Photo courtesy of Deep Silver.Damion Julien-Rohman: PC Player
A kidnapped boss, a trip into hell and a surprisingly exciting musical number: These elements set up the framework for "Saint’s Row: Gat out of Hell." This new entry in the long-running Saint’s Row series that gives fans the first chance to play as one of the games’ major mainstays. It works very well for such a short game if you can forgive the repetition.
All of the repetition.
As a standalone expansion to "Saint’s Row IV," Gat out of Hell looks and plays about the same as its counterpart. It’s an open-world sandbox with the ability to cause destruction at the drop of a hat. What is new are demonic powers, which play similarly to the superpowers of the last game. The blast and stomp powers return with new elements, but you can now toss explosive imps or generate a cold flame for close quarter damage.
Another addition to the player's demonic arsenal is flying. While tricky to learn, it is a blast afterwards and is bolstered by the return of the super sprint. The weapons have also received a hellish makeover, with stave launchers and crossbows adding to the basic pistols and shotguns. My personal favorite, besides a submachine gun that shoots locusts, is a gatling-gun wielding armchair representing sloth of the seven deadly sins.
The game’s trademark lack of self-awareness is still present, with some decent comedic dialogue and quips to break up the forgettable music. Hell looks about as dismal and dead as you’d believe — dark clouds, lava and brimstone — but it is an entertaining playground to explore, if you can forgive the lack of color.
Additionally, I was disappointed to see the clusters come back. I know this expansion is a budget title so many elements were recycled from past games, but I couldn’t help but groan at the mere mention of the items needed to upgrade your powers and abilities.
"Saint’s Row: Gat out of Hell" is a fun and consistent entry into the series, and should please fans with the ability to play as Gat, despite its repetitions. It’s a short game; I clocked in at around four hours to finish the main story. The amount of tasks to do and find should extend that time into the double digits if you’re willing to dig deep. Whether you're a fan of the series or a newcomer, it might be safe to wait for a sale on this one.
Nick Latona: PlayStation 4 Player
Gat Out of Hell is an excellent idea on paper. Damn a couple zany characters from the infamous "Saint’s Row" to hell and let them unleash an barrage of violence and disarray on the armies of Satan himself. It’s a great concept that should easily succeed with a little developmental elbow grease. I have to wonder to myself, after trudging through lakes of lava and dilapidated cityscapes for five hours, maybe some concepts are better left on the drawing board.
OK, I’ll admit it, I haven’t actually played a Saint’s Row game since its second outing. This should help Gat Out of Hell’s case, because I have little to compare it to within the series. Unfortunately, reality tells an entirely different tale.
At its core, the expansion barely justifies the $19.99 price tag on the PlayStation 4. The missions themselves are little more than playlists of content most open world games categorize as side outings. A great deal of time is spent trying to rack up a high score by destroying junked vehicles and soulless pedestrians or racing through checkpoints with a stopwatch attached for added tension. There’s little resembling fleshed-out boss encounters or memorable set piece objectives leaving the whole ordeal to feel tacked on.
Saint’s Row has always been known to include a comedic edge not unlike that of "South Park’s." With the exception of an out-of-the-blue musical number, little about Gat Out of Hell mustered more than a sigh out of me, let alone a chuckle. Even the characters fall flat, which is a shame because there is just so much potential behind the nightclub operating techno-king version of William Shakespeare. Not a single person is given enough screen time or dialogue to warrant their existence.
If only hell itself would serve as a better backdrop for slaying the hoards of husks and demons, this game could have at least looked appealing. There’s a certain flavorless vibe peppered over the whole ordeal and nothing stands out. Visually, Gat Out of Hell maintains a hideously drab gray color scheme and has dated textures throughout.
The paper thin storyline barely intrigues by itself, but the storybook and narrator combination that drives it forward is a neat idea that works well given the context. It's too bad the final boss fight and five ending choices are dressed with anticlimactic sterilization and prematurity.
What you have here is a heaping pile of garbage masked by the smell of aerosol air freshener. Gat out of Hell really could have been something special. Instead we get a mechanically sound, but creatively void affair that will leave even the most prolific open-world video game enthusiasts, like myself, with a bittersweet aftertaste.
Reach the reporters at Damion.Julien-Rohman@asu.edu or nlatona@asu.edu or follow @legendpenguin or @Bigtonemeaty on Twitter.
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