14 DAY TRIAL // Saints Row was praised by some for taking the open world concept developed by the GTA series and crafting a more appealing ambience, where band warfare and a light take on the story created an interesting game atmosphere. Now Saints Row 2 is being prepped by THQ for release on the PC, the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360, and the developers are very keen on differentiating the title from the recently released and the highly praised Grand Theft Auto IV.
Brian Farrell, chief executive at THQ, says that "We have a very differentiated product in this open-world genre". The adjectives that he used when describing Saints Row 2 were "tongue-in-cheek", "silly", "over-the-top" and said that GTA 4 lacked all of this.
Developers Volition are talking up their game by mentioning that the single player campaign, which puts you in the shoes of the leader of the Saints as they try and take back Stillwater from three other rival bands, will offer seamless drop-in drop-out co-op gameplay. The game will also be high on customization, with the way that the character looks influencing the reactions of the NPCs in the world.
Farrell also admitted that "We're always concerned about GTA as a competitor. It's a great product, the leader in the genre. But we were actually very pleased when we saw GTA IV. It's a great game, but they went in this great creative direction - more character- and story-driven".
Can a game that is so similar yet fundamentally different from one of the biggest titles of the year succeed in attracting players? I, for one, have always wanted the open world of GTA IV to be even more open and if Saints Row 2 offers that, I might give it a spin.
Saints Row 2 is set to be launched in Europe and the United States on October 17 and it is targeting a larger selection of platforms than its Take Two published rival, which might contribute to its success.