is lacking and annoying in similar games).
There will no doubt be things to hunt down and of course the respect system which has been tweaked slightly - the premise being that the more "street" respect you have the more options become available. We can expect the gameplay to offer more of the same, but this time bigger badder and generally improved. The driving was a little cumbersome in Saints Row, and with a new control method of being able to shoot and drive at the same time, as well as an over the shoulder Gears of War style shooting element when on foot, means that most gamers play styles should be catered for.Hopefully we'll be able to customize the controls to suit individual players needs further. GTA IV really did offer some great shooting moments, with its slightly wonky cover system but excellent victim reactions. Let's hope Saints Row 2 can incorporate this and perhaps go a step further. Naturally you'll be able to use the standard weapons that we're all accustomed to, such as RPGs, Grenades,Sub machine Guns, Rifles etc. However the inclusion of some unconventional weaponry looks like adding another layer of fun. The paramedic electrodes being one of them, and more dynamically the satchel charges lifted directly from Volitions other Xbox game, Red Faction. In fact the Ultor Company that featured in Red Faction and was mentioned in Saints Row, will have a much larger presence in Saints Row 2, and by the looks of things will be a force to be reckoned with. We wonder if their more prominent inclusion will incorporate more reference to the classic game? Going back to the satchel charges, they will be a lot of use although not the most stealthy of weapons. These beauties will be attachable to humans and other surfaces for some real comedy, sadistic moments, although the real fun begins when attaching these to things like cars and detonating them from a distance. You can imagine the potential mayhem you could cause especially as the car explosions in the first game were pretty spectacular, with car parts smoke and other bits of debris flying through the air.
One of the complaints of the first game was a lack of vehicles types, and although Saints Row really nailed the car customization options, and to this day is far better than its rivals, the lack of motorcycles, boats and aircraft and such like left some gamers dismayed. Volition has listened to the fans and obviously having fully got to grips with the Xbox 360 hardware, have included all manner of craft to for players and their "homies" to climb into and take for a spin. This is great addition, more so if the same level of customization is offered across most of the vehicles.
Saints Row 2 will no doubt present a vastly improved online multiplayer this time round and with the team having experience in this field means that there should be enough modes to suit ever players tastes. Let's also hope they continue to experiment a little with the basics and bring us some more modes that we've not seen in other games. The real big inclusion to the multiplayer is the arrival of a fully fledged co-op which allows players the opportunity to tackle the story missions together - although it's not clear at this time whether this will be story missions or the entire game together. We're also uncertain as to whether this will be limited to 2 players, but considering the potential mayhem, it's safe to say that it will be. Co-op with a friend in Saints Row 2 will be an awesome component if handled correctly as we've seen with games like Crackdown, and if you couple this with the vast levels of customization, it should be a feature with endless possibilities to show off your creations to each other whilst kicking ass. It certainly steps things up a gear from GTA IV which offered no such thing.
Saints Row offered a great take on the sandbox action genre and still to this day holds up well against the newcomers. Saints Row 2 will be a much more accessible and fuller experience that will keep gamers entertained on a number of levels.We're really excited by its premise and from what we've seen thus far, and so should you be. With GTA IV offering us all a semi realistic roller coaster ride of solid free form entertainment; the question remains whether Volition have used the time wisely (and the delay) to produce a game that could potentially best its main rival. It's unlikely that it'll garner the same solid 10s from the gaming press as GTA IV did, simply because the hype machine is less prevalent here and journalists should have calmed down a lot since then. But based on its own merits and what's on the disc at the time, the main point is, will the game be just as fun if not more so than Rockstar's offering? In certain regards, such as being a more personal experience, it's certainly looking like it will be as the game offers a lot more than GTA IV does. You should all place October the 14th (17th for Europe) in your diaries because when Saints Row 2 hits the stores, you can be assured that it will be one of this year's highlights.
Preview By: Robert Cram
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