Saints Row Review: Watch Out Grand Theft Auto Fans

When I first heard of this game, I thought of it the same way I think of all GTA clones, but then I started looking into the game, and reading some articles about it, and it turned out that the game actually had potential. Because of this, I decided to purchase it. That was the best game decision I have EVER made for my Xbox 360. First, let me say that this game is an EXACT clone of GTA. The controls are the same, the interface is the same, EVERYTING is just a carbon copy from GTA. But in addition, this game adds some awesome features, and fixes almost all of GTA's problems.

Graphics: 10/10
GTA wasn't known for awesome graphics, however this game not only beats GTA, but it beats almost every other Xbox 360 game out there. Shadowing is in real time with great resolution (you can even see the shadow of the spinners on your car spinning), the cars reflect, the car damage models are amazingly detailed, and the character models rock. The game pulls off a steady framerate. Everything in the graphics department is perfect except some minor screen tearing, however it is barley noticible.

Gameplay: 10/10
This game picks up on every GTA feature (good or bad), and makes it ROCK. They got rid of taxi and police missions, and added a TON of awesome side activities such as insurance fraud, where you must get hit by passing cars to earn a set amount of money, and you receive bonuses if there are witnesses. There are also about 10 other activities, all which are extremely fun and addicting. You will be able to complete this game rather quickly compared to GTA: SAs' missions, however I prefer these missions quite a bit, they are a great mix of driving, killing, sneaking, just like GTA's but better. And the aiming interface is EXCELLENT. It is great fun to try and get all the acheivments (many of them are 10 or 20 points each, so there are TONS of them to get). Another problem solved from GTA is the money problem. In this game, money actialy means something... and you don't lose it when you die (only a few hundred dollars). Its hard to come by, and all guns you use must be purchased (or taken off people you kill)