As Grand Theft Auto grew up with IV, THQ's low budget equivalent Saints Row took a turn for the ridiculous. Saints Row 2 was an irreverent playground of over the top violence and humor, and with Saints Row: The Third, we are promised a bigger, more extreme and much better looking Saints Row than ever before.
For anyone worried by the violence of the GTA series, look away now. Saints Row: The Third is provocatively violent, with absolutely no attempts to moralize or temper behavior in the game. An early gameplay video shows you what to expect: Fighting pedestrians, a human cannon, vertical take-off fighter jets, tanks and a range of powerful and deadly weapons that are designed to make violence fun. Saints Row: The Third is very tongue in cheek, but it's dark humor and violence make this a definite adult title, and one that many people will find too much.
However, if you like the idea of a big sandbox city where you can pretty much do as you like, creating mayhem wherever you go, Saints Row: The Third is shaping up to be a blast. Where the last game looked cheap, with a scarce city and poor vehicle handling, The Third looks fantastic and big budget. The open world gameplay certainly looks fun, but it remains to be seen how this will be sewn into a compelling story.
What we do know is that multiplayer has been dropped in favor of a better co-op campaign mode. Story missions will now feature drop-in co-op modes, meaning a friend can always join in to help you with the action. Co-op was great fun in the second game, so we're looking forward to Saints Row: The Third having this option even better developed!
With no Grand Theft Auto this year, Saints Row: The Third is well placed to take the sandbox crown of 2011. If it's half as fun as it looks, it can hardly fail!
