SR3's biggest problem is that it's sandwiched between two better games. My feelings about these minigames are swayed by SR4, where most of them are significantly more fun with the addition of superpowers - especially insurance fraud. Most of these are fun enough, but they're not anything to write home about. One particularly memorable case is insurance fraud, where your goal is to get beaten up as much as possible for that sweet insurance money. Others have you blowing things up, whether it's enemies or objects.

For example, one has you driving a car with a tiger inside, and it'll occasionally cause you to sway. Some are as simple as escort missions, but there's usually a gimmick. This is not a game that you play for balance or complex shooting, but it's a game you play when you absolutely want to blow up every single thing in your path. This is probably the best-selling point for the game, as it lands at a midpoint between the 'average' GTA clone protagonist and the absurd overpower of SR4's version of The Boss. It's easy to see the short jump from the end of SR3 to literal superpowers in SR4. By the end of the game, you're almost invincible to damage, can punch people across the room, have infinite ammo, and other features. The major difference from GTA is that you can get absurdly powerful in SR. The driving works fine, and the shooting works well enough, but honestly, it's pretty standard. The core gameplay works fine, but it isn't exceptional. At times the game feels like it's trying too hard and at other times like it doesn't have enough confidence to go all-out on the wacky. It's a satisfying gameplay loop (if sometimes repetitive), but it never feels like it hits as well in SR3 as in the other games in the franchise. Built upon the ideas from Grand Theft Auto, it's a combination of vehicle theft, third-person shooting, and random side activities that allow you to build up your Respect level, which allows you to unlock upgrades to become more powerful. Since the characters and humor are such a big part of Saints Row, that is a pretty big flaw.ДЄs far as gameplay goes, SR3 is pretty familiar. Characters who are introduced in SR3 even come off better in the sequel. (Thankfully, SR4 retconned this to him being kidnapped by aliens.) Some of the humor works, and there are likeable moments, but they're certainly fewer than in the other titles in the series. This isn't helped by the fact that Johnny Gat is killed in the opening moments of the game, depriving the player of one of the most reliable characters. The game is scattershot, focusing on seemingly random connections between missions, and the supporting cast isn't given much room to shine. SR3 is a weird mix of attempted drama and humor, and only some of it lands.

They take over and reduce the Saints to the bottom rung of the criminal ladder, so they want to prove that they have what it takes to stand atop the criminal overworld. Their latest heist has attracted the attention of The Syndicate, a multinational group of ne'er-do-wells who are displeased with the Saints. The Saints are the biggest criminal gang in the world, right down to having their own merchandise and awful-tasting energy drinks. Saints Row: The Third picks up not long after the events of the second game. It's the least distinct game in the series, and the Remastered version doesn't do much to improve on that. It's come a long way, so maybe that is why Saints Row: The Third doesn't really stand out. The latest game in the franchise, the wild Saints Row 4, saw you going from average crook to the President of the United States while battling invading aliens inside The Matrix.

Saints Row 2, released when GTA was toning down the excess and going deeper into the drama, was a wacky masterpiece that set itself apart from Rockstar's behemoth. The original game was an attempt to add a slightly different flavor to Grand Theft Auto. Saints Row is one of the oddest video game franchises.

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