Rampant lawlessness just got more realistic

“Saints Row”

Xbox 360

THQ/Volition

Release date: August 29, 2006

Every once in a… “Saints Row”

Xbox 360

THQ/Volition

Release date: August 29, 2006

Every once in a while, a game comes along that is so inventive that it becomes a template for other games. Since it first hit the 3-D world, the “Grand Theft Auto” series has been the most imitated in recent memory.

On Aug. 29, Volition will beat Rockstar games to the punch and release the first free-form, city-wide, mission-based, action-adventure title on the Xbox 360. Unlike other games that imitate the general structure of the GTA franchise, “Saints Row” is basically a shameless rip-off.

The player’s character is inducted into the 3rd Street Saints, a gang fighting for control of the streets of Stilwater. There’s really nothing new here. Killing gang members who wear colors other than the Saints’ purple will earn respect and open up missions. Most people who play the game will not care about this stuff. Anyone familiar with this sort of game will tell you that most of the time is spent rampaging through the city.

Despite the game’s lack of originality, it does bring some new gameplay elements to the table. Of course, the innovations are all things that would certainly have been in the GTA series if not for the limitations of the Playstation 2 and Xbox consoles.

The player’s character can be completely customized. That’s right, kids — now your digital self can go on a make-believe killing spree in a non-existent world. Politicians are going to have a field day with this game.

“Saints Row” also sports a more advanced physics engine. For the laymen out there, this means that when you hit a pedestrian with your car, his or her body will fly through the air instead of just falling down on the ground.

The best feature of the game is its ability to provide fans of the GTA series with better graphics and improved interaction between the world and player. Part of the formula for these games includes a large playing area, but with the proviso that the graphics must be scaled down to avoid overloading the poor console. Even “San Andreas,” the most recent in the GTA series, had the same graphical quality as a Nintendo 64 game.

But that’s not necessarily a bad thing. “Grand Theft Auto” sacrificed the quality of the graphics in order to create a whole new experience, and you’d be hard pressed to argue that it was a bad choice. Thanks to the improved capabilities of the Xbox 360, the graphics in “Saints Row” are enhanced to the level of a decent Xbox game.

The city also boasts an advanced artificial intelligence to direct the city’s inhabitants. Rather than moving about in predetermined routes, the other drivers and pedestrians will interact with one another in interesting ways.

The demo itself is actually quite impressive. Three large neighborhoods of the city are available for wanton destruction, plus there are a short series of missions in which the basic gameplay elements are introduced. You’ll earn respect, take down rival gang members and steal their turf.

“Saints Row” has borrowed from GTA in another major area: a complete disregard for censorship. Since any game in which you can indiscriminately kill everyone on an entire block is going to receive a mature rating anyway, the creators of “Saints Row” have clearly decided to throw caution to the wind by adding more cursing, more adult themes and actual drug use.

While the demo only included alcohol and cannabis, the full version will likely include a variety of other drugs that have actual game effects — seriously. Having a hard time taking out those rival gangsters hanging out by the liquor store? Just take some PCP.

“Saints Row” has all the makings of a worthwhile game. It certainly did not pioneer the format, but adds enough features to make it a new experience. The 360 has been waiting for a game like this to really test the system’s performance in a GTA-style world. Seeing as this is just the first of many, we can surely expect big things in the future.