Saints Row: Gat out of Hell Review (PC)

Saints Row titles have delivered some pretty impressive open-world action-adventure experiences over the years, as developer Volition managed to flesh out the series that originally started life as a poor man's Grand Theft Auto clone.

With recent entries, such as Saints Row 3 or 4, the franchise reached new heights in terms of quality, while embracing its outlandish nature, instead of trying to go the serious or realistic path.

With Saints Row: Gat out of Hell, Volition goes all-in on the over-the-top aspect, allowing players to control popular characters like Johnny Gat or Kinzie Kensington, while going through hell to save the boss of the Third Street Saints.

With new adventures, powerful demons, and Satan as the main villain, Gat out of Hell certainly looks like a great entry in the series. Does it deliver on these ambitious promises or should Volition take things a bit more seriously? Let's find out.

Story

Gat out of Hell acts more or less like a direct follow-up to Saints Row 4, as it starts with the birthday of Kinzie Kensington, which is quickly foiled by Satan. Apparently, the supreme devil has been quite impressed with the legions of creatures killed by the boss of the Third Street Saints in all of the previous games in the series, so he abducts him in an attempt to find a suitable match for his rebellious daughter, Jezebel.

As you can imagine, this doesn't exactly sit right with the rest of the Saints, particularly with Johnny Gat, who got saved by the boss in Saints Row 4. As such, alongside birthday girl Kinzie, they go to hell to rescue their friend and put a stop to Satan's plans.

The whole plot is hilarious from beginning to end and hell is filled with all sorts of outlandish characters, from famous Romanian count Vlad the Impaler to Blackbeard and even Shakespeare. Throw in plenty of characters from previous games in the series, not to mention other original NPCs, and you're in for plenty of laughs while completing Gat out of Hell.

There are also different endings that are possible in the campaign, and there are some great things to explore in terms of story, even if it can be completed in around 3 to 4 hours.

Collect clusters

Gameplay

In terms of gameplay, the new title retains the core mechanics seen in previous Saints Row games, but as you can imagine, even more outlandish mechanics are present. Sure, you can still roam around the world using your own two feet or cars that you jack from damned souls throughout hell, but the main addition to the recipe is flight.

Soon after you reach hell, you get your hands on Satan's broken halo, which allows you to sprout wings, and provided that you upgrade them by collecting orbs scattered across the inferno, you can develop your ability to fly. The actual mechanic feels really good and makes traversing the environment much easier, just like super speed or super jumps transformed Saints Row 4, and they're both present in this new one.

Of course, there are also plenty of other elements, including crazy vehicles like a chair fitted with two gatling guns, weapons that fire locusts, and other things. Special powers from blasts to foot stomps or auras are also present, which also helps keep gameplay quite varied.

“There are a few side activities and mission types, all with hellish twists, but overall, they don't feel that enjoyable and become a bit repetitive.”

The environment is all new this time around, instead of recycling the same city seen in Saints Row 3 or 4. Hell is an atmospheric place and this is obvious almost in all areas, not to mention in the different creatures scattered around the place. Special flight paths, visible in the Hellblazer activity, do much to highlight the environmental design, as you fly through holes in buildings or tunnels through the ground.

However, there are also a few glitches this time around, with poor collision detection when it comes to cars and other vehicles. Animation errors are also present, not to mention some weird effects as far as area of effect weapons are concerned.

Cause havoc

Multiplayer

Like previous games, you can play Saints Row: Gat out of Hell with a friend online via the cooperative mode. One will play as Johnny while the other controls Kinzie. While in the single-player mode, you can freely swap between them as there's no gameplay distinction.

The multiplayer mechanic is smooth and works as intended. Ravaging hell is always better with a friend, so you'll have a great time tearing through the demonic legions together.

Visuals and sound

Saints Row: Gat out of Hell looks good, largely thanks to the atmospheric design of hell and the many new creatures scattered around it. Even so, it still suffers from some low-res textures, and some character models are in dire need of an update. Fortunately, the framerate is rock solid, even in hectic scenes.

The soundtrack is impressive, as with past games in the series, and although there aren't any radio stations this time around, the voice acting is top-notch, as Daniel Dae Kim reprises his role as Johnny Gat, while the rest of the cast does a fantastic job.

The Good

The Bad

Conclusion

Saints Row: Gat out of Hell is a welcome entry in the series. It takes things to new heights in terms of story, while adding a few impressive gameplay mechanics, such as the flight one. There aren't that many different missions and the environment is a bit small, but don't forget that the game costs just 20 USD/EUR, so don't expect a full-fledged experience.

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