Favourite Games of 2013: Number 7 - Saint's Row IV

(Xbox 360, PS3, PC)

I have never been a fan of the Saint’s Row series and I have, until Saint’s Row IV, little experience with the games – I have never played the original games and only briefly touched upon the third game in the series.  I had always appreciated the premise of the series – it started off as a rather serious clone of the Grand Theft Auto series and over time has increasingly shifted focus away to become a goofier and over the top game series.

The absolute absurdness of Saint’s Row IV gameplay is what made me finally purchase and play a Saint’s Row game.  The story of the game goes along something like … after battling different gangs; the Saints have finally over taken the White House and now control the United States of America, and now they have no one else to conquer, except the extra-terrestrials that have just invaded the earth and threaten to destroy the world.  If you thought Saint’s Row the Third was bonkers, well then I guess you have seen nothing yet.

Most of the game is actually set in a computer simulation in the fictional city of Steelport (so a simulation within a simulation – it has all gone rather inception-like) and there you are capable of some really crazy athletic abilities, you can leap from one building to the next, glide over half of the city, sprint up the sides of buildings and along the surface of the water.  The video 'Quick Look' below (courtesy of Giant Bomb) captivated my intrigue and from that point on I needed to delve into the world of Saint’s Row IV.

This game is so much fun to run around in and create havoc, after playing this game I find it difficult to go back to other open world games which, now feel  greatly more restrictive, the fact that driving in a vehicle is slower than sprinting around the city speaks volumes as to how powerful the game makes you feel.  I never thought that a Saint’s Row entry would become the Matrix game I always wanted to play.

All of what I have written is exactly why Saint’s Row IV has become one of my favourite games for 2013, but also any game that lets you have the option to choose Nola North as a voice to your character should be reason alone for being on the top 10 games of 2013.

Also, that dub-step gun …