Saints Row: The Third

 PC
Metascore
84

Generally favorable reviews - based on 22 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 20 out of 22
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 22
  3. Negative: 0 out of 22
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  1. LEVEL (Czech Republic)
    Jan 19, 2012
    70
    Remarkable and technically excellent urban action game comes with hilarious characters and catchy cooperative mode. Passive environment and repetitive content sunk the final verdict down. [Christmas 2011]
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  2. Absolute Games
    Dec 16, 2011
    70
    Volition wrote a more or less coherent story, squeezed 101% out of the "sandbox minigame compilation" concept, improved the physics engine, and finally made a decent PC version, but the end result feels too derivative and forced. The surprisingly short single-player campaign (15 hours if you're not trying to comb an entire map) doesn't help.

Awards & Rankings

20
#20 Best PC Game of 2011
19
#19 Most Discussed PC Game of 2011
39
#39 Most Shared PC Game of 2011

User Reviews

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User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 1702 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 1,292 out of 1702
  2. Mixed: 315 out of 1702
  3. Negative: 95 out of 1702
  1. swinkstocks
    Nov 15, 2011
    10
    Game of the Year, GTA on steroids. This game is explosive, fun, and takes gaming to a level we have never seen before. This game is the badGame of the Year, GTA on steroids. This game is explosive, fun, and takes gaming to a level we have never seen before. This game is the bad boy of the gaming industry.… Full Review »
  2. awildseaking
    Jul 31, 2012
    0
    Enough with the GTA comparisons. Having played every single GTA and Saints Row game, I can assure you that they aren't even close toEnough with the GTA comparisons. Having played every single GTA and Saints Row game, I can assure you that they aren't even close to competitors.

    The Saints Row series has really declined over the year, yet everyone hails this game as being a savior simply because GTA IV was too boring. Most of the people who are reviewing this game never played SR1, so they think Saints Row was always this ultra silly, casual alternative to the slightly more serious GTA. In the first game, the whole focus was the 3rd Street Saints. You weren't a Gary Stu, you were just a wild card in the gang. Most of the gameplay revolved around following your Lieutenant's orders. You actually had to use gang members, play the activities, and gain territory. It wasn't simple, nor was it easy. Level 8 Snatch activities, I rest my case. Those were infuriatingly impossible.

    In the first game, we had more clothing customization. We had more layers of clothes to choose from. We could zip and unzip outfits, turn hats, put up our hoods, lower our pants, and frankly do whatever the hell we wanted. There was more intricate jewelry, a wider variety of clothing stores, and most importantly of all, colors mattered. Nowadays, respect is nothing more than some **** equivalent of levels in your average RPG.

    In SR1, you could rob stores at different times of the day. If you burglarized stores at night, you broke in to the back, cracked the safe, and carried out boxes of goods. You then had to load them into trucks and drive them to a fence.

    In SR1, you could buy liquor and joints. Not that getting high or drunk was all that important, but it made you feel more like a gangster and it also allowed you to punch people ridiculous distances.

    In SR1, activities had 8 levels instead of 6. The final 2 levels of practically every activity were absurdly challenging, even on Normal.

    In SR1, respect and money didn't grow on trees. You couldn't just buy meaningless properties that sit there in a static environment and do nothing. You actually had to play the activities and contribute to the well being of your gang to continue to do missions. In SR3 respect is thrown at me for taking a piss on the sidewalk.

    In SR1, there was an actual story worth following. Los Carnales, the Rollers, and the Vice Kings put the SR2 and SR3 gangs to shame. Benjamin King alone is a better character than the combined cast of SR3. The narrative isn't limited to LOL SO RANDUMB kind of humor made for 12 year olds who are convinced that GTA is some ultra silly casual party game.

    In SR1, there were stronghold missions. Even these were kept in SR2. In SR3, a stronghold is some useless building with nothing to do in it that sits around and makes you more money to spend on absolutely nothing.

    In SR1, your phone was actually useful. There were phone numbers all throughout the game that made Stilwater feel much more alive and real. It wasn't limited to 911, taxis, and other dumb ****

    I could continue to go on about all the features that SR1 had that were stripped away in SR2 and further removed in SR3, but I'll end with this. I 100% completed Saints Row The Third in 17 hours and 40 minutes. If you actually think this game deserves anything more than a 6, you must have the lowest standards on the planet. There is no new content to this game. The more serious tone has been completely abandoned for stupid kiddie humor and bland characters with absolutely no development. The whole community is filled with idiots who want furries and ponies and random **** they find online. The quality of game was sacrificed for slightly improved graphics in a boring, static city with no exploration allowed. The worst part is that there is genuinely no content. Once you beat the missions, clear the activities, and get the collectibles, you're done. The activities are so short, I have 100% control of the city before the story even ends.

    Saints Row 3 is a bastardization of the previous two Saints Row games. The worst part is, this game is a pile of rubbish BEFORE the season pass bull**** I can only hope this was a product of mismanagement at THQ, and that Volition will do better in the future like we know they can.    … Full Review »
  3. GenuineOpinion
    Nov 15, 2011
    10
    Oh my god, haha, where do I even start? This game is pure fun. Just fun! I love the crazy one liners, I love the ridiculous action, there'sOh my god, haha, where do I even start? This game is pure fun. Just fun! I love the crazy one liners, I love the ridiculous action, there's pretty much nothing I dislike about this game. More fun than anything else out on the gaming market. Buy it if you have the means, I swear you won't regret it.… Full Review »
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