Saints Row: The Third - The TRUE Downfall of the Series 

Killbane speech about the Saints legacy ending with a whimper and not with a bang was prophetical... Years later and the reboot proved him right...

To be fair with the Killbane match thing, unmasking a luchador wrestler is the biggest humiliation the unmasked wrestler could ever have.

saints row 3 is at least better than saints row 4 and the reboot

I don't hate that they killed off Gat, my biggest issue is how un-ceremoniously they did it and how early it was. On my first playthrough I honestly didn't realize he was dead until the funeral scene at the end of the first chapter. He deserved much better than an off screen implied death. Also Shaundi is pretty much a completely different character, I wouldn't mind the change if they actually had some reason to justify it but nope it's pretty much just an entirely different person with the same name. I also completely forgot Angel existed till you mentioned him in this video lmao Kenzie and Oleg are pretty cool tho, no complains about either of them.

I honestly never felt like it was a GTA clone. They had their own formula that saw success with the first 2 games. Damn shame

The first act of the story is honestly pretty damn good. It's just after you Kill Phillip is where it goes all downhill. Also the fact that we never actually saw Gat die it really made me think he was going to show up near the end or something. Seems like a weird way to kill off a major character so I didn't even believe till the end of the game. Also the Killbane ending is so damn good

Personally, I feel like the ending where you kill Killbane was intended to be the final ending. The speech that ties everything together, the epilogue, and the fact that the other ending is literally a joke makes me feel this was the ending they intended to be canon, but a different story team built of the joke ending of SR4

My favorite part from SR2 was hearing my character randomly sing along to the song Down Under. As soon as I heard that I knew that it was going to be the best game in the series. 3 is pretty enjoyable but doesn’t hold a candle to 2

I only played sr3 back in middle school and loved it. I played the 2nd one during these past few months after the backlash of the reboot. As much as I love sr3, it doesn't hold a candle to the 2nd game. The 2nd game feels more complete.

Still baffles me how a developer could go from making one the greatest open world games of all time to sr3

Saints row got bullied into turning cringe if they just ignored all the hate and kept doing them they probably woulda had some good

the third has the most boring city and pedestrians in the game. i prefer saints row 2 map, i mean the mall still blows me away to this day. so many different floors and little areas with water fountains and cars that randomly spawn, i even got a gyro copter to somehow spawn in there but i ended up blowing it up trying to out of the mall.

Even as somebody who really likes all of the saints row games... *looks at SR 2022* almost all of the saints row games i have to agree with most of this. SR3 always felt like it was stitched together following the surviving parts of a story script that was accidentally tossed into a paper shredder.

Always shocked when someone greatly prefers 3 over 2, absolutely boggles my mind

Playing with the various voices, I found nu-Shaundi saying something that I didn't completely hate for once in Stilwater Blues "mission". The line was "are we killing the Syndicate or are we becoming them?". I felt like if that could've gone anywhere instead of being yet another throwaway line, it could've added to the whole theme of "sellouts vs gangsters" the game pretended to have going.

To me, the problem with SR3 is that it couldnt commit to either tone. This halfway point between the seriousness of SR2 and the insanity of SR4 just frucks my nuts.

That song in the character creation does go really hard tho

I agree that it was a downfall from the original saints but nonetheless it was a fun game and I had nice memories. But I wished they kept true to their origin

The pacing of the story was an absolute mess. In Saints Row 1 and 2 each gang had at least three major characters to serve as escalating antagonists for 9 a game. In SR3 they had 5 for the entire Syndicate. Meanwhile you gain five new Saints to fight them. The developers tried to make a game that was nothing but set-piece climaxes, but since there's no buildup everything gets killed off almost as fast as it's introduced. And then instead of adding in any actual escalation in earlier missions they just shoved in mandatory side missions as padding.

As a kid I loved 3 and 4, but once I turned 12 I got my hands on 2 I never could look at the newer ones the same

I like to think that Saints Row and Saints Row 2 Were the Story, And that Saints Row The Third and IV were cheap, lame, and bland Movies... Then Agents of Mayhem being a fan game, and the Reboot being.... Nothing.

It’s definitely not a bad game to me, but it *definitely* was the start of the downfall. I don’t know if it’s just me, but the story felt *insanely* rushed. I thought there’d be one more act before the final one, but it kinda just never happens. Matt just straight up disappears, Shaundi is someone entirely different, and it just felt… weirdly paced. Part of what made 2 so awesome to me was that fact that you *were* the bad guy. There wasn’t even a Grove Street situation where your gang was the most upstanding of the rest, having some level of the morals the others didn’t. No, you were the “best” because you *won.* Your character sold all the same drugs, murdered as many innocent people as he needed to, inflicted just as much chaos and carnage all because he wanted to do it and he wanted to win. As funny as the game could be, there was no denying the Boss in SR2 was a *monster,* and it made the story that much more interesting. There was absolutely nothing redeemable about the Boss besides his loyalty to his friends, and that was it. And that’s how it should’ve remained. A bloodthirsty gangster, a “Magnificiant B*stard” so to speak (thanks RU-vid censorship). Someone who’s undeniably evil but you still can’t help but admire their schemes and plots.

You're not even forced to do the activities in 2. You can just gain points by doing random stuff in the open world

I remember being confused first playing Saints Row 3. After hearing how amazing it was etc, I was like "Wait is this it?"

After saints row 2 the series went downhill

Anyone think saints row 2 was the peak of the series ?👑

finally somebody agrees with me that saints row 3 was the downfall & honestly i think 4 is better than 3 due to the nostalgic missions and characters.

Yeah the series died the moment SR3 released. Been saying it since it released. It’s all downhill from here on out. Guess what series lost its soul and just overall fell apart? You guessed it. Saints row. Sucks to watch this series slowly get its soul leeched away from it.

A worthy successor to your saint's row 2 video. Can't say the same for what sr3 is to sr2. Honestly, Volition had so many opportunities for the reboot, the non-canon sr3 ending would have been perfect as the boss re embraces his violent and ruthless self as he was in sr2, but no, we get piñatas in a Mexican desert and a wingsuit stolen from just cause. Speaking of which, with the success your Saint's Row videos have, if you have played Just Cause, I'd highly suggest you review that franchise too. It's actually quite similar (Jc2 being very nice, jc3 being received worse but still good and jc4 kinda failing). Anyway, nice video bro keep it up 🎉

I feel like as if the trends of late 2011 to 2013 caused a massive decline in quality for games as a whole. SR the third being a prime example, Dead Rising OtR, SoulCal V, Lost Planet 3, DmC, Ninja Gaiden 3 vanilla, Nu Tomb Raider, Thi4f, Bioshock Infinite, etc are other blunders I remember from those years. There was just this massive push to "reinvent" game series and they either got turned into "lol so randumb xd" games or super serious too deep 4u cinematic turds that didn't match the tone at all of previous games. A lot of the series I listed are just out right dead now with only a few barely recovering from the choices made from those years.

Finally had time to watch this, great stuff mate. Hopefully there’s more story breakdowns on other games to come, perfect thing to watch when I’m winding down from work.

One of the biggest problems of Saints Row 3 is the lack of focus it has. Im not even talking about the boring as hell activities, but more so how the gang warfare is spread out. In the two first games you always had a choice between three missions involving one of the rival gangs which created a good self contained mini stories. Granted, in SR3 The Syndicate is supposed to work together so there would be a lack of interaction between the gangs if they stuck to the old formula, but the fact the story of SR3 jumps back and forth 3-4 rival gangs/organizations with no clear focus is definetly killing its pacing. You dont really get to do a whole lot towards any of the gangs, until the game decides its time to take them down, but its never really earned. I think as much as it mightve been a problem for the story of the Syndicate as one giant entity, sticking to the old formula of series of missions for each gang you get to choose and finishing off with a STAG arc wouldve definetly given the game more purpose

Saints row 1 was good, saints row 2 was the best, the rest got worse n worse

A reason for why the killing Killbane ending feels better than the "sellout" ending is because it feels more in line with the first two games sense of consequence the gang life brings with it. Its a bloody buisness where nobody is guarantied to make it out alive which was beautifully shown in the first two games. In the first game, everyone knew the dangers of having Lin go undercover within the Rollers, not because the risk of her betraying the Saints, but because she would be dead for sure if anyone found out she was part of the Saints, but despite the dangers she still went through with it so the Saints could wipe the Rollers from the map, even if it would be at the cost of her life. Likewise the second game really shows that nobody is save, just the fact that Aisha associated with the Saints was enough to paint a target on her in the eyes of the Ronin, with her death being what shows a more human side of Gat with him being willing to let Shogo off the hook because he didnt want to kill him there out of respect for Aisha, showing that even the invincible seeming Johnny Gat is still a vulnrable human being And the Ronin werent the only one to kill one of the Saints during the events of SR2, Carlos was pretty much the reason there Saints were able to reform again by helping the Boss break out of prison and seemed to really look up to the boss and wanting to proof himself to show he deserves to be a lieutenant and not just became one cause he busted the Boss out, and the Boss maybe seeing a bit of himself in Carlos back when he first joined the Saints, with his death hitting the hardest in my opinnion because the Boss had to mercy kill him at the end of Red Asphalt because of his injuries being too severe to help him any other way Being part of a gang means having your head be constantly on the line, and every Saint knows that. They know that anyone of them could get clipped at any time and they still fight for the Saints, but anyone who messes with the Saints will pay for it, which is why going after Killbane (with the context of Gat being dead) feels like what the Boss would have done in the heat of the moment, finally getting revenge for Johnny, his second in command and closest friend by killing the last head of the Syndicate

I atually had more fun with SR4 than with SR3... That's how bad SR3 is...

I like the game, but to me it’s more of a B movie experience than a good story like the previous ones.

I just love the editing and that brofist joke 😂 I agree with the criticism with the order of bosses to deal with. It would have made sense for Matt to be dealt with first since he’s the only one who was spared without having to decide whether to kill him or not, then the Saints become more murderous as they went through the other bosses, somewhat going back to their roots in showing little mercy to them. “You’re Not ready to fight the Syndicate” Bish, the boss killed the leader with giant ass ball wdym 😂💀

Saints Row 3 fails in structuring a menacing threat. Hear me out, what opposition does the Syndicate pose to the Saints? The Syndicate doesn't do anything after mission 2. Granted, Killbane blows up the bridge and the Twins stage an assassination attempt, but that's it. Killbane, Matt Miller, and the Twins sit idly twiddling their thumbs for the rest of the game until their respective gang's death. Matt is the only one who does anything yet he's just a minor hindrance. The Saints have the upper hand until STAG showed up, the Syndicate is a joke.

You know I would be here love your videos bro

you hit the nail on the head, as a long time SR fan I agree with everything you said

I came into the series with SR3 but went back to play SR2. I love both games, but I think it would’ve been differently if I played them in order.

I love when istura istura'd all over this video

Amazing video i wish that RU-vid notification worked for once and let me know if you uploaded this

The edit is fantastic! Love it🤣💀💀

I love this game but nostalgia really does block this one for me but I can see from coming from 1 and 2 why they say this is where the downfall started.

The tiger escort actually works differently in coop, where one of the players had to pet it to keep it calm, I had absolutely hilarious moment with a friend, where he failed and the tiger ate me. Completely different experience. I loved it.

Your Background Music selection is phenomenal, you particularly triggered my nostalgia with The Simpsons Hit & Run Car Selection music. Your selection definitely keeps me engaged.

Fun fact: that canon ending on the film set is one giant reference to Red Faction Guerilla. The line the boss says is the speech given by Alec Mason at the beginning and end of the game. The games take place in the same universe...well, before SR4 anyways, so it's a nice little nod to another series Volition drove into the ground.

it was nice that the SR2 video Istura made, actually made me play SR3 and i found it AMAZING, i felt something i havent felt in a while, like real joy and a sensation of "i want more" but the 4 game is trash... still, its always fun to see istura talking about saints row, be it good or bad... nice video, bro!! love it!

This was the first Saints Row I was introduced to, I saw Gat first time I loved him as a character for the limited time; to see him then go was a major sadge moment, although if "he did die" officially. I dislike the fact its off-screen cause it feels like they did him dirty. And yeah, beating Morning Star first being the leading faction, then being told we have to train to beat the Tech man and Wrestler man felt kinda daft, as u said if it was reverse then yeah it would make sense building up to beat the morning star. I think they tried to fit in Oleg in and couldnt link it to the other factions that well. As he had information on the syndicate regarding to others who could help you against them; as well as them seeming to shift towards Kill Bane being more of a villain than Loren for some reason? Kill Bane being kiiled being suspended is so dumb, even without knowing SR1 or 2 as SR3 is what I came to, we're just like "Yeah lol lets do a lil' trolling to Kill Bane" "Why not just kill him?" was what I thought, coulda dealt with Kill Bane then and there, and then had the story go around STAG similar to how SR2 was with dealing with gangs and then dealing with the big corporation. And its funny how Gat talked about Saints being sellouts and doing the arguably "good moral ending", then we just sellout cause Film make money $$$$$$$$$$ Edit: Forgot to add, beautifully crafted video btw. Look forward to next one.

bro this editing was hilarious, sr3 was simply just ok

2 is leagues beyond 3 but that penthouse shootout with power by Kanye playing is imo the single greatest mission of the franchise, nothing complicated, just a reminder of who you were and who you have no problem being again.

For a decade now, I've been arguing with people about saints row 3 and how much I dislike it. And I'll do it for another decade hahaha Tho I'll give it credit for introducing me to the series

Simply look at 2 and then look at 3. They legit look like completely different games. And then SR4 basically confirmed that

Bro the editing in these videos is crazyyy

Saints row the third is so off story wise that I genuinely enjoyed the 4th game more but the entire original series is still better than the reboot

30:08: That's actually pretty interesting when thinking about what they did in the Saints Row reboot game, during one of Neenah's missions where you have to mess up a dude's car by customizing it in the customization screen. Another immersion breaking segment with a bad joke similar to what's happening here, lol.

Appreciate the free quality content my guy

Istura uploaded Day improved

I’m glad some people acknowledged that this game was the beginning of the end for this series. Where the downfall began. I liked SR4 better because of the nostalgic things they threw in.. but SR3 was my least favorite of the series…. Until the reboot came along. 🤦🏾‍♂️

Saints Row the 3rd is my childhood I remember being so hyped about it when it first got announced they should’ve just stopped with 3 and did the reboot like 1 and 2

Had the twist of the storyline in saints row 3 have been that Dex actually faked his death and used the Syndicate and STAG by proxy or behind the scenes, it would be good enough to realize that not only the saints soften with wealth and fame, and that he waited until the saints forgotten who they really are. Truly that would’ve improved the storyline. Also maybe have someone who played the messenger face of the syndicate of something like that and died the same way Philippe died from the syndicate tower, then the real Philippe Loren would come in and play the real boss of the syndicate and that he kidnaps Johnny Gat or shaundi and kills either of them, maybe it would sense that the saints would decide to stay in Steelport in a revenge campaign to destroy the sects of the Morningstar syndicate.

Great video

I now have a newfound admiration for Killbane's character lol I never really gave him much thought more than "oh, the corny masked wrestler dude". Good video bruh.

Saints Row 3 was a warning to the player base of what was to come we just didn't realize it!!!

Being one of the rare sandboxes with entry fees (the rep tokens in this case) already made it different. Then they became a GTA clone. At least they made the RPGish stuff easier (to find). Before you had to work out which side activity gave what (back when side activities gave perks every couple of levels instead of just some resources and a territory).

I listened to this while playing sr3. Very good video

will you do this for saints row 4? i love your takes.

While I enjoyed The Third, it was an abismal letdown compared to what SR2 had. Missing tons of features and cool details the previous game had all around. On side note, I prefer SRIV than The Third. At least it's crazy feels way more energetic and fun compared to The Third's plain dullness.

finally someone who agrees with me ive been saying this since god damn release 2 was peak

As someone who loves SR, I own all parts except Gat Out of Hell and the latest version, I didn't mind SR the Third. Its one of those games that I would start over just to kill time. That one level in the simulator keeps me from doing so. That particular part almost broke me the first time I played it. The game had its problems, but still it could've been worse.

omg i dident know u made one bout the third (i saw the second video it was very good)

I always thought the 3rd was a especially goofy stopping playing after a few but people loved it not a fan of wacky humor in my crime games personally but glad liked ig they lost their mind with the future titles though also your editing is freaking hilarious

REALLY tempted to rewrite saints row 3's story. I'm sad they couldn't give us more

13:30 absolutely. I feel like this hasn't been talked about much within the community tbh

Isturo is back :)

This is the one game where I actually preferred the "bad" ending. I ain't no sellout! Plus I was annoyed with Shaundi's personality in this game so I didn't care if she died.

For those who want to see what an actual good version of Saints Row the Third would look like, may I recommend the fanfiction Saints Row: The Third (rewrite) By TheHeadInCharge. It contains both seriousness and silliness as well as tackles the theme and idea of the Saints being sellouts and working their way back to their old selves. I highly recommend it.

I was literally working on a video with damn near the same title. I’m glad OG’s will always keep it a bean

The problem with two is the controls haven't aged particularly well. Its pretty hard to play these days. Some many features that are now mandatory not being in are painful now.

It was quite a pleasant suprise coming upon this video because I've always felt SRTT was the weakest entry in the series but could never crack why. And after 100%ing the Reboot and watching this video it gave me more clarity on why I dislike SRTT so much but still like SR2, SR4, and the Reboot. It still irks me how people say the Reboot was the ultimate betrayal yet it was staring them right in the face in 2011. Great video nonetheless! 👍

Yeah I remember when I first saw the reveal for saints row the third and I was young and didn’t really care because I was a fan of the series but when I played I quickly realized damn man this is not that replayable than saints row 1-2 was and that was a killer for me because I loved saints row 2. Best one in this series in my opinion

The tiger escort part had me dying sooo dumb😂

Bro when the ending came that blew my soul as a kid watching them go to space like WTF WE ARE STREET GANGSTERS!!!!! I’m lost on why they didn’t explore Troy and Dex story lines

Back with yet another banger I see! After the heartbreaking and terrible "reboot" of the series came out recently I decided to go back and replay saints row 3 and 4. I definitely appreciate the mindless explosive fun those games still offer but man, they could've been so much more. They could've been great, the ingredients are all there but as you said this is where they started to get lazy in alot of ways as its easy to notice the dip in quality compared to the 1st two games in certain aspects. The story especially. The 3rd has alot of ideas but they simply aren't fleshed out enough to be anything more than surface level. They needed to real take the time to fine tune alot of things. Like the city itself steelport, is just so bland especially compared to Stilwater theres barely anything intresting going on. And don't even get me started on how they basically dropped the Dex storyline from the corporate warfare dlc and how they completely wasted the syndicate. Stag was kinda cool though but even they are lacking development. Anyways great video keep up the fantastic work 👏

This video and the one before it are a most excellent analysis of this game series and I really think you are delivering some amazing reviews stepping away from GTA as your main focus. I'm hyped to see what you produce with other games and other genres in the future. The editing is fun, fast and on point, never slows to let your attention wander and the in depth analysis of the game as a whole is thorough and concise. A GTA youtuber going multigame? I never thought I'd see the day. Good job and keep it up man.

The pissed off British voice was always the best lol

Saints row 1: gangster saints row 2: dallas from payday saints row 3: deadpool saints row 4: the mask "Saints row" reboot: local hobo down the alleyway

Saints Row The Third is great. The reboot is really really bad

this is one of the saints row of all times

I liked this game but after seeing this video, you're kinda right with the whole obligatory side missions, like when this game peaks it peaks high and when it goes down it goes pretty low, and the story well, I didn't played two so I tought that the series always had a crazy tone, and seeing the kind of wasted potential with the story really makes me think that it could have been a lot better, maybe mixing the theme of the saints being sellouts or true gangsters with the ideas that julius had regarding if its better to end the saints in order to stop the bad things in the city by making the saints consider retiring from crime to just be celebrities but making their city safe

Finally someone said it, 1 and 2 were the best in the series!

It's about time someone said it.

Nah, it's my favorite one

Let's be real, Shaundi is literally one of the only ones really wanting revenge for Johnny's "death". Nobody in the crew showed any emotion whatsoever towards his death and that's kinda fucked considering Johnny's status and past within the Saints... so this means Shaundi is superior!

Loved how well you edited such a long video, very entertaining, also very interesting takes, nice.

So.. can we expect video about the last game too? (Just to complete the saga) 👍

As someone who played the game when I was 15, being my first Saint Row game, I found it fun. Seeing this review did made me realize,man..this game could be a Naruto game with so many filler mission.

I uh only played the 4th one. I know, I missed out on a lot. I was also playing a lot of Infamous 1, 2 and Prototype so the allure of another super power game was too good to resist. It was fun, ridiculously, stoopidly awesome over the top fun. Might not be a good idea to ask but, should I feel guilty?

I love SR3. This game is so straightforward and unchallenging you can play it with your brain either turned off or focused on whatever else, like music or a podcast. Perfect game to play when your mind is occupied by whatever.