I’ll save you some reading: if you loved Saints Row 3, then you’ll double love Saints Row 4. It continues the tradition of insanely over-the-top story and gameplay that fans of the series have grown to love. That’s not to say it’s just more of the same. No, sir. While Saints Row 4 might take place in the same city of Steelport (and was actually intended to be an add-on DLC before becoming a full-grown sequel) it’s manages to raise the bar for the series in some very satisfying ways.
After a brief introductory/tutorial mission, the Saints somehow ascend to the Presidency of the United States of America. You’re at the top, of course, with all your closest allies from the previous game in key staff positions. The story actually takes place “five years later,” presumably near the start of your second term in office, when aliens invade and imprison you in a virtual-reality version of Steelport. That might sound like a spoiler, but it’s public knowledge. Besides, the story of Saints Row 4 is a perfect example of “it’s the journey, not the destination” because all the fun is in what happens moment-to-moment. Those moments are absolutely bonkers, in a good way, so even if you knew all the plot points, it would still be an entertaining ride. As an example, the tutorial mission ends with you attempting to disarm a nuclear missile, which is currently hurtling toward its target, while your compatriots struggle to says nice things about you before your body gets reduced to its constituent atoms. The things they say are absolutely hilarious, and smartly comedic to boot.
Virtual Steelport is still Steelport so, if you’ve sunk time into SR3, you’ll be intimately familiar with the layout and activities. All the old shops are right where you’d expect, with the exception being Planet Saints, which is renamed after Earth’s new alien master. All the rival gang activities have also been replaced with alien outposts, and it’s them who’ll you’ll be trying to wrest the city from as you play. The main story is about trying to escape from the simulation, but most of the side-tasks remain the same. That’s not a criticism, just an observation that a lot of the gameplay with be instantly recognizable to fans of the series.
There are a couple new activities, however, which take advantage of the super powers you can now acquire. Again, this isn’t a spoiler, because the developers have been more than open about it. The first two you receive are Super Speed and Super Jump, and let me tell you, these completely change the game’s feel. Navigating the world becomes so much easier because you can leap massive distances and run faster than any vehicle could ever move. It also becomes much easier to get distracted from the main storyline as well, since the powers are upgraded by collecting data clusters scattered throughout the world. These data clusters are literally everywhere, and are extremely easy to spot from long distances, so I often found myself leaping around picking them up without regard for the passage of time.
Saints Row 4 is built directly on top of the Saints Row 3 engine, so performance is exactly the same as before. Running at 1280×720 on Medium settings netted my low-end machine 60 frames per second throughout the preview. Not a surprise, really, since the game is designed to run smoothly on half-decade old Xbox 360s and Playstation 3s. The controls are also well done, with the default keyboard/mouse layout being instantly comfortable to me. You know the drill: WASD to move, E to interact, et cetera. If that’s not what you’re into, you can remap the keys to your preference.
It all adds up to a ridiculously fun experience. I’d always enjoyed the gunplay and insanity of Saints Row 3, and coupled with the new super powers, as well as the entertainment factor that goes along with it, is pumped through the roof. Given how much enjoyment I had playing the preview copy, it makes me wonder just where the story is going to go. If Volition is willing to let the alien invasion and super powers be public knowledge well in advance of release, I can’t help but feel excited for what they’re keeping under wraps. I suppose we’ll find out on August 20th, when the final game is released.
