The Saints Row reboot was originally supposed to focus on Johnny Gat and other classic characters from the franchise.
The Saints Row series is one of the most beloved open-world franchises, but it has fallen on hard times in recent years. Saints Row 4 released in 2013, a month before Grand Theft Auto V, and completely redefined open world gaming for years to come. Volition decided to move on to other projects, and the Saints Row series was put on hold for over a decade. The developers decided to reboot the series as soon as they realized that in the last game they went to hell, space and introduced superpowers into the series.
Unfortunately, the reboot was not well received. Saints Row has been criticized by fans and critics alike for its unconvincing story, annoying characters, and dated gameplay. Many noted that moving away from the original Saints was a mistake, as characters like Johnny Gat were incredibly beloved and had a significant impact on the series. Unfortunately, Saints Row didn’t catch on, and Volition folded this summer.
The fate of the Saints Row series remains a mystery, but it looks like things could have turned out differently. YouTuber mrsaintsgodzilla21 made a video claiming that a “good portion” of the reboot’s development was going into creating a new story with Johnny Gat, Dex, Shaundi, Pierce and others. Volition has set a “20/80” rule where the game will be 20% like Saints Row: The Third and 80% like Saints Row 2, allowing for some moments of pure mayhem while balancing it with the down-to-earth gangster gameplay we’ve come to love fans of the second game. Unfortunately, as a result of the actions of higher-ups at Volition and the teams at publisher Deep Silver, there were supposedly development issues that could have derailed what would have been a real treat for fans.
The video goes on to say that when Volition was recently acquired by Gearbox, it fixed many of these internal issues and set the studio up for future success. Perhaps in the future Saints Row will live under the leadership of another developer, but, unfortunately, not Volition. It’s also difficult to say whether these iconic characters will return to the game.
