Soundtrack and mutiplayer
The soundtrack and audio in Saints Row on the other hand is excellent. As mentioned previously, the radio stations often report on activities that are happening in the area and the mix of musical genres on show (including rock, punk, hip-hop and garage) complement the game’s aggressive front. The swearing in the game is part and parcel of a game of this nature and although the script leaves a lot to be desired the dialogue is often amusing and full of innuendos, but occasionally it's totallly cringe worthy.
Saints Row also features a multiplayer mode that is currently riddled with faults. We actually thought about not even mentioning it because at the moment it’s useless. We hear that there is a patch coming out to fix the issues that we’ve experienced, such as not being able to get into games and the awful lag.
Click for larger imageUp to 12 players are meant to be able to battling it out over turf, There’s a single player death match (if you can get into a game) where it’s every man for himself, or a team death match consisting of two teams of 6. There are also a number of quirky online modes including: Protect the Pimp, which involves defending a pimp whilst the other team tries to take him out. Big Ass Chains, which involves picking up jewellery whenever you kill an opponent and pawning it at the nearest jewellery shop for points. The first team to reach a set amount of points wins. We’ve not managed to take part in these latter online modes, due to failure to connect to a lobby. Once the patch has been released we'll come back and write something worthwhile about the online experience.
Click for larger imageDespite some glitches, a poor online mode, and the whole concept of the game being done before, Saints Row is certainly the best GTA clone so far. Volition have obviously looked at Rockstar’s efforts and attempted to improve in certain areas. They’ve done this well, but it could have been even better if more time had of been spent on ironing out the problems that they must have known existed. Nevertheless we like it, and GTA fans waiting for the next instalment of the series should check it out.
Pros
Combat system is fluid
Good variety of missions
Driving is smooth
Rag doll physics create some superb explosions
Cons
Poor A.I. at times
Online mode is useless (at the moment)
If you don't like driving you'll be bored.
The best GTA clone yet!
HEXUS Awards
Saints Row - Xbox 360
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Saints Row is available now , click the following links to order:Play.com
