Saint's Row Preview

[X2]

How is Volition & THQ's potential GTA-killer shaping up?...

www.TeamXbox.com recently visited THQ's headquaters to have a look at the latest build of Saint's Row.

The Saint's Row preview is now up on TeamXbox. Apparently in the build they were shown the graphics are only 60% complete, and audio and AI are still in work in progress. Volition are aiming for 30fps, considering the site of the city and everything going on in the game, it'll be an impressive achievement.

here's a snippet of the preview:

Saint’s Row is full of potential; probably more so than any Xbox 360 game we’ve seen so far. The only question is, will Volition be able to reach that potential by early summer? The game has more depth than GTA and we haven’t even touched on the possibilities that open up with the hush-hush online multiplayer modes. It looks like online gang warfare will be making its way to the Xbox 360, but we should know more very soon. Couple that with no load times whatsoever, and Saint’s Row is becoming more impressive with each showing.

The visuals are shaping up, although we’ve been told they are only at about 60% in the build we saw. That means no depth of field, no anti-aliasing, and stuttering framerate. The final game will hit 30 fps, which is impressive when you consider the size of Southern Cross and the amount of activity.

The audio should polish things off, including a mix of no-name and celebrity talent doing voice-overs. Michael Clarke Duncan (The Green Mile, The Punisher) and Daniel Dae Kim (Lost, The Cave) are the only two big shots that THQ is willing to talk about right now. The soundtrack will feature both licensed and original tracks that make up the 12 radio stations featured in the game. Two of the stations will actually be comprised of talk radio – interesting to say the least.

It’s too soon to start thinking “GTA killer”, but we sure hope that’ll be the case with Saint’s Row. We’ll have much more on this open-ended action title in the upcoming months. It is currently slated to ship in the first half of summer 2006.

So I guess this should silence the critcs.

[Shapingo]

Trailer is up http://www.gametrailers.com/player.php?id=9062&type=wmv

Yeah but as soon as they said GTA killer they were asking for a huge backlash. For whatever reason mags just can't have 2 good games in the same genre, one always has to be another ones killer. you forgot the new pics

[Shakala]

Umm.....anyone else notice the guy in the last picture's shoes?

[CashMoney]

[quote="X2"]

Volition are aiming for 30fps, considering the site of the city and everything going on in the game, it'll be an impressive achievement.

It'd better be at least that... Jeez...

[Perfect Sin]

Gee, devs really don't like giving people realiztic facial textures...

"Oh..maybe if we just add facial hair..." No...I still notice.

[travisbickle]

The game has more depth than GTA

I'll believe that when I see it.

My prediction is this will be a shallow representation of GTA ie: no style or class and a distinct lack of satire replaced by a substandard voice acting and script, with jokes that revolve around "sloppy seconds" level.

GTA is dead as we know it, thanks to all the thug games that have come out recently. I'm sure people will buy Saints row by the bucketload like they did with the 50 cents crappy self promotion farce, but R* will blow us all away with their next installment. May I remind you that GTA 3 practically "killed" all games on the market when it was released.

[Crazy Phat]

I have been noticing that alot of XBox 360 games has that same graphicsal look. Ultra shiny or ultra plastically. I hope this changes in the future. I like the PS3 graphics because they look natural. Graphics not there for show but to immerse like advanced facial structures.

[Einz]

GTA Killer? Definately not... but posibly a decent game

[fireras]

Once you call the game a AAA-Killer it kills you game if it is not substancially better than the title it is killing. GTA will kill everything once its released, just because its GTA...does anyone realized that publishers hate releasing their titles again a GTA because of the mere fact that its GTA....it will overshadow everything else once its released

[Makagoto]

the last time i saw pictures and movies from that game everything looked better thanks to a more realistic shading and characters who had more polygons. sometimes i really have to ask myself did the devs already reach the x360s limits ?

[yang_wan1]

HO HO HO, I can' wait for this game. It looks tight, that cop car reminds me of the FMV of Dead To Rights. Tight.

[Aleman]

I never thought GTA had much depth. It's very repetitive, and the aiming/shooting mechanics are archaic. The fun part was free roaming across the city.

[Shapingo]

The trailer is up now too

http://www.gametrailers.com/e3_2k5_xb360.php

[Steroyd]

oh no.

First we have Halo killers and now we've got a GTA killer.

we all know what happens when a new game goes up against a titan of a game.

I never thought GTA had much depth. It's very repetitive, and the aiming/shooting mechanics are archaic. The fun part was free roaming across the city.

aye i always thought GTA 3 and vice City were, content rich compared to SA, it was basically same o' same o' with a very, very big empty free-roaming level.

Even if Saints Row kills GTA on current gen, i believe they're going to get their balls ripped out on next gen.

[Mael Duin]

To me, this is far from "GTA killer" because it just looks too much like GTA ripoff. I don't see anything original about it, it just looks like GTA with graphic update.

[Skribble]

No other devs seem to realise what GTA is. Their hook isn't graphics for one thing. And if youu didn't think the story was deep in GTA then I don't think you were listening hard enough, as already said there is so much satire, witt, research in those stories (the missions can be very repetitive) that makes it different from every other game. There's an almost comical aspect to all GTA games so far, and the other devs think, oh lets make it really realistic, that'll "pwn" them. But no, GTA comes out and blows them all up, into peices.

Having said that the Saint's Row video does look nice, and fun but it's not GTA and I don't think it should be compared to GTA, GTA is what it is and no one has ever come close.

The only was to make something as good as GTA is to not try to be GTA. Sure take the elements of free-roaming criminal life, but then put a new twist on it. Like the Getaway, or Mafia...

[IPB]

To me, this is far from "GTA killer" because it just looks too much like GTA ripoff. I don't see anything original about it, it just looks like GTA with graphic update.

I agree with you 100 per cent.

They just took aspects of GTA-SA and made it better for a next gen consol. I lose a lot of respect for a developer when they do this as there needs to be something original and/or creative about their games.

What's going to happen when R* release the next GTA and it blows them away with their original take on the free roaming aspect for next gen? Will Saints Row 2 just be a rip off of this new GTA with all R*'s ideas built upon to make it seem better? It's just slack and lazy game making if you ask me.

[Aleman]

Anything that's billed as an "X-killer" becomes a let down.

[Steroyd]

too true Aleman too true.

Killzone - Halo Killer - nope.
Magna Carta - Final Fantasy killer - not even close.
True Crime, Getaway, Driv3r, (and the list goes on0 - GTA killer -

[Aphotic]

I agree, GTA rip-off, but better physics and graphics. One thing that bothers me are the models. They need to apply grain and filters...looks like plastic...mmmm!!

[Skribble]

It's almost like a Toy game, like Toy story or something, the smooth textures, I hope that GTA looks great next gen, even though they don't normally aim for "breathtaking graphics" it would be nice all the same. I think the next GTA will just be Grand Theft Auto, with the stress put on the "GRAND"

[WhatRuOn]

I hope this game will live up to it's potential, but I think it will go the same way as True Crime:SoNY

[GS kid]

The funny thing about people that say they are just slapping a new coat of next-gen paint on GTA..... what's so wrong with that?

You guys try and come up with something so original. It's not that easy. Things that work, keep getting done over. Just the way of the world.

I highly doubt that it will be a 100% clone. GTA's targeting just plain sucked. There's something they can improve upon.

If a game is 80% to 90% like GTA with next-gen graphics, I can live with that. That means more of what I like and 10% to 20% aspect that is new to the genre.

People saying "well when GTA comes out, it's gonna own all". Well maybe it will. But that's like saying that Final Fantasy is the end all be all of RPGs, so I won't play any other RPGs.

I say..... if Saint's Row is fun, then buy it. Why should I limit myself and avoid it cuz they don't do it quite as well GTA does?

If that was my attitude, I'd only buy Gran Turismo, GTA, Halo etc....and I'd snub all others. That would make for a very small collection of games on my shelf.

I'm not going out like that. I will buy games even if they don't match the level of the games they are trying to be. As long as they are good overall, I'm sold.

But if you guys want to be the type that let's GTA lead you by the nose, so be it. I won't be a total slave to any franchise.

[Mael Duin]

You guys try and come up with something so original. It's not that easy. Things that work, keep getting done over. Just the way of the world.

Yes, inviting something original isn't easy. But if I want to play GTA, I buy GTA, not a game which looks and acts too much like GTA.

If a game is 80% to 90% like GTA with next-gen graphics, I can live with that. That means more of what I like and 10% to 20% aspect that is new to the genre.

New aspects what I have seen...errr...Oh yeah, better character design. Wait, that's actually nothing new. San Andreas did it already.

I say..... if Saint's Row is fun, then buy it. Why should I limit myself and avoid it cuz they don't do it quite as well GTA does?

No one is ordering you to diss this game. We just don't like it, because it doesn't show anything new and seem to be GTA ripoff. True Crime isn't ripoff, it has it's own things. Getaway isn't ripoff, it too has it's own things etc. etc. but what I have heard and read about this game, it doesn't have anything new.

[GS kid]

You guys try and come up with something so original. It's not that easy. Things that work, keep getting done over. Just the way of the world.

Yes, inviting something original isn't easy. But if I want to play GTA, I buy GTA, not a game which looks and acts too much like GTA.

If a game is 80% to 90% like GTA with next-gen graphics, I can live with that. That means more of what I like and 10% to 20% aspect that is new to the genre.

New aspects what I have seen...errr...Oh yeah, better character design. Wait, that's actually nothing new. San Andreas did it already.

I say..... if Saint's Row is fun, then buy it. Why should I limit myself and avoid it cuz they don't do it quite as well GTA does?

No one is ordering you to diss this game. We just don't like it, because it doesn't show anything new and seem to be GTA ripoff. True Crime isn't ripoff, it has it's own things. Getaway isn't ripoff, it too has it's own things etc. etc. but what I have heard and read about this game, it doesn't have anything new.

Well then.... don't get it.

I could name a dozen things that RPGs did before that have been copied by many other RPGs with just a different story basically. JRPGs for me have become really stale. Even Final Fantasy is getting long in the tooth. Same game, different wallpaper and story. -yawn-

But people will keep buying them over and over again. So what's their excuse?

The truth is....many games are just at their heart, the same game... different story....different wallpaper (graphics).

A lot of people can argue that if you played GTA 3.... you've basically played GTA:SA..... only bigger, better graphics and more mini-games. Whoopty-doo!

I mean... people can try to defend against that, but you would just look stupid doing so. I own GTA 3, VC and SA and love them..... but even I am not stupid enough to argue with someone on that.

I just think the next GTA is gonna be bigger and better graphics and not a whole lot more beyond that. And the truth is.... I don't see any real problem with that.

That's why I don't see a problem with getting this game if it does more of the same and is pretty decent.