Watch out for spoilers: some fans have already got their hands on Saints Row. Retailers appear to have sent copies of the Saints Row reboot out early, with footage appearing online, and physical copies found on store shelves. Due to this early release, players are already sharing their first impressions - and it's pretty decent news so far. Those who have been able to download and play the game already have described it as fun, huge, and faithful to its predecessors, particularly Saints Row 3 and 4. The open world has received some criticism for being empty, however, with fans hoping that more is added in a day one patch.Reddit user Effective_Ad_4276 is one of the fans who managed to grab the game early, and has since been playing it on PS4. They've enjoyed what they've seen so far, praising the new characters and missions, although admitting that the latter can get a tad repetitive. They compared it favourably to Saints Row 3 in terms of tone.
User sherm0613 also grabbed the game early, and answered another fan's question about what it's like so far. "The open world is diverse and lively… which is something I wanted back that SR 3 didn’t have", sherm0613 says. "The combat is tight, the finishing moves are fun to watch play out [...] Gangs are relentless, you have to make use of them to survive. And the driving is great."
Of course, one of the most important aspects of any Saints Row game is the playlist. Early players were quick to show off all of the newly available songs, but unfortunately, the consensus is that it's pretty weak. Some fans are particularly disappointed that the tracklist isn't as strong as what we got in Saints Row 2.
On top of this, some people are uploading playthroughs already. It goes without saying, but be careful watching them if you want to avoid spoilers, but they're a pretty good way of deciding whether or not the game is for you.
We'll have to wait until Saints Row officially launches to get a better idea of how the reboot holds up, but so far, it's looking fairly promising. It's set to release next week, August 23, and will be available on PlayStation, Xbox and PC.