The Saboteur Review - Pandemic Studios' Swan Song

► Support me on Patreon: / cult_cyberskull
► Follow me on Twitter: / cult_cyberskull
► Follow me on Twitch: / cult_cyberskull
► Want more game recommendations? Follow my Steam Curator page: store.steampow...
► Buy the game!
GOG: www.gog.com/ga...
Origin: www.origin.com...
Amazon: www.amazon.ca/...
While World War II video games are a dime a dozen, The Saboteur is a game that stands out because it dares to take a familiar theme and put a fresh twist on it. In this action-adventure game about fast cars, fast times, and fast women, you play as a daredevil looking liberate France as a member of the resistance, rather than as a soldier. But is this enough to make The Saboteur worth your time? Watch this review to find out!
► Credits:
devilleon7 - Yakuza 0 - Substories: Passport To Pizza: youtu.be/watch...
Elliott Gaming - Metal Gear Solid 5 Phantom Pain: Free roam gameplay #1: • Metal Gear Solid 5 Pha...
TARGETMASTER - METAL GEAR SOLID = MGSV: TPP - S Rank Walkthrough - Pitch Dark - Episode 13 (1st Africa Mission) - • MGSV: TPP - S Rank Wal...
NamelessDreadx37x - Metal Gear Solid 5: The Phantom Pain - All Skull Face Scenes - Part 2: • Metal Gear Solid 5: Th...
SecretYoungLink007 - Grand Theft Auto: Vice City - Chapter 4 - Ricardo Diaz (Cutscenes): • Grand Theft Auto: Vice...
Badinfos - GTA San Andreas [ -34 -] LAST Las Venturas Missions [100% Walkthrough]: • GTA San Andreas [:34:]...
GoggleBoxFairy - Yakuza 0 | I am Kazuma-kun: • Video
Stilefty - GTA San Andreas - CJ talks to people in San Fierro: • GTA San Andreas - CJ t...
Tech & Nostalgia Kingdom - Grand Theft Auto IV (4K) - Bowling with Michelle: • Grand Theft Auto IV (4...
#thesaboteur #saboteur #ww2 #pandemic

[@Indigo_Gaming]

I'm now convinced 90% of the editing time went into blurring out funbags.

[@Chris_Wheel]

I just re installed this game yesterday because I missed it, it's great to see that some people are still talking about this game

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Talking about retro or indie stuff that people sometimes forget about or overlook is my jam. Hope you have a blast with it!

[@theinternettroll9930]

Shalashaskka all it needed was the fuhrer uniform

[@salomo7934]

A game deserving of a remake

[@Liam-sb8jj]

Imagine if GTA picked up this concept. It’s such a good idea. A game where killing the law enforcement and blowing up cars and buildings makes you the good guy. GTA really missed out on this opportunity.

[@NoMoreLies365]

This game, in 2009.. Was fuckin lit.

[@brentloy131]

I’m about to pop this bad boy in the 360 as we speak

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

I hope you enjoy it! It's a decent time :)

[@Deadforge]

I still need to play this

[@incredax]

I love how Shaun just falls off the cliff together with Dierkers car at 17:52 I remember booting up this game for the first time. My dad was sitting next to me and I was like 11 or 12 years old and the nudity option was on and we saw this topless singer on that stage and I was so embarrassed and my dad was just laughing his ass off :'). This game however had become such a piece of my childhood. My PC couldn't run GTA4 but it could run the Saboteur and I loved every moment of it and it's amazing soundtrack is burned in my memory forever. Even so much that when I finally visited Paris and some French villages, the soundtrack was running in my head as background music. Such a shame what happened to Pandemic after this game, it had so much potential and I would love to see a parte deux. Years later I see through the nostalgia and see all it's flaws, but every now and then I still boot it up to kick some nazi ass and roadtrip the French countryside.

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Nothing wrong with loving a game that has flaws! No game is perfect, and just because this game wasn't quite my cup of tea doesn't necessarily mean that it's a bad game. Like what you like and forget what anyone else has to say, especially if you have such precious memories attached to it. :). Also, thanks a bunch for watching!

[@incredax]

@@CultoftheCyberSkull thanks for the kind words man, it was a good review!

[@ScottsGameAsylum]

Ahh the black and white boobie game....

[@craigfulton2586]

I love the balanced review. I recently started playing it despite purchasing a used copy years ago. I'm enjoying it so far, but can see how the the game could ultimately get repetitive. Interestingly I think a lot of the imperfections could be cleaned up rather simply in what would have been a sequel or a new-gen remaster (all apologies to the PC crowd!). The stealth mechanics have become my primary issue. I enjoy the stealth aspects of games, and I think this story lends itself to that well. Like it's silly that you can stand in front of a soldier undisguised and not arouse suspicion so long as you're not doing anything, but if you are disguised you do attract suspicion even if just standing there. I feel like that would have been cleaned up on the next go around.

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Thank you very much! And I totally agree with you! A few tweaks would have gone a long way to making the game more bearable, even if it did repeat frequently, but unfortunately the pieces just feel disjointed and as if Pandemic was chasing trends rather than doing something truly unique (outside of the game's setting, that is). The planned sequel would've been cool, but I think that it's better to let sleeping dogs lie on this one.

[@Liam-sb8jj]

Well if your an Irishman in a nazi uniform and are standing quite close to a nazi it’s likely they would get suspicious. If putting on a nazi uniform was all it took to pretend your a nazi then the resistance would have had a really easy time defeating the nazis. Plus from a gameplay standpoint using stealth should be suitably hard. If you could easily keep a uniform on the whole time then this would be a very boring walking game. And I agree the game does have a lot of glitches. There are times nazi soldiers would be walking under ground or in the sky above me. But it wasn’t too often to cause an issue and you could still manage to progress

[@JasperTedVidalTale]

Same I Don't Mostly Like Open World Games

[@Indigo_Gaming]

"It was such a narrative mess, even by Metal Gear standards..." Wew lad, well at least I wasn't the only one. I beat every other MGS game I played, but 5 was something special...

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

It was such a shame to see such great gameplay bogged down by such weak exposition and pacing. If it was more focused, like 3 was (or even Ground Zeroes), then it could've been something special in the other way.

[@Indigo_Gaming]

@@CultoftheCyberSkull I still need to play 3, often claimed to be the best of the bunch. I'm still a 2 fanboy despite it being silly at times.

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

@@Indigo_Gaming 2 is great, especially once you get what the deconstructionist premise. But 3 is GOAT.

[@heavensea141]

Its the only open world game in nazi-occupied settings. Its so well made!

[@Felix-Sited]

This game is absolutely brilliant. It's a shame you didn't take your time with it.

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

I did take my time with it, though? I went out of my way to do a lot of the sub-missions, destroying equipment, and finding lookouts and collectables. There's just so much there that I got bored of it

[@Felix-Sited]

@@CultoftheCyberSkull Well, it's all subjective isn't it?

[@theinternettroll9930]

We need another game like this, its briliant driving around in occupied France like a mad man like GTA, just with NAZIS! Disappointed about no nazi zombies after the story tough...

[@Eleven17Studios]

Nothing interesting to do? But you can put dynamite...ON COWS! This game is flawed as hell, but something about it really got its hooks into me when I was younger. Pandemic was a personal favorite studio, both Mercenaries games were big for me and this felt like an extension of those games. Well worth the wait on this review, nicely done!

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Cows go m-BOOM! Thanks a bunch for the kind words! I'm glad to finally get this thing out the door and I'm glad to see people have been enjoying it! I had hoped that I'd enjoy it a lot more by the end, but it just wasn't meant to be, sadly.

[@rid71k]

Could you cover fredoom fighters

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

No promises. I usually just review whatever strikes my fancy at a given time.

[@rid71k]

@@CultoftheCyberSkull it's a just suggestion. You should absolutely do what your heart desires

[@thesummerofmark]

I share your feelings toward open world games - they need a hook, a different flavor to keep me interested. I recently played The Saboteur myself and I mostly enjoyed it, but its open world design really drags it down. Add to that the inconsistent stealth mechanics and the fact that assault rifles feel like peashooters. But still, I found myself growing very fond of it, despite its flaws, because it’s so... special compared to other open world games. The devs put a lot of love into this game. Anyway, great video! I found your channel randomly and I’m glad I did.

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Thank you very much! And yeah, I felt really drawn into Saboteur early on because it really did feel different, but the more I played, the more repetitive it got and it just couldn't hold my interest in the same way that other games could.

[@Liam-sb8jj]

Yes you can really tell there is a lot of love in this game despite the glitches. I don’t agree with you on the stealth mechanics as they seemed to be handled quite well. If your an irishman in a nazi uniform and standing in front of a nazi then he’s bound to her suspicious. It would be broken if it broke your stealth immediately but I feel there’s enough time to run past a nazi quickly then switch back to walking. The stealth can be used but it’s meant to be difficult. I found using stealth equally difficult to just having a shootout

[@Void-x4e]

I heard a bit about the game but never got to play it. Really interesting Review with the inclusion of the whole Open World stuff that was going around for so long.

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Thanks for watching! I appreciate your time!

[@Void-x4e]

@@CultoftheCyberSkull No problem my dude, your Videos are great!

[@Liam-sb8jj]

I found this game really enjoyable despite the numerous glitches I encountered which were a little annoying. Stealth: I found this mechanic to work quite well. Now of cause the game takes steps to prevent you walking through the whole game in stealth. Otherwise this would be a very boring game if you could. When walking slowly past nazis it’s meant to be tense. Even when walking there is a small circle around you. This is because as an Irishman in a nazi uniform you will make nazis suspicious if you get too close to them. Also nazis standing in doorways is also realistic. It’s where guard placement usually occurs even in real life. The game does this to make stealth difficult but not impossible. By placing TNT somewhere else you can create a distraction to draw guards away from the door and slip through. The game gives you these types of hints in the loading screens and tutorials. Also note that gestapo officers are trained to see through disguises (another hint in the loading screen and in game) cheesy characters: Yes, the characters are very one dimensional and stereotypes. Even their motivations are quite simple. I however believe this was done on purpose. Firstly for comedic effect as the game has a mix of slapstick and serious moments. Secondly it allows the player to not get bogged down remembering a bunch of characters that are similar like in most other games. It means you don’t need to remember a whole lot all the time and can just sit back and enjoy it more. Poor story: Each characters missions have their own “themed” motivations. Some are hilarious but have some hint at reality. Like the psychologist telling you to destroy the massive cannon so all the nazis will get ED 😅. It’s funny but the British secret service did think a little like this during the war. Even the brainwashed nazi soldier plot 😂, was hinting at MKultra. Sean is always poking fun at the missions he’s given and in a way it helps you relate more to his character. The player isn’t super invested in the side missions either but we’re just going along with it because deep down we know it’s for a good cause (like Sean does) and because we want to see what else they can come up with next. Like that mission for the British spy where you find that secret box and Sean takes a peak. It’s meant to be funny and hinting at Indiana Jones readers of the lost arc but it also shows just how focused (or narrow minded) Sean is. He can see something magical or valuable is in the box but he simply doesn’t care. He wants to get back to killing the nazi guy. The free play missions and contraband: I couldn’t be bothered playing them. They are more so you can destroy stuff along the way and to give nazi occupied France a look of being occupied. I don’t think the devs really expected anyone to try destroy them all. After all they respawn anyway. Incomplete storyline’s and characters that seemingly disappeared: I too noticed this and it is a minor shortcoming of the game. A lot of effort was put into the game at the start but after pandemic was bought out by EA games they had their staff cut. Many further missions were cut from the game that would have included those characters. There was even a nazi U-boat base I think where a story mission would occur. Some people found a glitch to get into it on the map but there’s nothing in there. Because of the staff cuts the devs had to leave some minor plot points hanging. I still think they managed to wrap up the game into something cohesive that looks complete (excluding the glitches). The black and white: there actually an interesting Tory behind why they chose that. Originally it was all meant to be in colour from the start. However Paris looked so bright and beautiful that no matter how many nazis they put around the map the city never looked like it was under occupation. That’s when they decided to make it monochromatic to truly make the player feel oppressed. graphics: I usually care a lot about graphics. I actually found these ok. Sure there’s a low polygon count but it looks gritty and not too cartoonish. Each stain looks purposefully added rather than just a texture. Also for contraband you can get a lot by using the anti air turrets and shooting down zeppelins. Just keep spinning to the left and they look spawn in the sky constantly

[@rudramishra9369]

The game is underrated and so is the video. But either of them are very nice.

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Thank you so much!

[@GriffinMuffin]

So it's a game of aggressive mediocrity. While I can definitely get behind the premise of the game, it's definitely a game that explored a neat idea but realised along the way "oh crap, all the systems for gameplay are gonna be really hard to mesh with the setting and overall scope" so none of it was properly tested. A lot of the gameplay stuff sounds like things developers tacked on cos, it was popular in other games like cover and disguising. A really interesting dive on a game I've never heard of and a great approach to the analysis as well. I rate it ten blurred nipples out of ten. Keep up the great work, mate.

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Thank you for watching! I shall endeavour to continue winning the coveted Muffin Blurred Nipple Award in all of my future videos henceforth!

[@theprinceofeverything1975]

Everything in this video is so well said! I am beyond impressed with how much effort goes into your videos. I can't wait until you blow up

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Thank you so much! That's very kind to say. And thanks for watching! :)

[@DaveOGames]

It's sad that this was the game that Pandemic went out on. By the looks of it, it really is not their best work and it came out at a time where EA was just starting to "EA" all of their development studios. Not surprised at all that they were shuttered after this 😕 Great video though!

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Thanks for watching! According to a Gvmers, there was Cold War sequel planned for The Saboteur before the company was restructured, and they made the argument that it was probably better that Pandemic went out with this rather than a less memorable followup. I suppose that's true, but I still think that Pandemic perhaps had something better to offer than a somewhat forgettable open world action-adventure game.

[@DaveOGames]

@@CultoftheCyberSkull Honestly, I think the GTA formula lends itself much better to a Cold War era game than WWII. Think about it, set it in East Berlin and have the main character working with a German resistance to the USSR. Maybe even make it the same character from Saboteur and have there be conflict between the main character and the German resistance for their respective roles in WWII. I think it would have been do-able....but I'd rather they just have it start that way and have aliens show up for a backdoor Destroy All Humans title lol

[@MidnightMedium]

This makes me wanna dig up my unfinished review of this sumbitch and actually take the time to make it good. one day...when my Xbox 360 era hits. Also are you trying to say this ISNT A MASTERPIECE? HOW DARE UUUUUUUUU

[@CultoftheCyberSkull]

Because it isn't. I calls em as I sees em. :P Although I'd love to see your take on this game!

[@MidnightMedium]

@@CultoftheCyberSkull it's super not. it's just a pretty decent late 360 era game, but i do find the idea that anything's a masterpiece because it's important to somebody personally a funny headspace some Tubers will go to

[@sbmang4927]

I rather spend my hard earned money at a burlesque show instead of buying this mess of a game.