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Dec 30, 2023 · The Epic Games Store is letting people download and keep the 2022 revamp of Saints Row, developed by the now shutdown studio Volition for free until 11 am Eastern time on December 31....
Dec 13, 2022 · How to get Saints Row IV: Re-Elected for free. The game is available for free download on the Epic Game store on PC ( which releases new free games every week) until 11 a.m. on Dec. 15,...
- Daniel Oropeza
- Overview
- Windows Central reviews Saints Row (2022)
- When was the release date for Saints Row (2022)?
- What editions can I buy of Saints Row (2022)?
- What is Saints Row?
- Is Saints Row (2022) a reboot?
- What is the story in Saints Row (2022)?
- What is the gameplay in Saints Row (2022)?
- What are the customization options in Saints Row (2022)?
- Will there be DLC or expansions for Saints Row (2022)?
How-to
The Saints want to take over Santo Ileso, and players will get to choose every move they make.
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•Saints Row (2022) review
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Ahead of the release of Saints Row (2022), Windows Central gained early access to dive into the complete experience and compile our final thoughts. Our Saints Row (2022) review explores everything you need to consider before purchasing, and concludes that "Saints Row (2022) succeeds at returning to the roots of its predecessors by paring back the outlandish absurdity without losing an ounce of chaos, but sometimes feels as if it's holding on too tightly to a past best left forgotten."
Deep Silver Volition has crafted a fun and interesting open-world sandbox packed with fun toys and gameplay, but the overall experience lacks polish and stability. Nothing about this game's story, gameplay, or general ambitions will rocket it to the top of the list of game-of-the-year contenders, but it's a genuinely fun game that isn't afraid to be a video game.
The new Saints Row game released on Aug. 23, 2022, on Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, and PC (through the Epic Games Store). The game is currently available to purchase, with players able to choose from three editions.
The final release date for Saints Row was a near-six-month delay over the game's original launch, which was initially set for Feb. 25. The developers at Deep Silver Volition cited the effects of the ongoing pandemic on development and their desire to ensure the Saints Row reboot is in a polished state as reasons for the delay.
As of now, Saints Row (2022) is not among the best games on Xbox Game Pass and isn't included in Xbox or PC Game Pass, but this could change in the future.
Deep Silver Volition previously released a standalone version of Saints Row's in-game character creator, Boss Factory, on June 9, 2022, for players to explore ahead of the game's release. This is the full character creator for Saints Row (2022), including community sharing features, and syncs with the full game for when you play.
Saints Row (2022) is now available on every platform from the Saints Row website, and directly from the Xbox Store. There are three editions.
The Standard Edition only includes the base game, and is priced at $60. The Gold Edition, which costs $90, includes the Expansion Pass and Los Panteros American Muscle Bundle Pack (with the Los Panteros Custom "Fury" Motorcycle and the "El Lanzador" Heavy Weapon Skin). The Expansion Pass will include three DLC add-ons for Saints Row (2022), each with new missions, enemies, weapons, vehicles, customization options, and more.
Finally, there's the $100 Platinum Edition, which features everything from the Gold Edition and a copy of Saints Row: The Third Remastered. This is a remaster of the third game for current-gen consoles. If you already own Saints Row: The Third Remastered, it's definitely better to go for the slightly more affordable Gold Edition. However, players who want to revisit what's often considered to be the quintessential Saints Row experience, or have yet to play it at all, would benefit from this package deal.
Preordering Saints Row did net players some in-game bonuses. Each preorder edition came with the Idols Anarchy Pack. It featured three items that help you blend in with the neon-centric Idols gang: the Idols DJ Helmet, the Twinkle Bat, and the Sandstorm Scrambler.
Saints Row is a long-running video game series, with each existing entry tasking you with building up a criminal empire as a member of a gang known as the 3rd Street Saints. While each title's plot, design, and scope may differ, the general idea is the same across the franchise.
The series was initially considered as a "Grand Theft Auto clone" developed by Volition (now called Deep Silver Volition), but quickly expanded into something special, with a dedicated player base.
The first two games involve standard gang stories, with serious plot points juxtaposed by comedic moments, and the second has you bring the Saints back together after they disband. The third and fourth entries in the series progressively became more chaotic, with over-the-top gameplay and ridiculous settings. The third involves the Saints contending with a criminal conglomerate called the Syndicate, and the fourth traps them inside a simulation run by aliens and gives them superpowers. You can then work up to being the president of the United States.
The last mainline game was Saints Row 4 in 2013, with a standalone expansion, Gat out of Hell, released in 2015. The studio also worked on Agents of Mayhem, which was released in 2017. It takes place in the Saints Row universe but is unconnected to the story of the four main games. Saints Row: The Third, which is considered by many to be the best overall in the franchise, was remastered in 2020 for modern platforms.
Saints Row (2022) is a reboot of the franchise, and the reasons for doing so are numerous. After going to Hell, where can you go from there? According to Chief Creative Officer Jim Boone, the team almost had to start over.
"We went to Hell. There truly isn't anywhere to go past that," he said during a media event. "While we love the mechanics we came up with — all the superpowers and everything — there just isn't a lot of runway to figure out where you're going to go past that. That's why it was a pretty easy decision for us to go back to our roots."
While the four main games had an interconnected story, the new game, just titled Saints Row, features an all-new story and characters (sorry Johnny Gat fans), along with a new sandbox to explore. It also features a new direction for the team at Volition, which had previously been trying to up itself with every game. Now it has to pare back in interesting ways.
For one, gone are the superpowers and the supernatural elements. In Saints Row, you're simply focusing on building your criminal empire. We'll go into more detail about what that entails below, but what you need to know is that the Saints Row reboot is less focused on the "shock value" of its predecessor and more on the player and the sandbox. You have to use your skills to take on enemy gangs, buy up property, and build up an empire along the way.
"(We wanted to) go back to our origins and get back to that more contemporary crime angle that we love and that Saints Row is known for," Boone continued.
Many elements of previous games are still present in Saints Row, including activities like Insurance Fraud, absurdly in-depth customization across characters and everything else, chaotic gameplay and combat, and zany humor. There are also nods to the previous games in the reboot, which players will have to discover for themselves.
Volition calls the new Saints Row a "contemporary" story, aligned with many of the struggles that millennials and Gen Z are dealing with right now… at least, tangentially. You play as the Boss (as in previous games), and you and your three friends band together to build a criminal empire from the ground up. In the first trailer for the game, you call it your "startup." All four characters come from "dead-end jobs" (three come from each of the rival gangs in the city) and have things like debt from which they want to get away. Saints Row is described as a "power fantasy" for those who want to be their own boss.
The reboot takes place in the fictional city of Santo Ileso, which combines elements of many American Southwest locales like Las Vegas, Reno, New Mexico, and parts of Southern California. It features numerous playable districts that each have their own distinct feel. The map is diverse, and feels radically different to the New York-inspired cities of previous entries in the franchise.
As we mentioned, the player character is the Boss, but three other characters are a part of your main crew. First, there's Eli, a young guy with an MBA who came to Santo Ileso to start a business. He's the planner of the group. Then, there's Nina, the driver, who grew up working in a car garage and became a mechanic. Finally, there's Kevin, who's a DJ. Each of these characters has a back story that ties them with the city, which includes possibly having a history with one of the three gangs.
In Saints Row (2022), you're tasked with going up against each of them. The first is the Los Panteros, who are locals of Santo Ileso and rely on muscle and physical power. The second is Marshall Defense Industries, a private military conglomerate. Finally, there are the Idols, a cult-like collective that want to sow chaos and look good while doing so. The ultimate goal is to grow your intimate group of friends into a fully-fledged gang known simply as "The Saints," and to take over Santo Ileso gradually.
The gameplay in Saints Row (2022) is similar to past Saints Row titles. While the latest game in the series does dial back some of the more chaotic elements of its predecessors, there are still plenty of ridiculous weapons to wield, vehicles to drive, mayhem to cause, and action to enjoy.
The moment-to-moment gameplay in the new Saints Row is still ridiculous, with a new spectacle at every turn. The newly redesigned physics engine launches bodies and vehicles into the sky, many elements of the world are fully destructible, and the vast array of tools and abilities at players' disposal ensures that no two playstyles are quite alike. Taunts, execution-style takedowns, and more return from previous games to inject further chaos into the gameplay.
Our Saints Row (2022) beginner's guide provides several tips and tricks to help players get started in Santo Ileso, including how to Fast Travel, how to accrue cash and other resources quickly, and more.
The biggest update in the reboot is arguably (and literally) the new map, which Volition developers purport is the biggest in the series to date. It's so big that they can't exactly measure its size.
"In terms of gameplay, I've never done a side-by-side comparison, but I'm continually amazed by how much gameplay there is. It's huge," said Design Director James Hague.
Within this giant sandbox, you have the opportunity to build up your criminal empire with an added degree of freedom. As The Saints gain power and funds, you can build Criminal Ventures across the city. Each Venture is a unique business or operation that provides passive income, unique rewards, and exclusive missions. Investing in Ventures helps you take control of more of the city.
If anything has remained constant throughout the entire Saints Row franchise, it's the importance of robust character creation. The new Saints Row has the most in-depth creation and customization options yet, with a truly ridiculous number of settings for customizing your character, vehicles, weapons, The Saints gang, and more. Practically endless possibilities are available immediately after starting the game, with more options being unlocked the more you play.
Players are able to play as practically anyone (or anything) they desire, with none of the options locked to any specific gender or any other arbitrary value. Santo Ileso also features a ton of in-game brick-and-mortar stores that allow players to purchase even more cosmetics for their character and gear, including the return of fan-favorite stores like Leather & Lace.
Like previous Saints Row games, Deep Silver Volition also released the in-game character creator as a standalone experience ahead of the game's release, letting players get a jump start on building their dream characters. You can download Saints Row Boss Factory right now for free from Xbox. This is the full character creation engine for Saints Row, letting you create and fully customize your Boss before you purchase the full game. You can then save your creation to the cloud, so it's available the moment you start playing. Saints Row (2022) also marks the return of the community library, meaning you can browse creations from other Saints Row players and explore Santo Ileso as anyone.
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Volition hasn't revealed its post-launch plans just yet, but store listings mention an Expansion Pass. The Xbox Store listing says, "the Saints Row Expansion Pass gives access to three expansion episodes opening up new areas of Santo Ileso to explore, including new missions, enemies, and more."
This indicates that fresh content will come to Saints Row (2022) after launch, although the scope of these planned DLC expansions isn't known, yet. We also don't know whether there will be any other optional DLC or expansions beyond this Expansion Pass, or what the timeline for release is. For all of this and more, we'll likely have to wait until a while longer.
Saints Row
Deep Silver revitalized the legendary Saints Row franchise with a brand-new reboot set in the fictional city of Santo Ileso. The brand-new open-world action game is still packed with over-the-top chaos, and it's now available.
Buy from: Xbox | Amazon
Update, Aug. 30, 2022: Updated with links to the Windows Central review and relevant guides, as well as updated information now that Saints Row (2022) is officially released.
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Dec 30, 2023 · PC gamers can now grab a free copy of Saints Row on the Epic Games Store. This game is the 2022 reboot of the 2006 original. Saints Row is currently available for free on the Epic Games Store - OC3D
Aug 26, 2021 · Deep Silver and Epic Games have announced that Saints Row: The Third Remastered is free to download right now on PC via the Epic Games Store. You've got until September 2 to visit the game's EGS page and claim your free copy.
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