Home Gaming Saint’s Row: Gat out of Hell review round up

Saint’s Row: Gat out of Hell review round up

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I was not as enamoured with Saint’s Row IV as I’d hoped to be. It seems like developer Volition saw that people loved the silly, crazy stuff in 3, and turned that all the way up to 11. Though it certainly evoked an appreciated nostalgic memory of Crackdown, its super powers all came on too early; the game never really like there was much organic progression. It’s now got a standalone expansion, Gat out of Hell, that turns the proverbial dial right up to 666. Is it any good? Here’s what critics have to say.

Game Informer – 7.5/10

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“Gat Out of Hell comes up short in mission variety, but concludes in a tantalizing way: with five different endings. Could one of them point to the future of the series? Time will tell, but if this is indeed the last hurrah for this continuity of the 3rd Street Saints, it’s been a hell of a ride, Volition.

Games Radar – 2.5/5

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“Alas, the expansion suffers from the problems of its predecessors. The more self-consciously weird it gets, the easier it is to lose interest. By this point the so-called ‘awesome button’ – that lets you perform running hurricanranas and dropkick yourself behind the wheels of vehicles – is more of an ‘alright button’, the feeling of dissociation rising in direct relation to the ludicrous spectacle. While Gat out of Hell is easy to play, geared as it is towards brainless carnage, it’s also very hard to care about it. There’s a saying about Saints Row games – that it’s a stupid game made by clever people. That still rings true with Gat out of Hell, Volition using its funny bone like a blunt object. You’ll laugh occasionally, but it’ll be an inadvertent laugh, like air escaping from a balloon.”

Eurogamer – 6/10

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“For all the things Gat Out Of Hell could or ideally would do though, it’s important to remember what it is – a standalone expansion. Go in remembering that, and knowing about the lack of missions, and it’s a pleasant surprise how much it at least tries to offer within its limits. Just don’t expect it to be a sequel, or even a full slice of Saints Row 4 at its best.”

PC Gamer – 67/100

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“Gat Out of Hell offers all the open-world distractions of a Saints Row game, but precious little of what made the last two so remarkable.”

The Jimquisition – 7/10

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“Saints Row: Gat out of Hell is a fun little side dish that caps off the series’ current story arc and may very well set the scene for a full-on reboot. As leery as I get of reboots, this is certainly one instance where I feel it makes a lot of sense. The series’ trademark silliness has reached such extremes that the reset button is a viable option now, a chance to bring things back down to earth – literally – and allow Volition to build itself back up to fever pitch. Regardless of where Saints Row‘s future lies, this expansion is pretty enjoyable, but not essential. It’s got some great new weapons and provides an easy excuse to dip back into a world of shameless comic violence – it’s also a fairly disposable adventure that doesn’t offer much in the way of essential material. You do get to shoot Satan in the face, however, so at least Volition is true to its word.|

Destructoid – 8/10

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“If I wanted to worry about all that, I’d just go to a college campus and listen to people complain for a few hours. As it is though, I hope that more developers take a cue from Saints Row and realize that it’s still okay to tell jokes and implement cartoony violence that’s still ridiculous and fun. I know gaming as an industry is maturing and people want to present new ideas and make statements using the media, but luckily, whenever I feel like I need a break, I will have Saints Row proudly on my shelf.”

Hardcore Gamer – 3.5/5

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“Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell captures the madness and destruction that made the series so fun, but even as an expansion pack, there’s not much new here. So much of it is cut from the same cloth of Saints Row IV that the nuances end up meaning much less than they should. The animations, the powers: it’s all too familiar. That being said, it’s still a joy. It’s open-world design at its finest, with constant distractions and an excellent transportation method. The flight is amazing, a pitch-perfect example of how to make open-world exploration fun. It’s a shame that the story is so unfulfilling, though, because Saints Row has always nailed its presentation. Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell is Saints Row IV Lite. It doesn’t do enough new to be a must-buy, but for anyone looking for a quick, easy way to get into this devil-may-care sandbox series, it’s still a solid act. Hell yeah.”

The Sixth Axis – 5/10

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“The thing about Gat Out Of Hell is that it feels like Saints Row IV but with things stripped away instead of expanded on. Sure you have the challenges to complete, though they aren’t different to the other games in the series, and there are a lot of collectibles to hunt down to unlock everything. Outside of that though Hell as a location feels a bit bland, and without the other Saints to bounce off Kinzie and Gat aren’t that interesting or funny. Combine that with the lack of in-game music and customisation options and this entry is a step backwards for the series.”

Reaction seems somewhat mixed – but if you’re a huge fan of the franchise, you’re bound to love it. It’s out in the US today, and in Europe on Friday. It does, however, look like the local release of the physical version is on February 10 locally.  The PS4 and Xbox One versions of the standalone expansion come as a free bonus with the full, remastered Saint’s Row IV: Re-elected.

Last Updated: January 20, 2015

30 Comments

  1. Captain JJ Saga

    January 20, 2015 at 10:40

    Saints Row needs an overhaul now. It’s time for a new and bigger city. The best Saints to me is still Saints Row 3. 4 just became boring too soon once you’ve upgraded your abilities, since you become pretty much unstoppable.

    Reply

    • CuddlesaurusRex

      January 20, 2015 at 10:42

      Most of the games being released lately are reboots so maybe, just maybe, you will get your wish.

      Reply

    • Dutch Matrix

      January 20, 2015 at 11:00

      That and GTA V just set such a high standard for games such as these. What sank SR4 for me was the usage of the same city, and with GTA V showing us what could be done with regards to size, I felt like I was playing a cheap-ish add on to SR 3. (Which if I remember correctly, I was told that SR 4 started out as DLC for SR 3)

      Reply

      • Captain JJ Saga

        January 20, 2015 at 11:02

        Agreed, SR 4 did feel like a DLC. Hopefullly they’ve got big things planned for the next though.

        Reply

        • Eric

          January 20, 2015 at 11:06

          SPOILER ALERT
          SPOILER ALERT
          SPOILER ALERT
          SPOILER ALERT
          SPOILER ALERT

          after the events from 4 they’ll kind of need a new location

          SPOILER ALERT
          SPOILER ALERT
          SPOILER ALERT
          SPOILER ALERT
          SPOILER ALERT

          Reply

          • Captain JJ Saga

            January 20, 2015 at 11:09

            Haha. Excellent. I like your spoiler alert. 🙂 I was just hearing a siren in my head while reading that.

            Then we can expect big things from the next one methinks.

          • TehBrad

            January 20, 2015 at 11:46

            Very true.

            Time travel then?

          • Eric

            January 20, 2015 at 15:28

            Time Travel is possible, yes. Or other planets. The door is open.

  2. CuddlesaurusRex

    January 20, 2015 at 10:41

    Could never get into Saints Row. Maybe one day when I am big.

    Reply

    • CypherGate

      January 20, 2015 at 12:32

      More like one day when you are small cause its just too childish and silly to be funny and enjoyable. I enjoy silly comedy movies like American Pie and Dumb and dumber, but in a game like this its just not all that great.

      Reply

  3. Quo Vadis?

    January 20, 2015 at 10:43

    Having never played a Saint’s Row, and just judging from the pictures, is it a lot like “Prototype”?

    Reply

    • CuddlesaurusRex

      January 20, 2015 at 10:43

      My understanding of it is that its a silly GTA

      Reply

      • Hammersteyn

        January 20, 2015 at 10:58

        Precisely

        Reply

        • Viking Of Science

          January 20, 2015 at 11:01

          In the best possible way… and unlike GTA, the Actual Missions are Fun. as are the side activities

          Reply

    • TehBrad

      January 20, 2015 at 11:06

      Yeah, it is a very silly GTA up till the 4th one. The 4th one is still silly but you have the wall running, gliding and smashing abilities from Prototype. It’s a goofy mix of GTA and Prototype.

      Reply

      • Eric

        January 20, 2015 at 11:09

        And parody missions from Splinter Cell, Street Fighter, Iron Man and The Matrix 😛

        Finished 4 last night. Had such a blast. Honestly, there wasn’t a moment I didn’t feel like I was having a ton of fun. All the minigames, that sidescroller bit… Dubstep gun was just as lol.

        Reply

  4. Shas 'O Norm

    January 20, 2015 at 10:43

    I have a copy of Saints Row 1 I borrowed from a friend but never played it.

    Reply

    • Rock789

      January 20, 2015 at 11:24

      It’s not bad. No GTA, but not bad for an open world game. But be warned – it’s a totally different game to SR3 and 4. For SR1, they were trying to be the next GTA. By the time SR3 arrived, they realised that their appeal stemmed from being nuts, so they kinda went with that and dialed it up to 11. Now they have their own crazy niche’ in the open world genre.

      Reply

      • Captain JJ Saga

        January 20, 2015 at 11:30

        I like the craziness sometimes. But when it comes to a game in this genre Sleeping Dogs still reigns supreme for me.

        Reply

        • Rock789

          January 20, 2015 at 11:41

          Hell yeah! Sleeping Dogs for the win – kung-fu action with open world freedom! Not to mention the king – GTAV. 🙂

          Reply

          • Captain JJ Saga

            January 20, 2015 at 11:44

            Will get to GTA V around mid this year when it’s on PC and not at a crazy new price. And I expect it to swallow me.

  5. Hammersteyn

    January 20, 2015 at 10:59

    They lost the plot at the third one. Fourth one was fun but ludicrous. Will get this later. Much much Special K price later

    Reply

    • Dutch Matrix

      January 20, 2015 at 11:01

      Nah. The third one was by far the most fun of the lot.

      Reply

      • Corrie

        January 20, 2015 at 11:30

        The third was fun but I think they lost the plot on 3 and upwards, SR2 still holds the title, while still being a bit silly it had great story and had the perfect mix of missions and side activities

        I’ll pick up SR GOH but yeah through steam, the retail boxed price is a bit insane

        Reply

  6. Rock789

    January 20, 2015 at 11:21

    I see this is for sale on the Xbox store for R369 (and the Gat standalone is only R194))!! That’s over R300 cheaper than the disk versions (and it’s out on Friday, like the rest of the World). Nice to see the digital is cheaper, for once, than the physical copy.

    I’m more a disk version fan, but have never understood why new-gen digital versions are more expensive than their physical counterparts (I mean COD is R999 on PSN!! And that’s the standard edition!!! I’ve seen games like Destiny, for the digital limited edition, with prices of R1199!! Nuts, I tell you!)…

    Reply

  7. CypherGate

    January 20, 2015 at 12:31

    The more ridiculous this game gets the more boring it looks. Im all about fun and jokes, but this game got tiring pretty quickly.

    Reply

  8. Peter Pan

    January 20, 2015 at 14:03

    I didn’t expect it to get high marks anyway. It’s like Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel…more of the same (although that’s not to say it won’t be entertaining for a time). But Bargain Bin Buy for me.

    Reply

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