Yeah, yeah I know. The title of this post is gaming blashphemy but hear me out. This GTA clone (or rip-off, or copywrite infringer, take your pick) does out-perform my favorite franchise in a few key areas. Is it better than GTA: San Andreas.? Certainly not. But there are some things that Rockstar might consider stealing for GTA: IV.
1. Driving Controls - While GTA has a pretty good steering system, Saints Row's controls are almost perfect. The cars all vary in acceleration but all handle extremely well. The emergency
brake really allows for some great manuevers. My only gripe is the camera, which doesn't move quite quickly enough, but it does the job.
2. Graphics - I hate to beat a dead horse but lets be honest, the GTA franchise is not known for its graphics. From CJ's bear hands in San Andreas to the faceless characters in Liberty City Stories, GTA leaves a lot to be desired in the looks department. Not so with Saints Row which has some of the prettiest cars and backgrounds I've ever seen in a game.
3. Sound - While Saints Row has great voice overs and a licensed soundtrack (with hilarious DJ's and commercials) just like GTA, the games little details make it truly unique. The weapons all have very distinct sounds. But by far the coolest thing I noticed was when I was "borrowing" a car. As an SUV pulled up, I could hear the muffled sounds of the radio. When I opened the door, it was blasting. Now that's attention to detail.
4. Multi-player - I know I brought this up in an earlier post but so what, it needs to be said - GTA needs online play. Saints Row has it. It sucks (laggiest online game I've ever played) but at least it has it. If the next GTA game doesn't have it, watch out. Riots will ensue, cats and dogs will be living together and gamers everywhere will throw down their controllers in disgust.
5. Create-a-player - I never really considered this an issue until I played Saints Row. With the last two GTA games, I've enjoyed playing playing as Hawaiian shirt wearing Tommy Vercetti (voiced brilliantly by Ray Liotta) and as tough talking CJ. But the chance to make a customizable gang-banger who looks just like me is too much fun to pass up.
Oh, by the way: Battlefield 2142 Beta anyone? - I received an email from my contact at EA today letting me know that they are opening up 10,000 slots to the public to try out the Battlefield 2142 beta. The 10,000 slots are available on a first-come, first-served basis starting Friday, September 8th at 10am PST. A free GameSpy ID is required to participate. Go to fileplanet.com for the download. The game comes out in mid-October.
3 comments:
...and they play Ratt
FrostyMelon
I didn't think you looked like a gang banger..... ;)
Frosty - They also play Slaughter.
John - Don't let the picture on the Gazette website fool you. I've been a member of the Fluffy Bunnies for years.
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