For as long as I can remember Saints Row has always been one of those games that seemed nigh on impossible to Pidgeon hole. Borrowing as it does from so many other games, Saints Row has a unique personality of its own that refuses to take itself too seriously. This is no more evident than in its latest outing on the Nintendo Switch; Saints Row IV: Re-Elected.
Following hard on the heels of 2019’s Saints Row The Third, Saints Row IV: Re-Elected is a 2013 title that has been ported over to Nintendo’s wonder machine. But, new console aside, this is Saints Row in all its glory. The plot centres around an alien invasion that has somehow managed to create a simulation of real life in which they’ve stored humans in. The humans, quite naturally, are being harvested like battery cells. If this sounds a little like the Wachowskis (brothers and sisters) Matrix epic, that’s for good reason. Saints Row revels in paying homage to great games and films. For many of us a lot of the fun in playing Saints Row is spotting as many Easter eggs as possible. As well as an insane arsenal of weapons your character has enough super powers to take on both the Justice League and The Avengers. In Saints Row IV: Re-Elected you can fly, move things with your mind, freeze enemies and shoot fireballs from your hands. And that’s just for a start. The developers message is clear; in Saints Row IV: Re-Elected you are tougher than a bear armed with a flick knife. While initial combat can prove a little tricky, once you’ve upgraded your weapons and abilities, you are pretty much unstoppable.
As this is a port of the 2103 title, we were pleased to note that the radio station has made a welcome comeback with licences to some truly excellent tracks. If it wasn’t for the fact that I could fly, I would happily have cruised around the city just listening to some of the great music available. Yes I know you can create a mix tape if you’re walking, but that’s not really the same as cruising in your ride listening to some old skool flava that you really have to savour with your neighbour.
Graphically, Saints Row IV: Re-Elected runs at a very smooth 1080p on a big screen and 720p on a handheld. It’s not the prettiest game in town, but it more than holds its own. The in-game characters have been created with lots of attention to detail, the city you’re in looks like a living breathing metropolis and, especially on a big screen, Saints Row IV: Re-Elected sucks you into its dystopic world from the moment the screen boots up.
The only minor niggle we had with Saints Row IV: Re-Elected is the fact that there is so much to do in the game that the control system really struggled to gel. For instance having to hold down A and then select with the left analogue stick in order to change weapons is far from an elegant solution and took some time getting used to. It’s a shame that the controls aren’t remapable as they are on the PC, but then that’s a small price to pay for a such a huge game on such a small device.
This gripe is, however, a very minor one that you should treat as a case of mind over matter. You shouldn’t mind because it doesn’t matter. The fact is that Saints Row IV: Re-Elected is a challenging, over the top and incredibly immersive experience that will easily eat up weeks of your life. Highly recommended.
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