By Sean Radican, Torch columnist

RADICAN’S VIDEOGAME REVIEW SERIES
“SAINTS ROW IV”
RELEASED IN AUGUST 2013 ON XBOX360, PS3, AND PC

Radican note: I reviewed the PS3 version of “Saints Row IV.

The Saints Row series has been known in the past for its over-the-top gameplay with zany weapons (dildo guns anyone?) and a heavy dose of sophomoric humor. If you haven’t played the Saints Row series in the past, it was similar to Grand Theft Auto in that both were sandbox games, but it stood out because of the crazy weapons, humor, and most importantly the influence of pro wrestling on past editions of the series. When Deep Silver acquired the Saints Row license after THQ went under, I wondered how the creative team would be able to turn out another edition of the series in such a short amount of time, but they did a heck of a job producing a quality game.

“Saints Row IV” takes the game and turns it upside down with a new formula. This time you’re the leader of the Saints Row crew and the President of the United States. Then chaos hits when an alien invasion lead by Zinyak of the Zin Empire takes place on Earth. Most of the Saints Row crew is trapped in a virtual simulation of Steelport by Zinyak, which seems to be a tribute to the Matrix movies. This is where the fun begins.

Right off the bat, you can customize your own character to play the role of the Saints Row leader. The customization options are a blast to play with when creating your character to use in the game. You can make him look like a gimp or thanks to the DLC included in the Commander-In-Chief edition of the game; you can dress him up in a patriotic outfit complete with a stars and stripes top hat. The options don’t end there, as you can modify your characters voice and just about any detail you can think of.

The customization doesn’t stop there, as you’re able to purchase and acquire a wide variety of weapons. You can purchase different weapon skins with your cache that you build up as you progress through the game. My favorite weapon was the Dubstep gun, which plays different music depending on how you customize it. I also liked the destructions wielded by the ‘Merica weapon, which comes as a DLC bonus with the Commander-In-Chief edition of the game. The ‘Merica weapon plays patriotic music as you blast through your enemies.

Because you’re placed in a simulation, you quickly are able to use superpowers to fight your way out of virtual Steelport. It isn’t long before you’re running at blazing speed over cars, people, and aliens and jumping over tall buildings. The game allows you to upgrade your powers by collecting orbs placed around Steelport. The superpowers are a blast and the game gives you training sessions on how to use them as you acquire more powers. There’s nothing more satisfying then jumping high in the air and using your special powers to stomp out a bunch of aliens. You also are given telekinesis powers as the game progresses as well as other powers and those are a blast too.

The game has a wide variety of activities to play around with outside of the main mission. You can hack stores in the city, participate in challenges with gold, silver, and bronze awards, and visit different locations that have a wide-variety of mini-games. The side quests and activities placed throughout Steelport will keep you distracted for hours if you’re not careful. Jumping up to the top of a tall alien structure, getting to the top, and then jumping back off and flying back into the city provides a real rush the first time you do it.

The pro wrestling inspired attacks in the game are a blast to pull off, especially when you can pull them off while sprinting. You can powerbomb, stunner, head scissor, curb stomp, and superkick your foes to their demise and then with the simple press of a button, you can strut around like Ric Flair and let out a big, “Woo.”

If you’re a wrestling fan and you play the game, you’ll come across some familiar people and voices. JCW announcer Kevin Gill DJs his own radio station as himself. Gill is fantastic on commentary in JCW and he delivers the goods as a DJ here. While you’re going around Steelport trying to fight your way out of the simulation, Gill provides the background music and some great introductions to a wide-variety of Rock and Hip-Hop music. The thing that stands out about the different radio stations available to you while you play is that the DJs almost always have fresh material and sometimes there are several different introductions used for the same song.

You can’t play as Rowdy Roddy Piper in “WWE 2K14” this year, but he’s in “Saints Row IV” and his involvement in the game was very well-done, especially the tribute to one of his most famous movies, “They Live.” Piper’s lines in the game are hilarious and wrestling fans, especially fans of WWE in the 80s, will really enjoy his involvement in the game. Along the way, you’ll also encounter Christopher Daniels, who voices a DJ on a radio station and Rob Van Dam, who co-hosts a very violent game show.

The game succeeds in bringing some hilarious moments such as Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” playing during a game segment spoofing “Armageddon.” There are also a number of missions that pay tribute to video games of past and present. The Metal Gear Solid spoof mission was flat out hilarious and the mission where you’re placed in a classic side scrolling mission is great as well. There are several parts of the game that made me want to go back later and play them again because they were so much fun.

“Saints Row IV” had a couple of detractions. The game locked up on me a couple of times, including once during the final mission and I had to start all over again. Most of the game is spent playing in Steelport at night, but at the end of the game you unlock and option that allows you to go back and play during the day. It would have been nice to have some variation in the atmosphere of the game during the game before I beat it.

Overall score: (8.5) – I enjoyed “Saints Row IV” more than any other game in the series. The addition of superpowers makes this game a blast to play. The wrestling influence on the game is well-done and if you’re a wrestling fan, you’re going to want to play this game. The humor in the game is what makes “Saints Row IV” stand out. Different characters deliver hilarious dead-pan one-liners throughout the game and the creators of the game just nailed it with their spoofs of pop culture, movies, and television shows.

You can purchase “Saints Row IV” at most stores that sell videogames. You can find more information about “Saints Row IV by clicking HERE or by visiting SaintsRow.com.

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