Well its $25 now... and that makes this one ALMOST worth it!
The most striking thing about SR2 is the customization. And in that respect, this game is very satisfying. The driving controls are less realistic than GTA IV, but I personally found them to a bit too arcade-like. Which isn't surprising, because if you took Grand Theft Auto and made it into an arcade game, it would probably play a lot like Saints Row 2.
Everything is so genuinely over the top here, the violence loses its appeal because you don't have to do much to create chaos in this game. And while I do have to give a game credit for starting out with the gas pedal pressed down, so to speak, there's just such a lack of pacing, such a lack of character, such... Lack of polish and attention to detail. Even the radio stations fail to live up to their job of entertainment, largely because of the small number of songs and the lack of any engaging DJs.
The combat stinks. The gunplay is weak, it simply feels like something from 1995. Its loose, there is no cover system, theres no real challenge because of your quickly regenerating healthpool thats 3-4 times larger than it should be.. I suppose what I'm saying is that even though this game is clearly not trying to be GTA on every count, its certainly competing for the same audience and does a fairly poor job of providing anything compelling. At $25 its not a ripoff but it hardly feels like a value.