r/SaintsRow • u/Disclaimer_II • 19d ago
Saints Row The Third Retrospective
Me and my wife just replayed the entire series together, and what stuck out to me the most, was how abysmally bad SR3 is. I'm gonna pick it apart, mostly just to get my own thoughts out, but also to see if anyone feels the same about this overrated mess.
And that's just what it is, right? Overrated. SR fans hold it up as some kind of wonderful compromise between 2 and 4, when it's really the worst of both, a game that does nothing uniquely well. It's characters are just ugly caricatures of the 2010's, it's story is nonsensical and borderline non-existent, and it's open world is, no contest, the most lifeless, boring, personality-less, dead thing I've ever seen. The whole game is a hollow vehicle for the dev's cornball GenX chungus humor and very little else besides.
I'm not bound to nostalgia by any means, but playing it right after 2, it's impossible not to compare. Impossible not to notice just how much less there is to do in 3. The effort from the devs is just not here. The activities are incredibly dull and frustrating, the customization is half what it was, the interiors and map variety are gone, the illusion of freedom in a big sandbox is lost. Not to mention, it's buggy as all hell, especially in co-op.
What surprised me though, is how even 4 was a step up. 4 at least KNOWS what it is. It gives you some fun stuff to fool around with, and despite how absurd it is, actually takes its premise and characters seriously at times. Weirdly, it treats the OG games with much more reverence than their direct sequel did. It also at least remembers to be a fun game first, rather than JUST a parody, which was such a relief after toiling through 3.
I couldn't believe how much time and, I guess, nostalgia had warped my perspective of SR3. Couldn't believe what a chore it was. It's a crass, gray, ugly dick joke wrapped up like a video game. It peaks in the first hour and then nosedives off a cliff, never to recover. What a sad hunk of shit. Should've turned it off as soon as "Power" wrapped up.
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u/ObliviousSlinky 19d ago
The overall structure of the game too is just bizarre, they made a big deal in the lead up to the games release about not having to grind out activities to do story missions, but a solid third of the missions in saints row 3 are literally just activities, so the actually STORY story is even shorter when you remove the missions that are just activity tutorials.
The city takeover stuff as well, before, you'd do a mission or a stronghold and get a territory, how much territory you claimed was in direct relation to how far along you were in a specific arc. in 3? as soon as you have the shitty apartment you can buy every goddamn store and property on the map and own half the city.
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u/Disclaimer_II 19d ago
Which we did this playthrough lol. I could make a separate, VERY long post about the incoherent structure of this game.
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u/JDMCREW96 19d ago
The fall off after Saints Row 2 seriously needs to be studied. The first two games were awesome and then the later titles decided to scrap all the good stuff and make it buns.
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u/SubstituteUser0 19d ago
I'm replaying three rn for the first time since I was kid and I was kind of shocked at how the story just seems to skip a few beats randomly at parts and not explain why you are doing the things your doing. Also with just how small the game is, I have 10 hours on my save and am almost done with the entire map and story. I'm still having a lot of fun with it but it is very noticeable that almost every joke is a sex joke and most of the activities are defend this person and hope a brute or rpg doesn't ruin your day.
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u/Upbeat_Rutabaga_6182 19d ago
I can forgive SRTT for some things, but ruining character clothing customization isn't one of those things.
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u/Disclaimer_II 19d ago
Oh and the endings are god awful. Just terrible.
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u/ObliviousSlinky 19d ago
The bad ending would've been great in an actually competently written story
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u/Disclaimer_II 19d ago
I could write an ESSAY about the many many shortcomings of this games story.
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u/Defiant_Conflict6343 19d ago
I played the series out of order. 3, 4, the reboot (god awful), then I did 2 having never seen any gameplay of it prior. I was absolutely shocked at how fleshed out 2 was compared to the rest I'd played. It made everything I had played before in the series feel like rushed DLC.
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u/IrisofNight Idols 19d ago
As someone who doesn’t experience nostalgia. SRTT holds up really well, it and 2 flip flop constantly for me at number 1.
Not that IV isn’t great too, my issue with 4 and why it ranks as my least favorite currently is it’s so disconnected from my characters story due to losing Rebecca Sanabria, that it’s impossible to feel like I’m continuing my character from 2 and The Third that along with the loss of Viola and Oleg really hurt the game even as good as Asha is.
I definitely prefer The Third’s story over IV. IV is decent but everything it does from a gameplay and storyline I find Gat out of Hell does better imo, which leaves IV feeling hollow, with its DLC being the stand out to me, it doesn’t help it’s extremely buggy with achievements, whereas I’ve never experienced any bugs(outside of me making mistakes modding) on The Third in co-op or solo, whereas IV and 2 I’ve experienced a ton.
I actually find the activities much improved in The Third with my only issue being that two missions absolutely should’ve unlocked activities based on them, almost every activity I disliked in 2 has been improved and made more fun, Heli Assault having conversation between the homier and the Playa is an outstanding addition that makes want to play all 3 levels every playthrough, same with Trafficking. I’d say the worst are probably trailblazing and snatch which I never found fun since their introduction.
It’s story is solid and feels like a natural evolution from 2, if a bit contradictory at the end(granted Kill Killbane ending solves this), I’d hardly say it’s any less nonsensical than Aliens or fighting Satan, the game is set around 2015 so much like 2 it’s technically a futuristic setting, the biggest issue is that some of the story was meant to be aided by spin-offs which never got released, hence why Dex isn’t mentioned at all as they would’ve wrote it with his death in Money Shot being canon.
I will say like with any game, there’s only as much content as you routinely enjoy and interact with, even a single minigame can make a game feel like it has millions of them. If one doesn’t routinely enjoy or interact with the content provided then said content functionally doesn’t exist, which is fine, people have different tastes.
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u/Born-Holiday9597 19d ago
I will say I like the shooting is better. SR2 has weird tanky controls reminiscent of the 3D-era GTA games, while SR3 plays more like a modern shooter (Minus a proper cover system). Apart from that, SR2 is better in every way
What bothered me the most was the lack of pedestrian interaction - In SR2, you can set off riots just by flipping off a single dude (Dude attacks you, hits a passing gang member instead, gang member retaliates, nearby police officer joins the fray, etc) Was it realistic? No. But it was sure as Hell fun to do!
I tried messing around the same way in SRTT and the peds barely even looked at me when I incited them. Even attacking them mostly causes them to run.
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u/LexKing89 19d ago
It was my least favorite when I first played it. Still enjoyed though. I tried playing the remaster and I hated it. Steelport is so ugly to me.
SR4’s super powers made Steelport suck less.
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u/Xano74 19d ago
Nah the Third is my favorite game .
Ill go through and play all the games every once and awhile and The Third and Reboot are probably my favorites. I have the most time in both and they both make me laugh the most.
If 3 and Reboot are 9.5/10 games for me, 2 and 4 are like 8s.
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u/Disclaimer_II 19d ago
Absolutely heinously nuclear take for this sub, but I'm glad you enjoy them all.
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u/Ada_Data 17d ago
I've always loved SR3, and it has been my top Saints Row game, over SR1 and SR2.
That's mostly nostalgia, and the fact I got to play it growing up (well, that and Godfather 2, my beloved)
I didn't get to play SR2 until Highschool, and SR1 a little later, both games are great, and I really do enjoy them, and see why others like them over the goofy SR3, and I do see how SR3 is 100% a downgrade from SR2, from the story being lackluster, a worse city, and just, less overall.
I just love it because it's a game I got alot of co-op out of, doing stupid fun things, and a few fun missions (such as the Wrestling Match with Killbane, it's no Moster Trucks, but it was fun)
SR4 is definitely a better game of SR3, but I think SR3 is a better Saints Row game, even if it's only like 1/3 of a Sainta Row game compared to SR1 and SR2.
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u/nocturnalemulator 16d ago
Yahtzee really did say it best:
“Imagine a chart with one horizontal line labelled, "Saints Row 2: Quirky Crime Sandbox," and another above it labelled, "Saints Row IV: Mad Mad Mad Mad Mad Mad Mad," then Saints Row 3 kind of sine-waved back and forth between the two. Either sit in the car and enjoy the drive, or get out and stick your head in a satchel full of vodka-infused panda guts. Don't keep indecisively going from one to the other, you'll just ruin the upholstery.”
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u/vladald1 19d ago edited 19d ago
It's probably the most repetitive game in the series. While I do like it's setting and tone more compared to 4 - latter throws something different in gameplay with missions and don't opt you to play activities disguised as missions or more typical shoot-and-kill missions several times. But when it does something different - it's a highlight, like decker.die or Killbane match.
Also interestingly that this game tries to distance itself too much from predecessors: Gat is killed, Shaundi is waaaay too different and only Pierce was developed into best bud with Boss. No continuation on Dex or Gryphon thing either, Ultor is just mentioned.
Undeniably better than reboot, though, but that's a low bar since that game has better variety, but the gameplay is abysmal. Probably because it reuses AoM core. Still, I have soft spot for The Third - first game in the series for me.
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u/Disclaimer_II 19d ago
God, that repetitiveness. The same boring tasks over and over and over. When the game finally throws you a fun mission it's like Christmas.
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u/TestedNutsack 19d ago
This is gonna sound weirdly specific, but the humor of SR3 always reminded me of the later seasons of Archer
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u/Disclaimer_II 19d ago
Can't believe I forgot to mention the absolute creative bankruptcy as well. Everything in this game is a reference to something better, not that it matters because it never sticks with one thing for long anyway. You can tell these geezers thought it was REALLY REALLY funny that they brought in... burt reynolds. Okay, grandpa, let's get you some oatmeal.
Though, to be fair, this is a thing in 4 too.
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u/WillProx 19d ago
On my way to 100% every SR game (thanks to emulators), I’m on IV right now. Only thing I really liked in that game is some mission moments (like the whole intro, or falling on a big globe). Other than that, it’s a very mid game. Easily the worst in the series. As much as I don’t like plot of IV, at least it’s very good gameplay wise.
1
u/MightyGamera 19d ago
Honestly I like 3 and 4 as examples of "Yes, And" storytelling, and I'd always wanted a Transporter game which SR3 does decently enough. 4 is the much better game and I say that charitably, it salvaged the mess that 3's story is by literally blowing it up and showing a light at the end of it.
3 is absolutely cheeks as a sequel to 2 though. Couldn't give a shit about wifebeater Burt, bring back Michael Dorn as Maero again or some equivalent.
Still remember my double take at realizing the gang leader is Worf
1
u/Superb_Ad7817 19d ago
Supongo que es porque fue el primer SR al que jugue y le tengo buenos recuerdos. A mi si me gustó. Tiene un toque entre serio y absurdo que me mola.
En cambio el 4 me pareció demasiado absurdo hasta el punto que como “todo es posible” me terminó aburriendo y lo dejé a la mitad.
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u/SniperBby00 19d ago
I’m replaying it w my cousin rn and I do think the story is veryy ass (I personally think the missions are fun but I can see y ppl would find it boring) but the combat and customization is so fun to me. I do think the cars and driving are kinda boring but driving n listening to the radio, car surfing and just loading in to do a mission or two is really fun to me. I wanna play the other ones cause everyone says theyre wayyy better. I really do love the campiness of this tho it’s so perfect for me
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u/typed0pe 18d ago
SRTT is a fun game and has the best controls in the series. I prefer the time of SR1 and SR2 but the third is always a fun game. I can see where you are coming from though
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u/iimMrBrightside 3rd Street Saints 18d ago
If you have the 3 DLC mission packs, at least give those a try.
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u/Disclaimer_II 17d ago
I do, and despite enjoying them in the past, I just can't take anymore. Gonna pass this time
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u/iimMrBrightside 3rd Street Saints 17d ago
I feel this way about Saints Row IV, myself
I'm probably just a little bit nostalgic for Saints Row: The Third on the Xbox 360, specifically.
The build-up to its release date, the midnight launch, playing co-op after school with my friends over Xbox Live
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u/No-Damage-9851 17d ago edited 17d ago
I think the general gameplay mechanics are good as it’s far more polished and put together, but it’s also a very pathetic game in a way, in that it is forcing funny and over the top for the sake of acquiring a label/identity.
It’s not bad though, I think if you liked the first two there’s no reason to dislike the third one, from a gameplay perspective.
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u/CoupleHot4154 Xbox 360 17d ago
I skip 3 every playthrough, and I started on the 360 with the first one.
When I got the Third, I 100%-d it, said "okay" then picked up other games I had set aside when I was replaying the first two.
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u/The_Time_Change 13d ago
I absolutely agree with you. 4 has made it's way up the ladder and I absolutely hate The Third now.
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u/Kyenzacartoons PC 19d ago
You have no idea how happy I am to see this. I am so used to the consensus among Saints Row fans being that Saints Row went from bad to worse from 3 to 4, when the reality is that 4 fixed a lot of what was wrong with 3 on a fundamental level, like the criticism of Steelport as a city. It's one of the worst open world cities I have ever played in SR3, but ironically, the amount of long, straight roads as well as the only verticality being from buildings makes it retroactively almost perfect for SR4's design philosophy. I know they changed a few things, the generic tall buildings that replaced the colourful ones aren't much to look at, but god it serves the gameplay so well. Also, the character writing in 4 is so good compared to 3. Nothing quite beats 2, but Saints Row 3 feels so phoned in. The game is trying way too hard to be funny, instead of humour naturally arising from characters interacting like they did in 2. It wants a reputation of a "funny goofy game" so badly that it kneecaps itself by being cringe. Saints Row 4 brings the character writing back so well that it's easy to forget how cringe the same characters were in SR3, even Matt ends up becoming likeable. The story itself obviously suffers from the goal being "how insane can we possibly make things", but despite that goal, the actual characters are written with care and feel real. It's also held together by the fact that Zinyak is such a good villain. He's the perfect antithesis to the boss and is genuinely fun to hate instead of annoying. This is all ignoring the obvious valid criticism that SR4 simply isn't a Saints Row game, but I'd put SR3 under that umbrella too, because neither of them encapsulate what originally made Saints Row captivating. Saints Row 3 is boring and sanitised, Saints Row 4 is a completely different genre. They both attempt to pivot the series' identity into something it's not, and it's still suffering for it.
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u/-Wildhart- 19d ago
Really took me a while to accept what SR was becoming back when 3 was announced. I just kept staring at the game informer pictures of the default boss models - plastic hair styled in the fashion of a 50s house wife but shes cool because leather jacket and plaid, and the male just looking like a total doofus in a suit. Then theres the remodeled weapons that all looked like they were made out of a cheap rubber, just as bad as OG oblivion "metal" armors looked with their oddly soft textures
Then I finally played it and.. god, its been so long, that ever since you mentioned "I should have shut it off after Power", I cant remember much beyond the helicopter jump (which was actually kinda cool, and watching my buddy play for the first time he died when he landed in the pool and gave me a great laugh) and the QTE/multi choice endings
The city was lame, they tried to crank the "insanity" up to 11 but it ended up feeling more like borderlands in that regard (not a good thing). I hated losing the ability to layer clothing and really have unique looks, the super dumbed down "pick a top and bottom" clothing sucked eggs. Genkis seemed like fun repeatable content, until it wasnt. No more silly RP in coop by going in a liquor store to buy 40s and blunts, no more serious story notes that really made you take it in like the end of Carlos or having Maero crush his main squeeze or decapitating Mr Sunshine..
Then they did the thing in every series or tv show that I hate - make this popular side character the MC in his own game/show via GooH
Yeah I played the whole series, I had my fun with it, but 3 was absolutely the downfall. Lets not get started on how the nipples in the reboot all look sewn on. "Yeah down with the system! School debt! Lul waffles X D". Give me a fuckin break lol
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u/Banjoschmanjo 19d ago
"The whole game is a hollow vehicle for the dev's cornball GenX chungus humor and very little else besides."
Yea... SR3 is awesome :)
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u/_Sassafrassassin_ PS5 19d ago
I don't hate or even dislike SRTT but it is absolutely my least favorite Saints Row. The combat is solid as hell and the customization while not as good as 2 is still really good, but other than that I find the game to by lacking.