![Saints Row: The Third [Download]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/517Bi1pO9dL._SY430_SX215_QL70_ML2_.jpg)
I really loved Saints Row 2 as well as GTA 4. Those two came out around the same time and while GTA 4 excelled in graphics and physics, SR2 was a big winner in customization and comedy. I read through a lot of the reviews for SR3 and what I noticed is that nearly EVERY review that rates under 4 stars is a complaint about the download/disc situation, not about the game itself. That should tell you something. I paid $16.49 from Amazon for my game, and it would have been worth it even at 3x the price (though you shouldn't have to pay 3x the price at this point, the game has been out for a year now).
This is by far a super fun game. There's a few issues and complaints, but I still highly highly recommend it. Here are my thoughts:
Good:
1. TONS of gameplay. You can probably get 50 or 100 hours of play out of this, maybe more depending on what you do. There's a ton of really cool activities, side missions, main missions, etc. This will keep you occupied for a seriously long time.
2. Originality. This thing is so over the top its really funny. While GTA takes a more serious tone, this game is all about the absurd. Where else can you attack people with a giant purple dildo?
3. Voice and Sound. Very nicely done, voice acting is terrific. The writing is the jewel here. It's clever, unexpected, unpredictable and always entertaining. One of my favorite sources of enjoyment is just listening to what people say including my own character.
4. Customization. As in SR2, you can create your own character, dress him/her in outfits ranging from dangerous to sexy to absurd and more. As a huge fan of customization, I can never have enough and hope they add more customization options in future sequels. I guess its because most people who play these kinds of games are guys, and while I'm fine to play a game with a male character, I definately prefer being able to have a female. What can I say, I just identify better with her and while games like GTA I'm stuck with whatever they give me, with Saints Row, I can play a character I identify with better. Plus I love the different personality options.
5. Excitement. Well, its certainly not boring! Everything is fun, everything is exciting, I was never bored. It gets very absurd very quickly, like a bad movie in which you just turn off your brain because you say well, that's just ridiculous. Except in this game, they know its ridiculous, that's why its there, its poking fun. The cutscenes are also very well done and frankly I think the story is really engaging and interesting and well done. Good job!
6. Open World. As with SR2, GTA, etc, you can run through missions, activities or just drive around and find trouble on your own, there's plenty to get into and part of the fun is discovering all the hidden little jokes and silliness that is all over the place.
7. Download from Amazon worked perfectly. Yes the download took longer than I expected, but it wasn't ridiculously long. It installed thru Steam which was fine, I have nothing against Steam really. Everything installed perfectly and I have no complaints about the purchase, installation or gameplay access or settings.
8. Nothing is censored or sacred. I truly love and respect that they poke fun at everything. From Mexican wrestler gangs to BDSM and sex toys to good old fashioned blood, violence and murdering the innocent and the guilty, its depraved, disturbing and perverted and I wouldn't want it any other way.
9. My understanding is that SR4 is in development and on its way, so if you enjoy this one, you might not have to wait long to renew your experience.
Not So Good:
1. The driving is a little too over the top, almost cartoonish in terms of what happens when you hit things. I think I prefer the more realistic driving physics that we got in GTA4 and even in SR2. The driving is a little hard to get used to and its a little irritating because the physics are so out of whack. This has to be my number one complaint. Over the top story and silliness, good...over the top driving and out of whack physics...bad! I'm also not such a big fan of all the camera shaking and how the camera goes sometimes when you hit something.
2. No Multiplayer Mode. SR2 had a multiplayer mode, so did GTA4 and they were fun. This has no multiplayer. The closest it comes is a co-op mode that will allow you to play through the missions with a friend, etc, and while that can be fun, its not quite the same as having special maps/missions specifically for multiplayer.
3. Its a little resource heavy. I have a quad core i7 with Windows 7, dual switchable graphics cards and a boatload of ram and I get minor frame delays and blurs. Its not a big deal, not too frustrating but I think if I had a lesser computer it may have been an issue.
4. Graphics. I thought the graphics were nice but I felt that they were maybe 1 level under GTA4. I thought SR2 was 2 levels under GTA4. That didn't bother me because SR2 came out at the same time roughly as GTA4 so I figured they were just a little behind the graphics curve. So yes progress has been made but since its been like 3 years between games, I would have thought more progress would have been seen in the graphics department.
5. Vehicle Damage. I felt like vehicles took and showed damage better and more accurately in SR2 and GTA4. Maybe its a symptom of the over the top driving physics that annoy me, but I feel like you don't get a real feel for the damage. Sure, pieces fall off and you see dents and scratches, but I go from missing a door to the car blowing up pretty quick.
6. Challenge. Even on its hardest setting, the game isn't very challenging. That having been said, I suppose if you really wanted a challenge, you could simply not do the upgrades and that would make things a little harder for you. Besides, I get the feeling that the point of this game isn't really to challenge you in the way that many shooters and driving games do, but rather to entertain you. I wonder if the point then is to provide a stage in which to share all the over the top jokes and fun and you go through it and play sure, but is not so hard that you can't stop and really enjoy all the absurd wierdness going on. if that was the thought process then maybe this isn't really a con. It's kind of nice to just go through in a less stressful way such that you can pick up on and enjoy the silliness.
7. Shaundi. I loved the slutty funny Shaundi in Saints Row 2. In this version she's a lot more serious and a lot bitchier. For SR4, please bring back the old Shaundi who was had a great sense of humor no matter what.
In conclusion, if you enjoy GTA or SR games in the past, GET THIS GAME!! You will have SO much fun and be so entertained for so long. You will get your money's worth and then some!
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