A series which has undoubtedly always been surrounded by controversy, from its humble beginnings as a gang-themed clone of the ever-successful Grand Theft Auto franchise, through to a science fiction comedy set in a British alien’s clone of the Matrix, and ending with a lacklustre reboot which stirred up enough of a fan backlash to kill the studio – Saints Row has seen nearly every genre and stigma it possibly could. Whilst the series saw highs and near-universal appraise from its fanbase with its second and third entries, the downhill trajectory began with the fourth entry as it headed in a bold new direction which split appeal between old and new fans.
Saints Row (2022) released after a near-decade long hiatus of the series, combining a more down-to-earth crime story like Saints Row 2 (2008), but leaned more into the comedy element which was seen in Saints Row IV (2013)– that is, if IV’s comedy was written by Gen X boardroom executives trying to appeal to Gen Z. This created a level of juxtaposition which just didn’t work for the game, which sadly wasn’t limited to the narrative; the game released with a more vibrant world with exaggerated technology and skills available. Players could unlock hoverboards, fight ghosts, and participate in live action roleplays – all fun side activities and diversions, but when compared to the story which mostly fell flat in trying to be personable and relatable, it just felt too far away from what it was trying to be.
With Volition having sadly been made to close doors as a part of the concerning level of layoffs, redundancies and mergers happening in the gaming industry right now – it is clear that we will unfortunately not see a new Saints Row game any time soon. An already painful wound, with proverbial salt being thrown on when taking into consideration the leaks about how Volition themselves wanted to make a different game, but publisher Deep Silver demanded they make the changes which were poorly received by critics and fans alike.
I wholeheartedly believe that even with the game that was released in 2022, we could have had the beginning to a great new Saints Row universe if it was given the post-launch love it truly deserved. Many other games have had famous revivals, so I won’t bore you with the done-to-death references to Cyberpunk 2077 (2020)or No Man’s Sky (2016)’s launches – Instead, I want to talk about what could have been.
Saints Row (2022) had a rocky launch, people couldn’t develop any meaningful attachments to the characters, and the gameplay was a mess – but I think I know how it could have been saved.
This is the first part of a two-part article series detailing on how to save the Saints Row series, from where it is currently placed. This article will focus on a DLC for the existing Saint Row (2022) reboot which will aim to improve the game’s overall reputation, and I will finish it off with a slight teaser for what comes next – My pitch for Saints Row II.
You may be wondering, "What makes you the expert on how to fix games?"
Well, I'm not an expert - I have no history in game development. However, I have written numerous articles on how I would like to see several games improved to much positive feedback. This includes my famous 8-year-plan for Red Dead Online, my pitch for how to move GTA V's Online to GTA VI, my suggestions on how Fallout 76 could improve with a next-gen update, among many other ideas!
So, without further ado, let’s dive into ‘The Price of Fame’
It’s Our Time Now
The first thing we're focusing on is the largest point of contention with the reboot - the story. Whilst this expansion won't make any changes to the existing story out of respect for the writers' creative decisions, it would add a new short four-mission story much like other DLCs - as well as a new three-part side quest, two new loyalty missions, and a whole host of new and upgraded business ventures which come with new content.
Firstly, with the main quest, I wanted to focus on giving a new take on existing characters within this universe. I decided to focus on recontextualising Saints Row 2 (2008)'s Maero and Saints Row The Third (2011)'s Killbane to fit into a story together. I felt as if these characters had interesting parallels and would play off eachother nicely as a combination we haven't seen before.
New Questline: "The Price of Fame"
Entertainment business partners who constantly butt heads and struggle with eachother over power, wrestler Eddie “Killbane” Pryor and a Demolition Derby Expert only known as “Maero” have came to the city to expand their lucrative criminal enterprise. They have brought their hard hitting, grenade throwing, truck-and-tattoo loving gang, the Brothers of Apoca, donning black, gold and silver as their colour scheme.
The Brothers of Apoca run their operations out of an old abandoned casino in El Dorado. They plan to take over the illegal cage fighting and demolition derby game in the city, as well as profit from all of the local gambling ventures.
Maero is down to Earth in terms of his style, covered in tattoos all with personal meaning to him. He’s never seen wearing more than a tank top or a polo shirt and his iconic leather biker cut, which are frequently splattered with engine grease. His slicked back mullet and goatee are a sign he isn’t a man to be taken as a joke. The tattoo of the tribal wolf on the back of his neck dominates his classic gritty appearance.
Killbane has a much more luxurious and grandiose style. When he’s not dressed as a Luchadore in the ring, Pryor is only ever seen in the most classy of clothing. Designer suits with fur collars, expensive loafers and a classy pocket watch are all he ever wears, as well as his iconic black and gold mask. (Unfortunately unavailable)
Naturally, their clashing personalities and huge egos cause them to frequently disagree about what is best for business, and who should have final say.
The Price of Fame Questline Mission 1: New Faces
Cutscene:
The cutscene opens up with Killbane and Maero riding into the city in a convoy with some of their gang members, claiming that the Steelport game has gone stale. We hear some goons gossip about how Killbane was eager to leave after losing a match to an up-and-coming boxer, only calling himself “The Angel”, meanwhile Maero tells Jessica, his girlfriend, that feels as if this is only only to preserve Killbane’s pride. She tells him it’s time Maero took over the crew.
Cut to the Saints HQ, the Boss is doing a keg stand at a party with Kev and Neenah. Eli comes down and pulls everyone back up to the Empire Room. He explains how even though they’ve coke so far, they’re not doing anything new now and need to continue to grow as he’s getting bored of the constant parties, orgies and sitting back as money roles in. The Boss tells him to enjoy the party for the night.
Cut back to the Brothers of Apoca, they have arrived at their new lair, and begin unpacking. Maero remarks that it “Looks like shit” but Killbane tells him that it has potential, and Maero lacks vision. Maero mentions the threat of the Saints, but Killbane dismisses them as jokers who “had it handed to them on a shiny silver platter by the Nahualli” and that the rest was “Dumb luck”
Cut to the Saints HQ, where the Boss is doing shots with Kev and Neenah. Eli is pouring them as fast as possible, but they’re drinking hard.
Meanwhile at the Brothers of Apoca stronghold, they are arming up for a robbery to start funding their ventures. As Maero is polishing his gun, he spots Killbane watching a livestream of the battle on the island of Boot Hill. Killbane is determined to take on the challenge as the rest attack the bank. Maero doesn’t argue with the idea, and let’s him go.
The next day.
The Boss wakes up on their bed in the Saints HQ and struggle out of bed. They stumble through the base and head to the apartment area, where Kev has prepared a breakfast fry-up, and Neenah is passed out on the counter.
Eli enters the room, and tells everyone they’re “Gonna wanna see this.” - He presents a video on his tablet, which he casts onto the TV. It’s Killbane smashing through Boot Hill with nothing but his fists, even crushing the Boot Hill DLC characters with relative ease. The Boss seems unphased, not knowing who it is. Eli explains he’s a wrestler from another city with hundreds of criminal allegations, and that’s not all. He switches the video to a news feed of a bank showing Maero and the gang escaping with bags of loot in their trucks. Eli explains the two are criminal accomplices running a gang together, and it’s clear they’ve made their way to Santo Ileso to take on the Saints.
Cut to the Brothers of Apoca lair, Maero is counting money as Killbane is watching his footage back and basking in his glory, and how unlike the Boss of the Saints, he didn’t need weapons to survive on the island. Maero puts the money down and stands next to his ally, and tells him that he admits Killbane was right, and he now thinks crushing the Saints may very well be easy.
Gameplay:
Gameplay opens with the Boss outside Saints HQ. Eli tells them that he’s following the Brothers of Apoca’s actions online so the boss can gauge what to do. The boss is lead to a marina that they’re robbing, where they are immediately recognised and attacked by the new gang, applying a brand new gang wanted level. After having fought off a few waves of the gang, Eli mentions another group having just made a getaway from a local bank. The Boss must tail them to their base in order to gather more information.
Once the Boss has followed the getaway car to the abandoned casino, another cutscene triggers.
Cutscene:
The Boss calls Eli to tell him that they’re going in, Eli tells them to wait for backup but the boss says they’ve got it. They burst through the front door and are met immediately by Killbane and Maero splitting the heist loot.
Killbane is the first to greet the player, “If it isn’t the notorious Boss of the Third Street Saints. I was wondering when I’d get to make your acquaintance”
The Boss mentions the Brothers attacking them, and threatens them if they come at them again. Maero steps up, but Killbane holds his arm out so he can continue talking. He propositions the boss to a deal where they split the city down the West/East sides of the lake, to which the boss very impolitely refuses.
Maero says he doesn’t want a gang war, but he’s prepared to fight and take the whole city. The Boss resorts to the idea of just shooting them, but Killbane grabs their arm and throws them to the side. The pair beat on the boss and throw them in the back of a car, knocked out.
Black screen, fanfare. The Boss wakes up in the boot of the car and must spam the attack button to kick it open. Blinding lights flood over them as they hear the sounds of a reviving engine. They throw themselves out just as the car is crushed by a monster truck in a Demolition Derby between the Panteros and Brothers of Apoca out in the desert.
Gameplay:
The Boss must survive the derby and destroy all attacking vehicles, for five waves. Zach and Bobby make a return as the announcers from Genkibowl, mentioning some of the Boss' accomplishments throughout the city.
End of mission.
The Price of Fame Questline Mission 2: Killer Hangover
Cutscene:
The Boss heads back to the church and throws themselves on their bed, exhausted from the partying and fighting. A slight rumbling and commotion is heard in the distance, but the boss ignores it.
Kevin and a Saint come sprinting through, and tell the boss that the Brothers of Apoca are attacking the HQ. The Boss reluctantly gets up, and heads to the armoury.
Gameplay:
The Boss must fight off waves of the Brothers of Apoca as they attack the Church from the front, side, and sea. Each location has three waves with a mini-boss. Throughout the waves, the Brothers of Apoca begin rolling in heavier vehicles with cannons, which must be destroyed within one minute before they tear down the Saints HQ.
Groups of Saints will show up from across the city to help the Boss, and can be guided to different defence points.
Cutscene:
Upon completing the mission, a cutscene plays where the Boss heads to the downstairs bar, pushes a dead member of the Brothers of Apoca off, and lies down on it exhausted.
End of mission.
Completion unlocks the Heavy cannon Truck.
The Price of Fame Questline Mission 3: Personal Attacks
Gameplay:
Neenah calls the Boss, saying it’s time to strike back at the Brothers of Apoca. She tells the boss that each of their leaders have something to hit hard at, and that they can take them on in any order.
Killbane has his image. He can’t be seen as weak - He doesn’t even like being perceived as human. In order to embarrass the titan, the boss must head to three server locations out in the Badlands, hack into Killbane’s home security cameras, and post videos of him psyching himself up in the mirror, singing in the shower, and posing as his own fans in internet comments for fake clout. When the Boss reaches each location, they are attacked by waves of Brothers of Apoca as Killbane threatens them on the phone.
Maero has his crew, lead by his girlfriend, Jessica. She always eggs on Maero to be as harsh and violent as possible, much like a lady Macbeth type figure. Word is she’s recruiting new members of their gang in the Rojas Desert. The Boss decides to head out there to take on the crew and scare any potential new recruits. After fighting through the abandoned town being used as a training ground, Jessica confronts the Boss. This triggers a battle sequence between the two, which ends with a quick-time-event where the Boss throws her into the mill, crushing her.
End of mission.
Completion unlocks new tattoos, Killbane’s mask and the Apocafist.
The Price of Fame Questline Mission 4: The Fallout
Gameplay:
Killbane phones the Boss and tells them to meet the pair of them at the quarry. The boss agrees.
Upon driving to the quarry, a cutscene is triggered.
Cutscene:
The Boss confronts Killbane, who is standing at the edge of the quarry. The boss begins mocking him for losing all that he had, here and in Steelport. Killbane tells the boss “Your final words will be ‘Thank you, Killbane’ and you will breathe your last breath“ as a throwback to Saints Row The Third.
Maero steps out of his truck, holding a large metal bat. He tells Killbane to drop the theatrics and monologuing for at least a minute, and threatens the boss for what happened to Jessica.
Gameplay:
This triggers a double boss fight with Maero driving around in his monster truck, which has to be destroyed before he can be beaten on foot. Meanwhile, Killbane is charging and melee attacking the Boss.
Maero's truck can be destroyed quicker by leading it into explosive tanks around the arena, and Killbane can be weakened quicker by causing Maero to run him over.
Cutscene:
Once both bosses have been defeated, a cutscene triggers.
Killbane and Maero are thrown into a rock by the boss. Killbane stands up, and drops a shotgun on Maero. He calls him weak and says he needs to fight harder to win, and that he’s holding him back.
The rage gets to be too much, Maero turns to Killbane and tells him “Your ego has gone too far, Eddie” - Killbane wrestles Maero to the ground, beating the pulp out of him. Maero quickly grabs a rock and smashes it against Killbane’s head, and tells him it’s over. Killbane gets back up and charges at Maero and they roll into the quarry together, tumbling down the sides of the rocks.
At the bottom of the quarry, the Boss approaches the pair of them lying there, legs broken. They jump onto Killbane’s legs causing him to scream out in pain. “Nobody f**ks with the Saints, Pryor.”
Maero tells the boss that their ego will get the best of them someday, so the boss tells them that that could happen, but not this time. Maero says it always comes round, before dying himself. Killbane sees this, “I knew I’d be the last one left.” He sits back in pain, and the Boss promptly shoots him in the head.
The Boss walks towards the abandoned casino the pair was using as a fort, and reclaims it as a new base.
End of mission.
Completion unlocks the Saints Casino HQ, with more decoration slots, a garage and weapons armoury.
New Side-Story: "Head on a Swivel"
The next great Dustmoot LARP is on, and they’re coming for your dust crown! Not even the events of A Song of Ice and Dust can protect your legacy, now.
Castle Kraken can now be upgraded at the Empire Table to be more defensible during these missions, which properly kicks off the storyline.
Head on a Swivel Mission 1 - Defend Your Legacy:
Description:
Gladhand your loyal subjects with your allies. Parade through the local forts and bless new soldiers. Survive assassination attempts from mysteriously feathered Dustlanders.
Completion unlocks the “Royal wave” emote and the “Improved Dustmoot Armour”
Head on a Swivel Mission 2 - Uncover The Conspiracy:
Description:
Intimidate your loudest critics for information about who wishes your character to be restarted. The clans whisper about a faction of Twistnecks from the next State.
Completion unlocks the “Character sheet” wall decoration.
Head on a Swivel Mission 3 - Maximum Madness:
Description:
Confront the Twistnecks, an owl-themed gang of wasteland tuners conspiring to dethrone you, and ram them out of the competition. Duel with their boss in an epic final sword fight.
Completion unlocks the Twistneck vehicles and weapon patterns.
New Loyalty Quest - Kevin: “Paying Back”
Description:
It’s time to deliver the Mechaburgers you got with Kevin to the orphanage. Dress up as Santa with Kevin and defend him from Christmas-hating idols as he delivers the presents in the holiday spirit.
Completion unlocks the Mechaburger large floor decoration.
New Loyalty Quest - Neenah: “New Wheels”
Description:
Neenah is upgrading her new car! Help her gather parts stolen by the Panteros and design her new vehicle. Any mods you select will stick on her vehicle when she drives it.
Completion unlocks complete vehicle customisation for friends in the gang tab.
Venture Upgrades:
Criminal Ventures were one of the areas where Saints Row (2022) went right: Businesses which could be built across the city, expanding the Saints' empire and unlocking new related content. However, some of these left a little more to be desired - which is why I propose a suite of new upgrades to a select few of the existing Criminal Ventures, available at the Empire Table.
Five of the Criminal Ventures already existing in the game are made to be upgradable, unlocking new perks, and increase hourly revenue:
- Let’s Pretend - Halloween Sale
- Unlocks new stock, and allows for one more Heist in which the player can actually enter the Pyramid casino in order to empty the vault of its gold. The mission will pay $2,500,000.
- Upgrade costs $2,000,000
- Planet Saints - Designer Outlet
- Unlocks new stock, and a mission where players must fly to their boat in Lake Sabastian in order to carry crates of stolen stock back to the store.
- Upgrade costs $2,000,000
- Castle Kraken - Conqueror's Fortifications
- Unlocks the 'Head on a Swivel' side quest.
- Upgrade costs $70,000
- Cutting Edge - Paint of Tomorrow
- Unlocks new Cutting Edge materials around the map to be collected: Missing texture magenta checkers, glowing, water, fire, toxic waste, leather, fur, skin, herringbone.
- Upgrade costs $2,000,000
- Saints Tower - Interior Redecoration
- Brings a new interior penthouse with a bed, collectible placement locations, a garage and another Empire Table.
- Upgrade costs $12,000,000
These can only be unlocked when the original venture has been completed, and will mark their regions on the map with a Diamond-tinted Fleur de Lis.
Secondary Ventures:
Fifteen new larger construction sites have opened, allowing the boss to build new and more lucrative projects which can be placed at the new sites on a second tab at the Empire Table. Completing these will change the gold region fleur to Diamond, and change the diamond region fleur to Onyx-Black. Owning a Secondary Venture will also grant a double bonus to hourly revenue.
Each costs $2,000,000 and requires Empire Tier 4 to be completed and all ventures (Excluding Saints Tower) to be built. Each one has their typical completion objective, but can have a productivity boost if their competition is destroyed, this involves going to a building elsewhere in the city and wiping out nearby crates. These new ventures are:
- Image as Designed, where players must rescue a criminal and take them for illegal facial reconstruction in order to avoid being recognised by police.
- Competition: The Creation Station.
- Completing allows double sliders in the character creator.
- Mayoral Campaign Office, where players can help Monica Hughes run for office on a promise of police reform by completing the Fuzz activity.
- Competition: Richard Hughes, her ex husband.
- Completing unlocks the “Wipe Notoriety” phone contact.
- 3 Count Casino, where players can enter to partake in gambling mini games. Completing all and earning $500,000 in profits from gambling completes the venture.
- Competition: The Varmint Casino.
- Completing unlocks the “Make it Rain” emote and Money Canon.
- Technically Legal, unlocking the classic “Escort” activity.
- Competition: Safeword.
- Completing unlocks the “Pleasure and Pain” baseball bat skin, bunny ears hat, and kinky boots.
- TVol Film Studio, unlocking Professor Genki’s Super Ethical Reality Climax: Same as Saints Row: The Third (2011), Fight through a wave of enemies in five different themed arenas - Jungle, space station, underwater, Tokyo, Antarctica.
- Competition: Channel 6.
- Completing unlocks the Genki Costume, Genki Crew, Genkimobile and Genki Manapult.
- Drown Your Problems, a winery which unlocks the classic Crowd Control activity, where players must use the thrustbuster and Pimp-Slap to remove people from the area (No grab people action in this game!).
- Competition: Joe Cola.
- Completing unlocks the Saints Flow ability.
- I-loose-o, unlocking the classic Septic Avenger activity.
- Competition: Bruce Stools.
- Completing unlocks the Septic Truck.
- Thunderpump Gas Station, unlocking the classic Trailblazing activity.
- Competition: Mojo Gas.
- Completing unlocks higher speed vehicle auto-drive.
- The Car Wreck, unlocking the classic Demo Derby activity in the style of Saints Row 2’s.
- Competition: Panteros scrapyard.
- Completing unlocks Derby cars, and increased car durability and sideswipe damage.
- Jim Rob’s Luxury Wheelhouse, acting as a second mechanics shop and allowing players to partake in races.
- Competition: Donnie’s Dealership.
- Completing unlocks slower-burning nitrous.
- Huffing Hues, a paint store unlocking various tagging locations.
- Competition: Pretty-in-Pink.
- Completing unlocks the ability to repaint gang vehicles, change paint in the Saints HQ, and new vehicle paint styles: Glow-in-the-dark, two-town pearlescent.
- Atlas Arcade, where you can complete a six-part Zombie Uprising campaign in ruined versions of past iconic Saints Row locations
- Competition: SoftStone Studios.
- Completion unlocks zombie skin, zombie walk emote, zombie voice.
- Nobody Loves Me, a store offering more clothes. Players must find random NPCs around the map and hack their phones.
- Competition: Branded.
- Completion unlocks the ability to see collectibles from further away, and new scanner throwable.
- Brass Knuckles, unlocking the classic Fight Club activity.
- Competition: Final Fist Dojo.
- Completion unlocks new special takedowns.
- WantedHQ, unlocking new targets on the Wanted app with higher pay for killing targets under specific circumstances.
- Competition: Police station.
- Completion unlocks new “Wanted” prank for co op partner which will send all local NPCs after them.
New Wanted Hits:
The Wanted App is another one of Saints Row (2022)'s strong points, with a lot of unique and fun missions hidden away from players who just play quests available in the main tab. These five new targets would be unlocked when purchasing the WantedHQ.
- Matthew Mileté: A wannabe Idols hacktivist. A French man and a fan of a Vampire show. Shoot him with a crossbow for the bonus.
- Troy Bradshaw: An undercover cop, he brought down a Saints heist crew on a job and got them all arrested. Kill him with Saints allies or friends for the bonus.
- Colonel Zinyak: LARP kill, claims to be a crashed alien in the Dustmoot world, and is a high knight of the Twistnecks. Use a takedown for the bonus (It will default to a role-played rip off head takedown)
- Cyrus Castle: A Marshall commander, who has recently been found to be extra cruel to his platoon. Kill him with an MDI vehicle or weapon for the bonus.
- Marty DeGrinch: An ex bank robber who ratted out his friends. Does nothing but sit around and watch movies now. Kill with a wingsuit takedown for the bonus.
- P: A gun for hire that stole an expensive music-playing brain chip from Marshall. Use karaoke mic satchel charges for the bonus.
New Gear:
No DLC is complete without a variety of new gear to unlock and utilise, so take a quick look at what I'd love to see in the game:
New Weapons and Skins:
- Throwable: Mugmosa, a cocktail in a mug which creates slippery ground which will trip up enemies. Signature ability is the “Hot Sauce” which will set anybody who sets foot on the puddles on fire.
- Throwable: Scanner, which highlights all enemies in an area. Signature ability is the “Jammer” which will stop them from calling any backup.
- Pistol: Flintlock: A single-fire pistol which deals immense damage with a slow reload. Signature ability is “Sky Shark” which has a 10% chance of spawning a shark on the enemy.
- Rifle: Crossbow, heavy precision weapon. Signature ability will create an electrical current between two bolts, shocking anyone inbetween them.
- Special: The RC Possessor, returning from SR3. Signature ability is the “Detonate vehicle” button.
- Special: The Money Canon, which launched bundles of money for an instant kill, but firing costs $1,000. Signature ability is “Make it rain” which causes killed targets to explode into a shower of cash.
- Melee: The Pimp Slap, which will throw enemies far away. Signature ability causes enemies to explode when they land.
- Melee: The Apocafist, returning from SR3. Signature ability creates a shockwave when an enemy is punched.
- Pleasure and Pain skin for the baseball bat, unlocking the classic “Dildo bat” look.
- Pimp Cane shotgun skin, which will change the plater’s walking animation like in SR2.
- Karaoke Mic skin for the satchel charges, as they are attached, a random song will play which the boss will sing along to.
New Vehicles:
- MDI-4031, a Condor VTOL, which can carry more people than the classic VTOL Jet.
- Twistneck Ant
- Twistneck Skorpio
- Twistneck Ride
- Twistneck Gentry
- Genkimobile
- Genki Manapult
- Derby Ethel
- Derby Ride
- Derby Attrazione
- Derby Ridgelord
- Derby Compton
- Septic Truck
- Heavy Cannon Truck
New Skills (Rank unlocks and equipment):
Ten new levels would be added to player progression in order to support the new unlocks which aren't granted elsewhere:
Passive:
- LVL 21: Double ammo capacity
- LVL 23: Triple ammo capacity
- LVL 24: Double melee damage
- LVL 26: Kick knockback
- LVL 29: Wingsuit collision damage reduction
- LVL 30: Quadruple ammo capacity
Active:
- LVL 22: Inspire! : Create a burst of energy which will heal and revive nearby enemies.
- 3 flow points.
- LVL 25: Molotov: Throw a molotov at enemies.
- 1 flow point.
- LVL 27: Explosive Rounds: Makes all bullets explosive for 30 seconds.
- 3 flow points.
- LVL 28: Break Free: Punch up into the air, staggering and damaging all nearby enemies, and enter wingsuit mode.
- 3 flow points.
- UNLOCK: Saints Flow: Chug a can of Saints Flow, and immediately recharge your takedown meter. This effect will constantly recharge this meter for a minute, and allow you to take down shielded enemies.
- 4 flow points.
New Side Hustles:
Confession, this type of content is mostly padding, but I do love the @tcha missions, so I wanted to add a few.
- Six more @tcha locations have been added (Including a brand new police-themed one at a doughnut shop in East Flats and a House Duststorm-themed one at the local gas station) - Each of these rewards the player with an outfit themed around their attackers.
- A new Choplifting on New Birmingham Island.
- A tank-based Pony Express in West Flats
Free Four-Player Co op:
Two more players can now join in on the action, whilst story missions are limited to two players still, activities and the streets of Sanyo Ileso can now be explored with three of your friends!
Saints Row has never allowed for more than two-player co-op, outside of Saints Row 2's PVP modes. Being able to bring in a couple more friends for more chaos would really liven up the world!
Free Update with New Cheats:
When Saints Row (2022) released without any cheats, it felt bare. Granted, it meant I could play the game as it was intended, it was strange having completed it and not being able to then replay or mess around with any over-the-top modifications to reality. Volition finally added cheats to the game, but there's some more I'd love to see:
World:
- Unlock [VENTURE]
- Change weather
- All pedestrians are tiny
- All pedestrians are zombies
- Super explosions
- Unlock all collectibles
- Low gravity
Player:
- Unlimited flow
- Unlimited takedowns
- Unlock all perks
- Unlock all skills
- Increase rank
- Instant kills
- Super size
- Super tiny
- Super strength (Knockback)
- Super speed
- Super jump
- No gravity wingsuit
- Remove notoriety
- Ragdoll mode
Vehicles:
- Repair vehicle
- Unlock all vehicle customisation
- Unlock all signature abilities
- Infinite Vehicle Mass
- Vehicle no damage
- Everyone LARP dies
Weapons:
- Unlock all weapon customisation
- Unlock all signature abilities
- Explosive bullets
- Flaming bullets
Gang:
- Unlock all outfits for [FRIEND]
- Super Saints
- Unlock all gang vehicles
- Unlock all gang members
Free QoL Update:
And of course, no game-changing update is complete without a host of free minor tweaks to make the overall gameplay experience much more pleasant on the player. Here's a few quality-of-life features I think the game DESPERATELY needs:
- The ability to move Criminal Ventures round after completing your empire.
- All ventures now allow you to fast travel to them.
- Players can now rewatch all old cutscenes at their television.
- Players can now repeat past missions at a news clipboard at the back of the Saints HQ.
- Players can now view any locked perks in the perks menu.
- Players can now track all collectibles in the collections app, including photographs, fast travel points, hidden history, weapon skins, patterns, decals, Saints outfits, lost vehicles, drug pallets, and more.
- There is now a tab in the missions app showcasing the player’s completion level of all Side Hustles.
- Players can now select which vehicle they have delivered, and this includes helicopters.
- More decoration slots have been placed around the SaintsHQ and Saints Tower.
- The emote controls have been rebound, now only requiring one key/button to open a wheel of up to eight emotes.
- One player pausing the game to save or change up the settings in co op will no longer pause their partners.
- Players can now enable and disable different takedowns in the Style app.
- Cutting Edge materials can now be applied to individual parts of clothing, vehicles and weapons, as well as now being applied to vehicle trims and rims.
- Certain, simpler, Cutting Edge materials can now be recoloured
- Different patterns can now be applied to different sections of guns.
- Players can now phone in a Saints crew to back them up, they will join players in their car until dismissed or killed.
What's Next: Saints Row II
A DLC overhaul is great and all, but sometimes you just need to drop a new game entirely. While I'm still working on my full concept for the gameplay of Saints Row II, I thought I'd tease you all with what I have planned for the story.
I wanted to make sure the sequel went in a darker route, and brought back more beloved iconic characters in order to correct some previous mistakes - whilst not fully undoing or ignoring the events of the first game. I believe Saints Row needs to own its mistakes and make them work, rather than sheepishly pretend they never happened. That's why I've came up with this story:
Eighteen months after the first game’s epilogue.
Option to import previous Boss comes up, with some new customisation options (More hair, scar opacity and ageing, tattoo colouring, stubble opacity, voices)
There is a dark screen with a faint purple glow. The Boss' voice echoes: "We're un-f**king-touchable!"
The cocky nature of the boss was built up during the first game and the expansions. Here, we are tearing that down.
The Saints are having a party after finally completely wiping out the last of the Brothers, Panteros and IDOLS. They're at the highest point they have ever been. That is until the Nahualli’s family comes after the Saints for killing him. They had originally banished the Nahualli from their family for being a bit of a psycho towards his relatives. As they attack the HQ, they capture the Boss’ friends and eventually the Boss, who asks “Why do you people keep ruining our parties?”
When Boss is knocked out, a montage plays of them destroying all of the criminal ventures around Santo Ileso, completely erasing the Saints' presence from the city's history.
The boss wakes up, ears ringing. They and their friends are tied to chairs on a freight barge. This is where they’re introduced to Katarina - Nahualli’s sister. She explains how even though he was cast out from their Cartel, they cannot be seen to be weak so they must take revenge. She pulls out an antique revolver. The boss makes threats, Eli tries to plea with her, and Neenah begs for mercy, Kev is silent. Katarina pistol whips the boss, knocking their chair over, which loosens the ropes, so they start to cut them on the chair. Kev notices this.
Katarina asks Kevin why he doesn’t have anything to say, his response is “Your brother betrayed us, that wacko literally stabbed and buried The Boss, you can’t stop them. They’re an unkillable murder machine.”
The boss continues to rub out their ropes but Katarina puts her gun against Kev’s head, and says “What about you? Are you unkillable?”
She pulls the trigger, killing Kevin. He promptly falls to the ground in a pool of blood, which slowly spills over to the boss. No music plays, and sound fades out for a moment. The deafening silence is broken as Neenah and Eli begin to scream out, tears streaming down their faces. The Boss looks furious, eyes twitching as the blood stains their clothes. Katarina stands over them, and tells them the Saints are over unless they want that to happen to their other friends, and that they’re never to step foot back in Santo Ileso either. They kick the boss in the face, knocking them out again.
Kevin was easily my favourite of the new Saints, he had heart and definitely helped keep the group together. Killing him instantly sets the stakes for the game and shows that this story will not be messing around. Katarina is also set up to be the big-bad of this game, and tying her back to the events of Saints Row (2022) really helps force the feeling of consequences.
The Boss wakes up on the ground of the docks in Stilwater, with Neenah and Eli. They berate the boss for believing they were untouchable, and for not doing anything to help Kev. They say they warned the Boss of their cockiness and how it would get the better of them - Kevin died believing that the Boss could save him, but it was a lie. They both quit in a fit of rage, vowing they’ll never be Saints again, leaving the boss stranded. Camera pans to the sky.
Stilwater now seems to be more set in the Pacific Northwest, with tall trees, large snow-peaked mountains, and a long coastal beach going down the West side of the map. I wanted to have a familiar and iconic city in the series with a more distinctive and updated map to fit in with the modern hardware. I think having this colder climate also helps set the city apart from the deserts of Santo Ileso.
Three years later appears in text in the sky as it fades to rain. The camera pans down to a run-down building.
The boss now lives in a crappy apartment in Stilwater, and is still feeling defeated. They throw themselves on the couch and watch a news broadcast, revealing the three new gangs:
The Silver Blade Cartel, Katarina’s gang with a burgundy and silver theme, all classily dressed and love throwing knives. They run guns and drugs through the city. Their second-in-command is Julius Little. Julius began as Katarina’s bodyguard, but slowly gained respect in the family as the Nahualli was ousted, and eventually married Katarina. Kat is a long standing leader of the oldest gang in the city, and aspires to venture out to Steelport and Santo Ileso when she is certain her cartel is secure without her management here in Stilwater.
The Riveras, a gang of art thieves, forgers, mechanics and counterfeiters. They are run by Neenah, who was donned a deep blue and white colour scheme and modern, almost hipster ish clothing. Neenah has befriended a local DJ to help pawn off her work, known as Veteran Child - She claims he reminds her a lot of Kevin, even if it is only due to his career, so she keeps him around. Neenah is gearing up to wage a war against Katarina, and has been building her gang over the past few years to be ready - She’s prepared to scorch the Earth in order to destroy the Silver Blade.
And finally, the Ultor Corporation, which has been taken over by Eli. With new green branding and a more modernised logo to preserve a false fresh look. The company mostly engages in scams, blackmail and off-the-books black ops which are causing people to go missing. Eli has hired a chief of staff, known as Dexter Jackson, or “Dex” for short. Dex is a fellow ex gang member, having been a part of the West Side Rollers before an Ultor Task Force, known as the Stilwater Tactical Anti Gang Initiative (STAG) had them wiped out. After having worked with Ultor to clear Stilwater of the Rollers, Dex was promoted to lead the STAG unit. Eli has been entirely put off of the idea of being in a gang, even if Ultor acts like one at times. He’s preparing to destroy any criminal organisation in the city, even if that includes killing or arresting his old friend Neenah.
Previous Saints Row games have all had numerous gangs, but the rivalry between them has never been quite as intense. In Saints Row: The Third (2011), the three enemy factions were all allied with one-another against the Saints, which worked for setting the Syndicate up to be the largest threat the gang had faced - but just didn't feel all that dynamic. I wanted to separate from this trend, to bring up a complex three-way conflict between the Saints, the Riveras, and the Cartel which would not have any easy outcomes.
I also loved the idea of having the new enemy factions ran by modern characters, but each propped up by antagonists and groups from throughout the previous franchise. I think it helps connect the modern Saints to previous instalments, without too heavily leaning on nostalgia or ignoring the past.
The boss turns off the TV and heads to their job at the local FB’s. This is where they’re recognised by none other than aspiring gangster, Carlos. He says he followed their antics in Santo Ileso, and thought they were dead. The boss says that version might as well be, Carlos asks them over for food on their lunch break. Cut to them eating burgers as the boss is done explaining the previous events. Carlos brings up the idea to start again, and get back at their so-called friends for turning on them. The Boss refuses, returning to their job, but Carlos passes on his number. Just in case.
The boss continues flipping burgers, dealing with Karen-like figures, and slaving away to mundanity listening to the antics of their former friends on the restaurant's radio, which causes them to snap. They immediately call up Carlos, who is just smoking outside anyway.
It’s time to start a new gang, Carlos says he met one crazy dude in prison. The boss says they’ve had enough crazy prison dudes but Carlos is determined, and mentions that he got out lately. He takes the boss to meet the notorious Johnny Gat. The two hit it off instantly, and they begin to rebuild the Saints.
Gat introduces the boss to Kinzie and Shaundi, who are two very different cousins. Kinzie is a bright, red-headed hacker and Shaundi is a stoner with a love for guns.
Shaundi mentions knowing a gang-banger, turned actor who has fallen on hard times, Pierce Washington. They send the boss to rescue him from a court trial after a breakdown in the city where he trashed one Josh Birk’s car. Shaundi jokes about how Birk is her ex and teaming up with Pierce would be very amusing.
Kinzie says she’s found a large man in the files for Ultor whilst previously digging around in their science projects. He’s strung up and needs to be cut free. This is where the boss has to rescue Oleg, the brute.
The new Saints: Boss, Carlos, Gat, Kinzie, Shaundi, Pierce and Oleg.
Okay, I couldn't NOT bring the old gang back. Of course, this heavily leans into the area of nostalgia and "OLD=BETTER" - but don't worry, later on there will be plenty of time for new members to shine too.
They need a hideout, and Carlos mentions an old warehouse by the docks in the industrial district. It has a forge, plenty of areas to store cars and guns, rooms for the whole crew, a helipad and enough headway for Oleg.
After clearing it out, the boss gives the latest rendition of the “Its our time now!” speech and assigns their lieutenants to each of the threats:
Kinzie and Oleg on Ultor, as they seem to have the most experience on them. This also leads to the romance plot between these two. In the final mission for this gang, Oleg crushes Dex’s head between his hands, and goes for Eli. The boss can either allow Oleg to kill Eli, or prevent him from doing so. If Oleg’s loyalty missions are completed, they will be able to convince him with words. If they are not completed, they will have to fight and kill Oleg. The boss will be able to keep whoever survives as an ally.
Merging the new with the old! Make sure you've completed Oleg's loyalty missions so you can have both gang members available, or you'll have to make a choice: Brute, or brains! Nostalgic ally, or old friend?
Pierce and Carlos on the Riveras, as the boss believes they can handle the smaller gang - Especially with one being new to crime and the other being a bit rusty. After the final fight, the Boss can either kill Neenah, send her to flee the city, or recruit her back into the Saints as an ally.
Neenah is easier to recruit than Oleg, sure, but I wanted to make sure the player had full agency on what kind of Boss they wanted to play. The Boss' journey in the original franchise from murderous psychopath to "pluckish rogue" created a lot of debates about which version was superior - So I feel it is best to give the choice to the fans.
Gat and Shaundi on the Silver Blade Cartel. Gat has had run-ins with them before, and he mentions his old friend-turned-rival Julius being a high runner with them in their Stilwater operations. Shaundi is assigned for her expertise on drugs. Julius eventually defects to the Saints after Katarina becomes violent and untrusting due to his history with Gat, but is killed in the process of the betrayal. The entire Saints mount up against Silver Blade in an epic storm on their estate mansion, where Katarina is beaten in a cinematic hand-to-knife quick-time-event.
After completing the three gang storylines, the Boss takes a seat in their Saints Throne, with any living allies by their side. They think back on their times with Kevin and what it lead to, as well as bonding moments with other fallen friends/ex friends. Suddenly, Myra Star enters again, claiming she just bought over Ultor, and wants the Saints gone again. The boss shoots her in the head, causing a final fight at the Warehouse.
This triggers the final mission, in which the Saints head offshore to the new Marshall HQ which is situated on an oil rig. The boss and their crew fight their way through the board, destroy the base, and cause the company’s stock prices to burn out into obscurity.
The Saints fly home in a Marshall jet, return to their penthouse, and leave a video message for future threats:
“We took down (LIST OF THE CRIMINAL GANGS BETWEEN THE PREVIOUS TITLE, IT’S DLCS, AND THIS GAME), the entire Ultor corporation, and two separate chapters of Marshall. You can’t mess with us.”
Camera pans out from a laptop watching the video, to reveal the back of a chair and a hand holding a glass of whiskey. An older man’s voice is heard chuckling as he puts the drink down on a star-shaped coaster.
And that is my pitch for the story of Saints Row II. Of course, it isn't a fully realised story with each mission laid out, and is more of an elevator pitch at the moment. I will be releasing a part two to this article detailing more about what I'd like to see in Saints Row II - the city, its regions, activities, ventures, side-quests, customisation, and more. If there is enough hype for this story, I will include a mission-by-mission rundown of the campaign, too!
So, as always, if you liked this article, be sure to let us know on Twitter @GamesAtlasCom or Tweet me directly @YangyYoung to tell me what you think, share it with your friends and show the world what Saints Row could still be! For now, I will catch you in the next article, Saints!
