$20 Game of the Week: Saint’s Row 2 (PS3, Xbox 360)

So maybe the original Saint’s Row wasn’t the most original game of 2006, but it was wickedly fun, and its open world action improved on Grand Theft Auto’s formula in many aspects. It’s shock ending guaranteed that fans would be clamoring for a sequel, and sure enough, THQ and Volition deliver. Other than a few tweaks here and there, the developer sticks to the ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ school of thought. Saint’s Row definitely was not broken, and it’s time for gamers to take a return trip to Stillwater.

At the conclusion of the previous game, you had been blackmailed into helping out a corrupt bureaucrat just hours after taking out Stillwater’s three biggest gangs. You met with him on a boat which then exploded. The good news is that you managed to survive. Unfortunately you were mangled so badly that the prison doctors can’t even tell if you were a man or woman. That’s right, you can create females this time around. The sliders have also been refined, so you can create someone as bizarre as you want them to be. Oddly enough, no matter how you make your character, everyone you bump into will recognize you. From there, it’s time to escape the prison. The game throws you into the wringer from the start, but hey, at least you aren’t spending the game’s first few hours babysitting your pathetic douchebag of a cousin (*cough*GTAIV*hack*). You then learn that things have gone south since you went absent. The Ultor corporation controls most of the city’s underground after they renovated the city. The Saints have disbanded, and three new gangs are taking control of Stillwater. Johnny Gat is on death row, Julius has gone missing, Dex works for Ultor, and Troy, (the two-faced son of a bitch who blew up the boat you were on) is now the chief of police. So now it’s up to you to put the Saint’s back together, dispose of the three new gangs, get revenge, and take back the city.

The mission layout is similar to the first game. The three gangs, the Ronin, the Sons of Samedi, and the Brotherhood each have their own self-contained storyline. To gain access to new missions, you have to fill up your respect bar. The fastest way to do this is by performing activities. All your favorites from the first game have returned, along with several new ones. Wait until you see Septic Avenger, FUZZ, and Trailblazer to name a few. You can also perform diversions, minigame-like activities which earn you small amounts of respect. These include drive-by shootings, hostage ransom, and more. If you get tired, you can chill out at one of your cribs. You can even play the video game Zombie Uprising on your game console. The customization options have returned, and they are bigger than ever. You can outfit any car you wish and store them in your garage just like the last game. You can also change the look of your pad, your fighting style, and your gang’s tag. You can even change the dress style of your gang, and you can change their motif into anything from Secret Service to prohibition-era gangsters, to ninjas. Yes, ninjas. even though Saint’s Row 2’s story is a bit darker, it has lost none of it’s comedic edge, and it has even become more absurd. A pre-order code gains players access to a flying saucer and a midget motorcycle for crying out loud.

GTA San Andreas fans will be pleased to know that there are several playable aircraft and motorcycles in the game, and there are even satchel charges. It’s always funny to see a civilian run around frantically with a satchel charge attached to them. Multiplayer is back, and although it’s no Halo, it makes an excellent diversion from the main game. The game also includes drop-in/drop-out co-op for a system link or Xbox Live/PSN pal. You can also download two mission packs, one of which features adult film starlet Tera Patrick. One thing that I like (and this was in the original game too) is that the gangs are made up of people of different races and genders. It’s not uncommon to see women running alongside men. Nothing brings the people of the world together better than deviant criminal activity.

If you didn’t like the original game, then you won’t like the sequel either. If you did like the previous game, Saint’s Row 2 presents players with more of a good thing. It might copy Grand Theft Auto’s formula, but at least Volition once again chose to copy what worked rather than what didn’t.