Saints Row IV

Lore & Background

Saints Row IV was the first game developed by Volition after its acquisition by Koch Media in early 2013, following the bankruptcy proceedings of the franchise's original publisher, THQ. The supernatural and superpower concept started in Enter the Dominatrix, a cancelled expansion planned for Saints Row: The Third, which the team expanded into Saints Row IV. Volition later released a 'director's cut' of Enter the Dominatrix as downloadable content alongside another expansion, How the Saints Saved Christmas, as well as various weapons, costumes, and vehicle packs. A standalone expansion, Saints Row: Gat out of Hell, was released in January 2015, serving as an epilogue to the base game.

The game's open world nature allows players to freely explore a simulation of the fictional city of Steelport while completing main and side missions. It incorporates science fiction elements, and the single-player story follows the same player-created character from previous games, who is elected President of the United States after thwarting a terrorist threat. Five years into their governance, they find themselves trapped in the Steelport simulation along with members of their gang, the 3rd Street Saints, after an alien empire known as the Zin attacks Earth and captures them. With the help of allies who hacked the simulation to give them superpowers, the player attempts to rescue their captured friends, escape the simulation, and defeat the Zin.

The game received several limited and summative edition releases, and was briefly banned in Australia. It received positive reviews from critics, who praised its humor and character customization options, but criticized its lack of challenge. The next and final game in the series, a reboot titled Saints Row, was released in August 2022.

Reader's Guide

Saints Row IV is significant as the final main installment of the original Saints Row series, marking a shift toward science fiction and superpowers that set it apart from its predecessors. The game's concept originated from a cancelled expansion for Saints Row: The Third, and it was the first Volition title after the studio's acquisition by Koch Media. Its open world, set in a simulation of Steelport, allows players to use superpowers such as elemental attacks, telekinesis, and enhanced mobility, while the story parodies science fiction games like Mass Effect 2 and films like The Matrix. The game sold over one million units in its first week and received positive reviews for its humor and character customization, though critics noted a lack of challenge. Its legacy includes a standalone expansion, Saints Row: Gat out of Hell, and a 2022 reboot of the series. The game was briefly banned in Australia and later ported to multiple platforms, including Nintendo Switch and Google Stadia.

Did You Know?

• The game's superpower concept started in a cancelled expansion called Enter the Dominatrix, planned for Saints Row: The Third.
• Saints Row IV was briefly banned in Australia.

From Imitation to Unapologetic Spectacle

The first Saints Row was widely perceived as a Grand Theft Auto imitation, a label that clearly stung the Volition team. Rather than doubling down on gritty realism, the developers made a deliberate creative pivot starting with the second installment. They leaned into absurdity, piling on pop culture references, parody sequences, and self-aware jokes that made the series feel like a living, breathing comedy. This shift gave the franchise a voice no other open-world game matched at the time. However, the very fans who had loved the original's more grounded tone found the new direction jarring. The tension between those who wanted a serious crime saga and those who embraced the escalating ridiculousness became a defining fault line in the community. Saints Row IV carried this DNA to its logical extreme, with the player character ascending from street-level gang member to president of the United States before ultimately confronting an alien empire.

The Boss's Absurd Ascension

The player character in the Saints Row series begins as a silent, unnamed figure, dubbed Playa in the first game, who stumbles into a gang war by accident. By the second entry, that same character is recognized as the Boss, a leader who rebuilds the 3rd Street Saints from the ashes of a five-year coma. The trajectory from there is deliberately unhinged: the Boss becomes a celebrity, a pop culture icon, and eventually the president of the United States. The antagonists escalate in kind, moving from rival street gangs to a corrupt corporation called Ultor, an anti-gang paramilitary force, and finally a full alien invasion. Gameplay across the four main titles is anchored in two fictional cities, Stilwater and Steelport, loosely modeled on real American urban centers. The core loop remains driving and shooting within an open world, punctuated by side activities and light role-playing choices, but the narrative scope keeps stretching until the player is literally fighting off extraterrestrial threats while holding the highest office in the land.

A Franchise in Corporate Transition

Volition began work on the original Saints Row in 2003, shortly after finishing Red Faction II, and the game shipped in August 2006. The series then followed a steady cadence: Saints Row 2 in October 2008, Saints Row: The Third in November 2011, and Saints Row IV in August 2013. A critical business shift happened between the third and fourth entries. THQ, the long-time publisher, fell apart, and Deep Silver acquired the series rights in 2013, taking over from The Third onward. By September 2013, cumulative sales had already crossed the 13-million-unit mark, cementing the franchise as one of the best-selling in the genre. The standalone expansion Gat out of Hell arrived in January 2015, extending the series' life under the new publisher. The publisher change was not merely administrative; it marked the end of an era in which THQ had shepherded the series through its most formative years and the beginning of a new corporate chapter that would ultimately shape the franchise's fate.

The Reboot and Volition's End

In August 2021, a full reboot of the series was announced, and it launched in August 2022 under the simple title Saints Row. The game transplanted the action to a new fictional city, Santo Ileso, set in the American southwest, and introduced a fresh gang simply called The Saints, tasked with wresting control from the various factions already ruling the streets. Reception was harsh. Critics and longtime fans alike felt the reboot failed to capture the spirit that had made the original run memorable, and it did not meet expectations. The damage compounded quickly. As part of a broader reorganization within Embracer Group, Volition's parent company, the studio itself was shut down in August 2023. The Saints Row intellectual property, along with other Volition titles, was transferred to Plaion, another label under the Embracer umbrella. For a franchise that had sold over 13 million copies and defined a particular flavor of open-world gaming, the ending was abrupt and, for many in the community, deeply unsatisfying.