Is Saints Row 2 Still Great? - A Saints Row 2 Review

In 2008 Saints Row 2 set itself apart from GTA IV with a wacky sense of humor, varied main missions and creative side content. But now in 2022 Is Saints Row 2 Still Great? (Saints Row 2 Review)
By the late 2000’s the urban sandbox genre was becoming more and more popular. The GTA Clone was on the rise, and even the first Saints Row 1 struggled to shake off the shadow of Rockstar's GTA 3D Trilogy. Developers soon realised that to stand out they needed to be different. They needed to innovate and create something new.
Saints Row 2 succeeds in setting itself apart from other sandbox games by expanding on everything from the first game and including a ton of varied content. Where GTA IV sometimes lacked variety, Saints Row 2 has variety in spades.
Following the release of the Saints Row Reboot I’m looking back at the old Saints Row Games to see how they hold up in 2022. Throughout this Saints Row 2 review, we’ll see how Saints Row 2 balanced the silliness and seriousness, how Volition expanded their sandbox to create new main missions and why I think the open world in Saints Row 2 deserves to go down in gaming history. At the end of this review, we’ll answer that final question: Is Saints Row 2 Still Great?
If you enjoyed this Saints Row 2 review, leave me a like, a comment and a sub to let me know!
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00:00 Intro - Saints Row 2 Vs GTA IV
02:50 Customisation
05:17 Narrative
09:26 Main Missions
14:47 Side Content
20:06 Combat and Rewards
24:16 Open World
32:24 Is Saints Row 2 Still Great?
Articles and Videos used to research this review:
GDC Presentation
www.dsvolition.com/publicatio...
gamingbolt.com/what-exactly-m...
• Saints Row 2 11th Anni...
www.gamedeveloper.com/pc/in-d...
www.videogamer.com/previews/s...
• Saints Row 2 - Sons Of...
• Saint's Row 2 E3 2008 ...
• Saints Row 2 Producer ...
• Saints Row 2 Xbox 360 ...
• Behind the Scenes - Sa...
• Saint's Row 2 Go Visio...
• 10th Anniversary: Sain...
• Saints Row 2 | Barack ...
• Saints Row 2 | Classic...
#saintsrow #saintsrow2

[@THEELEMENTKH]

As someone that played this game for the first time not too long ago, yes, yes it still is It quickly became one of my favorite games ever

[@The_Punisher]

If the stereotypes in Saints Row 2 bother you I recommend you the Saints Row Reboot

[@charlietownsend2826]

"I’d love to spend half an hour talking about each [mission]" I would definitely welcome a little series with videos on individuals mission, even if it’s just the best ones or the ones that stand out the most.

[@lolmetaknight]

2008 was a hell of a good year!

[@jonathanakcay]

2008 was a golden year for both video games and movies

[@jayceegenocide4402]

Especially Call of Duty World at War

[@kayladuggan5956]

sr2 also has idle animations sometimes if you stand still for a while your character will walk off to the side somewhere and have a smoke

[@vadvitch]

Yess or dance if in a nightclub

[@HumungusO_o]

Sing along with the radio. The voice actors and devs cared about us gamers. I was at a low point irl then heard my sr2 character singing along with sister christain i nearly shit in excitement

[@CAV_PEE]

⁠@@HumungusO_o i had a similar experience. i was sad playing and heard voice 2 boss singing along to Everybody Wants To Rule The World and it made me laugh so hard, instantly lightened my mood

[@davep5698]

"But this is a game from 2008" is doing some intense lifting. I still very regularly play new games and think, "If this was half as good as Saints Row 2" it is just amazing in its depth of detail and game play. Also super ironic you note the mild brown filter in SR2... while constantly comparing it to GTA IV which was the epitome of BROWN and boring, it was just so much worse, SR2 had colours you even point that out. GTA IV is so much worse for the brownness. Its like a old folks hole from the 50's. brown, outside, brown inside, brown clothes, it even handled brown.

[@lazymodsv37]

These reviews are seriously underrated

[@dominiqueodom3099]

Im so glad there was an entire section dedicated to the Open World. SR2 Stillwater remains my favorite open World City because the neighborhood Variety,the shocking amount of Destructible Environments,and the building interiors and secret areas are awesome to explore.

[@Bailer86]

Like GTA4, my favorite memory in SR2 is driving around the city listening to the 80s station.

[@NLind]

I still remember the day I found the airport. I was driving around and arrived there and noticed it had an interior, so I got out and went in and had a big Oh Wow! Moment. The announcements, music, ambient airplanes and of course the look of the interior.

[@giovannifernandez7400]

GTA 4 also did the newspaper as an umbrella thing as well. Saints Row 2 and GTA 4 are two sides of the same coin. One strived for realism but lacked in gameplay variety while the other focused in video game fun. Neither is wrong with their design philosophy because both can exist together.

[@AliBazz]

Ion think you know whatchu mean when you say gta 4 is realistic, if you ask me any game is more realistic dan gta 4, its just a clunky game, i can climb a wall faster dan niko

[@giovannifernandez7400]

@@AliBazz It's good to know I'm not the only one who thinks that. I went into GTA 4 with the expectation of realism and great storytelling. I was let down. Guess my expectations were too high.

[@TwinSticksReviews]

I thought that as well. They're both similar but also different. I had more fun with SR2, but GTA IV impressed me more and the narrative is a masterpiece. That's interesting about the newspaper. GTA IV has so many details like that I must have missed it. It shows how good SR2 is though, if it can match the open world in GTA IV in some areas.

[@AliBazz]

@@TwinSticksReviews gta 4 narrative is a joke i have no idea how you think dem characters is interesting; everyone acts like dey on da internet and da playable character just stands there sayin non and then da mission starts you go kill some people you get back, so it quickly stops matterin, you wont find yoself listenin/ payin attention to what dey say; its filled wit plotholes and contrived

[@TwinSticksReviews]

@@AliBazz it's more to do with the themes of the game. How it examines modern life in a cynical way. Plus Niko is an amazing character, but I admit a lot of his development is subtle. There was nothing around the time that was doing that and the fact it holds up today is a testament to its quality.

[@AliBazz]

SR 2 is king

[@beardedweirdo790]

Nah nah SR1 is king SR 2 is the Prince

[@AliBazz]

@@beardedweirdo790 L doe

[@adriantrusca1245]

@@beardedweirdo790 Nah. Nah. NAH.

[@beardedweirdo790]

@@adriantrusca1245 SR 2 wouldn't be shit without the original

[@adriantrusca1245]

@@beardedweirdo790 NAHHH. NAAAAAAAHHHHHH. I don't give a fuck about any of this, i just like saying Nah. NAHHHHHHH.

[@gustafrenstrom8549]

Another great review from you. the game is still great and my favourite in the series despite its problems.

[@jamescarr8196]

I love these videos where you go through game franchises and review them. You should resident evil and assassin’s creed as well :)

[@gorditacrunch5168]

Your videos are really great man keep it up! You’re bound to blow up!!

[@kobrakommander1645]

I am happy that you had a video blow up. These retrospectives are amazing. Keep it up bro

[@CannaToker420]

I honestly love this game so much. Wish I still had my OG 360 copy.

[@BIGwillTHEGAME]

This is my favorite Saints Row game.

[@hezhez97]

Saints row 2 and gta iv are my favourite games TO THIS DAY

[@westsidejuvi937]

Possibly my favorite game of all time. I've literally played it over and over and over again for over 15 years lol never gets old, a true masterpiece.

[@jahbarihicks5564]

💯

[@lavellans]

honestly loved this game and the blend of dark and cracky elements, but you are right about the flaws. I did enjoy the technical improvements in 3, even the side missions, but 2 still have the superior realistic style while adding the sandbox customization. this was a good review.

[@kipp1231]

I'm doing a play through now. It's my favorate open world game along with San Andreas.

[@niikiyama]

love the review, dont think u mentioned idle player animations here tho (they happen when you leave your keyboard/mouse or controller for a few seconds) also agree at the end, just like the games you like

[@santsandoval7]

Your review made me install it on my Xbox and give it a try.

[@ChrisSealy1997]

The Destroy All Humans 2 of the franchise it was epic

[@montanablackhardcorefan6974]

It's just sad that games that are over 10 years old have more content than new ones. It's funny that games made real progress at the time. Nowadays not anymore .

[@DIRTYHANDS84]

I literally just re-downloaded it from the PlayStation now streaming app or whatever that crap is just so I can play it because the missions are so epic when you see the cutscenes to them you just want to feel that feeling again I can't say that about any other GTA games any of them

[@TheThirdStreetSaints133]

I will say this even though I started with SR3 then 4. SR2 has became one of my favorite games within the SR Franchise and of all time with its Music, Atomospeere (espeically SR1 I love that lighting) ahh so amazing not to mention SR2s' NPCs. I just love it!!

[@markedmanmist]

"New activities" *cries in SR2 German censored version*

[@ElGordo2497]

I love your channel

[@LeonSMeowity]

I played the 2nd game after getting it for free with my copy of Saints Row 3 on PS3 when I was younger. At first I thought, wow Saints Row 3 really is better, but then I got into the story and exploring the world and I was hooked. Literally haven't encountered a game that fills the void in the genre quite like Saints Row 2

[@fr7_siu240]

9:02 had me there

[@Roc_Official]

Saints Row 2 is my favorite game despite some flaws

[@virgogaming6488]

I consider it The Godfather of video games.

[@chris_player2995]

i remember laughing when I tuned up the FBI van

[@Steven-sp4gd]

do you have a song list? i really liked the first one

[@MistahJay7]

You should cover RE4 since you mentioned it lol

[@WJINTL]

Saints Row 2 makes me really sad to play. It's the only game Volition ever made and will ever make where the majority of players can say they got it right. *The 1 game out of their entire catalog.* And they learned NOTHING from it. You can't even criticise the brown graphics because in 2009 all games were doing that. Modern Warfare 2 GTA IV Gears of War It was a staple of the era.

[@WJINTL]

Also don't hold your breath for a remaster Volition lost the source code. I cannot remember how but it meant when making s 3rd game... they had to start from scratch and that's why we got Saints Row The Third in it's reduced condition. Developers make bigger and better sequels off the last game's source code. When making Saints Row 2 they built off of Saints Row's code. When making GTA 6 Rockstar used RDR2's code.... which uses GTA V's code... built off of GTA IV's code. Saints Row 3 couldn't do that so they had to start again. Also the devs of the Saints Row reboot hate Saints Row 2 and it's fans as they have stated many tines in Discord chats so they won't bend over backwards to mess up a remaster like they did their own installment.

[@Sammy_the_best_there_ever_was]

​@@WJINTL maybe holding our breath isn't impossible the source code for two was found it's just Saints Row ones source code is lost forever

[@juicydroptop3695]

This game needs a remaster

[@MercyBot7]

I just 100%'d this game a day or so ago. So many hours, and it is without a doubt the most fun I've had in awhile. It is such a good game.

[@MrAdamFC]

In all honesty. Could we get a remaster if Volition Can't even be arsed to make the reboot decent.

[@blinkachu5275]

I disagree on the "a series of markers" comment You can't expect a game that has a story focus to not have markers to indicate where to go next in an open world the size of GTA/Cyberpunk/Assassin's Creed etc. There's no fun to just aimlessly travel looking for the next objective, with it taking hours. Heck, people complain if a game doesn't have fast travel I think it's fine to change the system to not be a direct marker and have it more like how Avatar does it "It's in x region near a waterfall" or something similar, but it should always be clear to a player where to go next in such huge games There's plenty to discover in games like Cyberpunk that isn't marked on the map. I remember finding a building that seemingly no one knew about and at the top it had an Easter egg that represented the first Blade Runner movie. There's plenty of "wonder" in such moments, it doesn't mean the story itself doesn't need markers on where the next mission is

[@skypemee4040]

You should do a still great video on days gone

[@bowiesensei5574]

Ironic that gta online gets compared to saints row

[@dr.loomis4221]

I can't believe that the prison boat escape at the beginning still runs like garbage on an Xbox Series X...that blew my mind. GTA IV runs at a smooth 60fps now though.

[@theoutsiderjess4869]

Insurance fraud definitely needed changes I do agree with Mayhem tho

[@MistahJay7]

The Greatest Open World Game of all time

[@toddwatkins5011]

Wong is a real name, gotta love fake outrage

[@gdoza1393]

I hate tht all gangs disappeared after beating game

[@baptisedindirtysprite3593]

Yes

[@EliteFuller]

Saints row 2 is a masterpiece & mods like it lot better

[@alexc195]

Absolutely

[@theoutsiderjess4869]

I was shocked to hear yoj say that Sr 2 open world because I have heard more people talk about 2 open world than Gta 4 which theh focus more on the story which is understandable

[@deslardesslok]

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 🥳🎉🎊✨ 6:33p.m. 1/1/2023

[@deslardesslok]

3 MONTHS LATE SQUAD WHERE YOU AT?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

[@yellowcard425]

I Love Saints Row 3 and 4 but It'll Never Be as Good as Saints Row 2. There is just something better about 2 than the future ones. We need a PS4 Remaster of Saints Row 2

[@stoptiktok1691]

Or even just a port please

[@reecemiester3178]

1 OF THE GAMES OF ALL TIME BOIS !! NOT EVEN CLOSE !!

[@filiporkowski]

I love stereotypes.

[@AspergerL]

I found it overrated... Enjoyed the first two days of gameplay a LOT more than most games, then ended up totally disapointed by the 3rd day. By the last missions the gameplay got buggy and too random, like my own gangmember hijacked my car during a mission, NPCs were unrealisticaly agressive as mentioned here to the point of me not feeling like continuing when it took me 4 hours to complete just 2 missions i found easy, but a random pedestrian smashed my car with his car for no reason, Pierce wouldnt move, my character wouldn't move... i finished the mission but they blew me up during the mission complete screen messing up my savefiles, all during the same mission. The checkpoint system got kinda buggy too. The city is deliberately filled with obstacles to slow down movement to make it feel bigger and a lot of the aforementioned stuff is semi deliberately left like that to make the game more challenging and to hide underdevelopment. All of this led to me improving my ingame shooting, driving etc. but i kept crashing my car, dying and failing more and more because the game got buggier and the problems more obstructive as the missions went on. There were obvious ways around these bugs or ways to use them to your advantage, but it made the game less engaging. GTA 3 did a lot of similar things to hide underdevelopment, like the too agressive NPCs and cops and certain glitches and map stuff, but it's done way better, actually improving the game and making it more engaging by "toughening it up". GTA has way smoother and simpler gameplay than Saints Row, although at first it felt the other way around.

[@geekymetalhead5112]

This game was peak

[@Iychoenk]

I use John wick model in this game ...

[@averysadtire6820]

5:28 Shut up dude, damn.

[@helicopterk3n708]

Yes.

[@deslardesslok]

6:33p.m. 1/1/2023

[@bobbobberson5897]

TL;DW Yes, yes it is

[@xscarface1997]

Best Saints Row ever 😍

[@DenzelWiro]

sr2 still the best sr game

[@briant4468]

Godfather 2 superior.

[@jayceegenocide4402]

Saints Riw 1 somehow had BETTER Graphics & Physics.

[@rogueraccoon1840]

Man SR2 is still the best even in 2022

[@jayceegenocide4402]

Janky Good Game

[@Kousaburo]

Saints Row 2 is better than GTA IV. SR2 is fun, GTA IV is a boring chore.

[@skypemee4040]

So that means you like gtasa more than Saint row2

[@TwinSticksReviews]

Yeah SA is one of my favourite games. SR2 is great though. I enjoyed the missions as much as SA. Which do you prefer?

[@skypemee4040]

@@TwinSticksReviews I never played Saint row but gtasa is my favorite game it's perfection

[@frog6054]

Saints row 2 is better than any GTA in my opinion

[@skypemee4040]

@@frog6054 ok

[@saintakins187]

If you're going to play 2006 Saints Row & Saints Row 2 make sure you have the important cheat codes ready such as the Never Die, unlimited amount & clip along with vehicle repair cheat code. Sure you can play these two games raw but at the same time you will run the risk of Rage quitting, so it's best to avoid that. Don't play any other garbage Saints Row game after Saints Row 2, if you're looking for good storytelling. Play Red Facton & Red Facton 2 to get the extensive lore as it's the origin story of the Ultor Corporation, which means that takes place before 2006 Saints Row & Saints Row 2 clearly proving Saints Row is not a "GTA clone" as incompetent buffoon always ignorantly call the first two Saints Row games without even playing them.

[@doclouis4236]

Can't wait for you to look at the major upset that was Saints Row The Third.

[@yourredditdosage1723]

100%

[@NexusBreeze99]

Wow, thought this channel had promise, and then the woke bullshit started. SR2 is awesome.

[@briant4468]

Ordered a week ago from ebay son.

[@MistahJay7]

Saints Row 2> GTA 4

[@weryfunnyname6765]

More like saints bore 2

[@Lissuo]

WTF you review the game after 10y!?Just WhY?

[@trentonjones7550]

For anybody who doesn’t know. If you dial 555-2628 you get a special mission that gives us a conclusion to SR1, where you get revenge on Julius