Saints Row 2

The sick filth you've been looking for. [Mar 2009, p.64]

Like GTA used to be before it got all serious. This isn't just a sandbox, it's a brilliant, personalised playground of fun. [Mar 2009, p.92]

A real challenge to... you know, that other sandbox game... Saints Row 2 expands on the original with a dizzying level of complexity. Stilwater is back and bigger than ever - there's so much to see and do you'll be entertained for hours.

On the surface, Saints Row is an easy game to hate. Actually, I have a feeling that a lot of players and reviewers will write this game off for the sheer stupidity at play at all times. But to do so would be a big disservice to a game that tries hard to do a lot of things and show you a good time. Did we have a good time? Definitely.

The ruthless butchers of Stillwater are back to redefine evil in games. This gangster sim is as vile as possible, and I don't mean the way the game is made... perhaps with the exception of graphics. It's something for everyone who tried everything in games. Turns out there's a thing or two left. The atmosphere is great, a bit weird, a bit clownish - but the Liberty City remains far above. [Mar 2009]

Though Saints Row 2 profits from its easy and humorous atmosphere, those can’t make up for its technical weaknesses. Especially the empty-headed AI and the indefensible hardware needs grind my gears. As a PC gamer I am at least completely happy with the wonderful multiplayer co-op mode which keeps up the multiplayer rating.

This game is little more than a lowbrow, yet humorous, thug-life simulator.

Though not particularly memorable, Saints Row 2's huge volume of quests and goofy side missions make it one of the better open-world crime games available, but the PC port's technical scars drag it down. [Mar 2009, p.70]

This is a title that could have been unforgettable if it would have achieved more solid values in its irregular sections and specially in its technical side. Despite these flaws Saints Row 2 is still a very funny game with great highlights inside, but its console counterparts are more recommendable than this clumsy PC port.

The "little brother" of GTA is loaded with action, variety and over-the-top characters and some mission can even be more fun than GTA IV. But the PC-conversion with all it's faulty controls, graphical errors and other annoying bugs needs to fixed soon.

This is pure anarchy. The city is full of freaks and the player is the freakiest of them all. If you like absolute freedom you will love this game. And don’t forget to check their website for the game producer Tera Patrick. [Issue#174, Jan 2009]

I maintain that Saints Row 2 is still a damn fun game and really not bad on a super-fast PC, but it's not going to be worth the effort for most.

We loved it, but if you're someone who takes games very seriously and are looking for a nigh-on carbon copy of GTA 4 this won't be for you.

And that's the Saints Row 2 PC experience neatly encapsulated: a great - and often underrated - game, but one that is rendered significantly less appealing than in its original console incarnation.

Saints Row 2 is a great action and racing game... at least on consoles. Performing and control issues diminish greatly the quality of this PC port.

A hastily-ported and frustrating slap in the face for PC gamers, and I cannot gather enough venom towards how little respect there is here for the PC platform. [Apr 2009, p.46]

Technical problems mar this delightfully crass, immature, and over-the-top sandbox game.

There's enough crazy-insane tomfoolery to keep a machete in the hands of even the most straight-laced citizens, you'll just need a super-computer to even think about running it.

Volition did a great job with Saints Row 2, so it's a shame that the PC gaming segment won't be able to experience the game at it was meant to be played.

If you compare the graphics of Saints Row 2 and GTA IV, GTA will be the winner, but you will experience more fun while playing Saints Row 2. If Rockstar improves graphics with a patch, GTA IV will have a rough time.

Saints Row 2 is a very entertaining sandbox game for the console, but on the PC it doesn't make a lot of sense. The system requirements are way to high and the frame way to low. And if you look carefully, you will probably find a bug in every corner of the game were we prefer pigeons.

What once was a dumb-but-fun alternative to GTA is reduced to a broken technical mess on the PC.