Saints Row: The Third (PlayStation 3)


Note: This game contains a lot of swearing, sexual content, and some blood, gore and of course, large amounts of violence.

Saints Row: The Third is about a gang called the 3rd Street Saints. They now have their own media empire including a clothing brand and energy drink and have a movie in the works. At the beginning of the game, in a bank robbery gone wrong, the Saints have one of their own seemingly killed and end up in the city of Steelport. There, they'll have to contend with a group of gangs organized together under the banner of "The Syndicate", as well as the military itself when Steelport decides to get tough on crime.



Saints Row 3 is a lot like the previous GTA games I've played, but with a lot more of a sense of humour about itself. The dialogue is usually pretty funny and there's just a ton of silly, ridiculous stuff going on. There were zombies at one point, I don't know. It is largely open world, you have Steelport to explore at your leisure. There are the main story missions to do, split in to 3 different acts. The first is linear and serves as a tutorial to the game, and the others are more open, offering more missions to do in the order you want.



Besides story missions there are also activities scattered about and more get unlocked as you progress. These include destroying stuff with tanks, going through a sort of shooting gauntlet for a demented game show, committing insurance fraud by ragdolling yourself in to things, and a few others. You can also take on assassinations and vehicle thefts, as well as just some general challenges like traveling a certain distance, doing stunt jumps, finding collectables, etc. Your custom made character does level up by earning reputation points. You also earn cash which can be used for guns, properties, and upgrades to your characters and gang.



The game does have a decent amount of customization. You get to make your own character, male or female, and there are several clothing stores scattered about ranging from normal to comical. You'll also get to customize your homies, your weapons, and your vehicles. You'll unlock more as the game progresses and as you level up. You'll also get calls when in the city to complete mini-challenges like surviving for a certain period of time or taking out x amount of enemies. And of course you can steal cars, put on some tunes, and run over innocent pedestrians. You will have law enforcement and other gangs to contend with though.



There is also a co-op mode if you aren't a friendless loser like me and a few other modes to explore as well as some DLC levels if you wants some more gameplay. I did not get in to any of that stuff though so I will be unable to comment.

Overall I had fun with this game. It was a bit vulgar for my tastes in some parts, especially the opening, but I did like that it had a sense of humour about how over the top and ridiculous it was. There was some good voice acting and some genuinely funny scenes. I loved getting to make my own character and that I got to make a lady character especially. There was a good variety of clothes, cars, and weapons, and I enjoyed a few of the activities like the Tank Mayhem. There was also some good music. On the down side, the world felt kind of small and I would have liked more buildings to go in to to explore. I also would have liked more gang and crib customization. There were also a few glitchy spots here and there but nothing game breaking. I also ran out of stuff to do by the end and just found myself finishing up the story with no breaks in-between. But I did have a lot of fun, I do plan to replay it in the future, and I would like to try the fourth installment!

Verdict:
LIKED IT A LOT