Yep. I hadn't seen any recent promotion material (I went into the game with one E3 gameplay trailer behind me), and so I just had laughs upon laughs throughout the game.
Ok, so, the embargo is out. I finished it. 96% completion, but all collectables, all missions, all side stuff - just didn't do a few of the missions on gold.
The game relies heavily on jokes and scenarios and seeing this stuff for the first time. I don't know how much reviews spoil it but my video review is basically spoiler free as far as missions setpieces, story, etc. It's the bare minimum exposed so everything stays fairly fresh.
The 7.3 from IGN speaks to the concerns I have with the game thus far. Its harder for me to stomach that we've gone from a gangster simulator to some kind of space alien/matrix simulation. I'm still buying it because I'm a fan of the series, but I'm hoping that the next installment will be more like what Saints Row 1/2 were...
You can jump in at 4 but there is a TON of reference and cool moments you will understand better for having played the previous games. As for console versus pc. Of course the PC version runs great. The console version does chug, but it's not anything that ruins the game. I played both versions.
It is with a bittersweet heart, then, that I declare Saints Row IV perhaps one of the best open world sandbox games you could ever hope to play, and practically a culmination of everything the genre's worked toward this generation.
I'll be the first to say I've been harsh in regards to SR3 performance on PC, but thanks to the most recent driver I finally get a stable 30+ FPS and it made me fall in love all over again with the game. I played it through to completion on the 360 around launch, and just recently did it again on PC with the DLC since I double-dipped for cheap.
With that being said, reading about how the performance issues have been fixed, that IdolNinja is getting 10+ fps compared to 3 on the same rig ... it really makes me weep I can't pick up IV.
So... Anyone aware of streams going on yet? Don't really care about going in blind since I won't be day 1.
Ok, so, the embargo is out. I finished it. 96% completion, but all collectables, all missions, all side stuff - just didn't do a few of the missions on gold.
I'll be the first to say I've been harsh in regards to SR3 performance on PC, but thanks to the most recent driver I finally get a stable 30+ FPS and it made me fall in love all over again with the game. I played it through to completion on the 360 around launch, and just recently did it again on PC with the DLC since I double-dipped for cheap.
With that being said, reading about how the performance issues have been fixed, that IdolNinja is getting 10+ fps compared to 3 on the same rig ... it really makes me weep I can't pick up IV.
So... Anyone aware of streams going on yet? Don't really care about going in blind since I won't be day 1.
Ok, so, the embargo is out. I finished it. 96% completion, but all collectables, all missions, all side stuff - just didn't do a few of the missions on gold.
In seriousness - I think the actual core game has issues - it suffers from that classic open world problem of spraying the same tasks over and over again throughout the world. They can quickly become monotonous, and that's exacerbated by the fact that this is taking place in the same world as SR3, and so everything does feel a bit too samey.
The superpowers do a great job of pepping that up and changing things up. As does the fact that the law enforcement in this game begins as police but quickly escalates to the aliens. The aliens have the sort of atypical villain roles for such a faction; there's footsoldiers, slightly more powerful enemies, sniper types, bullet sponges - so there's more variety there than just fighting endless waves of gang members.
The core gameplay is really fun, it just gets a bit repetitive. The powers and the unlock tree help a great deal, but they're not enough alone to solve the problem - one that was present in the previous SR games as well. With all that said, the real star of the show is actually the story and narrative of the game. Where The Last of Us and Bioshock Infinite achieved one type of story this year, I think this game is a really impressive step in a different direction.
A conversation I just had on twitter with another person who played it sort of sums it up:
Her: "Saints Row 4 has some of the most hilarious scenes ever in a video game. Like, culturally, it's a *very* important game."
Me: "I think it might be the medium's first seriously well done satire."
Her: "Exactly. It never feels wrong."
The manner in which it ribs on GTA, Mass Effect, Voliton & Saints Row's past and the trends in gaming in general is really something else.
The influence of (and mocking of the tropes of) Mass Effect is pretty big here. The biggest reference is obvious, though - minor spoiler from very early on:
Earth is destroyed, and you 'jack in' to this Matrix-like recreation of Steelport to disrupt the alien systems via a Normandy-equivalent alien ship you commandeer. You can walk around it, talk to your squad makes in a limited fashion, undertake "loyalty missions" (their words, not mine) and engage in "romances".
Theres 5 different maps in the game, one is Steelport, the others are Washington, The Middle East and Space. One of the other zones hasnt yet been revealed, could be Stilwater.
So, what the fuck are you talking about, you think that Volition has been 3 years scratching their nutsack?
Where did you read about this? I went through several of the actual reviews, and none of them mention those maps - the only mention was related to the game reusing the Steelport map, which leads me to believe that Steelport is still the main city you'll be running around in, and the others are just minor, perhaps linear maps like the Mars maps in Saints Row 3. I've also asked several times in various different threads regarding this issue. Maybe someone can answer me now though.
in celebration of saints row IV. i am giving away SR3 The Full Package on steam. fourth person to leave me their Steam ID gets it. serious people only. kthx.
Where did you read about this? I went through several of the actual reviews, and none of them mention those maps - the only mention was related to the game reusing the Steelport map, which leads me to believe that Steelport is still the main city you'll be running around in, and the others are just minor, perhaps linear maps like the Mars maps in Saints Row 3. I've also asked several times in various different threads regarding this issue. Maybe someone can answer me now though.
One mission each takes place in Washington and the Middle East, and a few space ones pepper the game, but these are linear start-to-finish missions. The game takes place in Steelport. There are, however, a selection of other missions that take place outside of the typical Steelport map in weird ways. None of it is drastic, mind, and none of it other than Steelport can be open-worlded.
It took me just shy of 22 hours to hit 96% completion, which was all major tasks, all missions and all collectables. I'd estimate the main story would be about 7 hours if you ignored everything else; it's a much more focused and linear experience than previous SR games with its main story. It might be difficult as fuck later on without the upgrades, which you need money from side missions to buy, mind.
At the end of the game you gain the ability to control the time of day in the simulation. This isn't just a basic day/night toggle either like some people are speculating. It's a large amount of different visual looks to the city including a noir one that is all black and white, an infrared one, etc. In some ways, this is even better than a true day/night cycle since it gives the player more customization and choice, and fits perfectly with the simulation theme of the game. The times of day are all client-side as well. This means that each player in coop has whatever look they set, and it's not just forced by the host like the previous games were.
In seriousness - I think the actual core game has issues - it suffers from that classic open world problem of spraying the same tasks over and over again throughout the world. They can quickly become monotonous, and that's exacerbated by the fact that this is taking place in the same world as SR3, and so everything does feel a bit too samey.
The superpowers do a great job of pepping that up and changing things up. As does the fact that the law enforcement in this game begins as police but quickly escalates to the aliens. The aliens have the sort of atypical villain roles for such a faction; there's footsoldiers, slightly more powerful enemies, sniper types, bullet sponges - so there's more variety there than just fighting endless waves of gang members.
The core gameplay is really fun, it just gets a bit repetitive. The powers and the unlock tree help a great deal, but they're not enough alone to solve the problem - one that was present in the previous SR games as well. With all that said, the real star of the show is actually the story and narrative of the game. Where The Last of Us and Bioshock Infinite achieved one type of story this year, I think this game is a really impressive step in a different direction.
A conversation I just had on twitter with another person who played it sort of sums it up:
Her: "Saints Row 4 has some of the most hilarious scenes ever in a video game. Like, culturally, it's a *very* important game."
Me: "I think it might be the medium's first seriously well done satire."
Her: "Exactly. It never feels wrong."
The manner in which it ribs on GTA, Mass Effect, Voliton & Saints Row's past and the trends in gaming in general is really something else.
The influence of (and mocking of the tropes of) Mass Effect is pretty big here. The biggest reference is obvious, though - minor spoiler from very early on:
Earth is destroyed, and you 'jack in' to this Matrix-like recreation of Steelport to disrupt the alien systems via a Normandy-equivalent alien ship you commandeer. You can walk around it, talk to your squad makes in a limited fashion, undertake "loyalty missions" (their words, not mine) and engage in "romances".
So can't wait. Between SR#1-3, I have easily put in over 300 hours of gameplay
One thing I am disappointed over #4 though is they didn't bring back Rebecca Sanabria as the Female 3 (Hispanic) voice. She was my favourite voice, as her's seemed to have more personality and more fun then the others
At the end of the game you gain the ability to control the time of day in the simulation. This isn't just a basic day/night toggle either like some people are speculating. It's a large amount of different visual looks to the city including a noir one that is all black and white, an infrared one, etc. In some ways, this is even better than a true day/night cycle since it gives the player more customization and choice, and fits perfectly with the simulation theme of the game. The times of day are all client-side as well. This means that each player in coop has whatever look they set, and it's not just forced by the host like the previous games were.
So on Co-Optimus they list LAN support (for the PC version) as NON AVAILABLE.
They'd be a huge bummer for me, as some of the greater fun i've had with The Third was through LAN Coop.
Co-Optimus has been wrong before though, does anyone have confirmation? I mean if it doesn't have LAN support i don't think i'll be pre-ordering, in the first place.
I got it for $40 recently on amazon no card trading, though less weapon skins if you really need to order through steam to get those TF2 skins. I'll see though, amazon gives steam codes so maybe they will think I bought it from them by some fluke.