Saints Row Hands-On

Reps from Volition were on hand at THQ's press event today to show off an updated version of Saints Row. The upcoming third-person action game for the Xbox 360 has come quite a way since we got our exclusive look at it earlier this year. Though the version on display didn't stray too far from what's been shown previously in terms of content, we managed to get a look at some new areas and get our hands on the game for a bit.

Like the E3 version of the urban action game, this demo let us check out a district in the massive city being crafted for the adventure and get a brief taste of the assorted mechanics you'll use. We were able to walk around, jack cars, visit a shop, and bust caps into fools. The biggest point to note was that the game was running on final Xbox 360 hardware. Despite the game's unfinished state and a few missing effects, we finally got a proper sense of how it's going to run on the 360. The most striking aspect to the visuals was the 720p support, which has yet to be properly captured in screens and video for the promising game. To see the game purring along on an HD monitor is quite a sight. Though the Volition reps were obsessing over what was missing, the game still had a respectable amount of visual polish thanks to high-res textures and a striking sense of scale that were complemented by an impressive draw distance. The lighting still wasn't where the team wants it to be, although a demo of the day and night cycle showed that it's certainly headed in a positive direction. Soft shadows and antialiasing were also lacking, but there was still plenty to appreciate on the visual front.

Aside from the visual flair on display, we got an update on the various features that are being locked down. The game will feature 80 basic vehicles that each feature unique handling. However, you'll see hundreds of different cars thanks to a bevy of variants that provide all manner of different looks for the vehicles. You'll even be able to trick out your wheels to suit your tastes and have a sweet custom ride that includes little touches, like working spinners on your rims. An in-game MP3 player feature has been expanded to let you import tunes from any external device, such as an iPod, and use them as part of the game's soundtrack, in addition to letting you use tunes you buy in the game to flesh out the music you'll be listening to. As far as the radio stations in the game go, you can expect 10 music stations that will feature more than 100 music tracks and two talk-radio stations. Another cool bit about the game's audio is the use of celebrity talent to spice things up. The game's voice cast is set to include a number of notable folks, such as Michael Clark Duncan, Tia Carrere, Daniel Dae Kim, David Carradine, Michael Rappaport, Milla Kunis, Keith David, and Freddy Rodríguez.

One element that was still coming together is the customization feature. While we weren't able to see the most recent iteration of the entire character creation system, we did get a look at what you can modify in the game's clothing shop. Besides the expected gear, such as shirts, jackets, pants, and the like, the Volition gang has gone the extra mile and included an underwear option to ensure that you have power over what kind of drawers people will be seeing.

We also got a look at the homie mechanic--which lets you ring up one of six characters you'll encounter in the adventure and gain that person as a crew member--to see how it's being refined. In our demo we saw a feisty woman named Lin called over to help bust some caps in people. Though the demo showed Lin taking a passenger-side position and basically supporting the main character by targeting whatever he shot at to back him up, the team is aiming to tweak the mechanic to give you the option of having the AI-controlled homie drive while you focus on shooting from the passenger side.

The last part of our demo gave us a look at a never-before-seen downtown area that had a San Francisco feel to it, with towering buildings. It gave us the chance to inspect some of the non-player characters in the game. We got an idea of the level of quality to expect from the pedestrians and cars, although Volition reps stated that both would improve some by the time the game is released. The pedestrians also showed the feedback mechanic that will find them reacting to your character by verbally commenting on his appearance. Besides the pedestrians, we got a look at some of the NPCs and the detailed facial expressions they'll have. You'll find a respectable number of character archetypes that can be modified to offer dramatic variations that bear little resemblance to the original models.

Once the demo was over we had the chance to try out the game ourselves. The on-foot mechanics handled like a third-person action game. There wasn't much in the way of surprises there. However, the car mechanics did yield some nice touches. Driving, aiming, and shooting are a multitasking challenge to be sure, although the mechanic is still in the process of being tweaked. The nice touch to the driving is the camera, which did an impressive job of automatically adjusting as we drove. Trusting the camera to do this took some time, and we had our thumbs on the right analog stick out of habit. Based on this updated look, Saints Row appears to be on point to follow through on the promise we saw a few months ago. Though the game makes use of a tried-and-true formula, Volition is playing with conventions and appears to be giving the 360 a strong game in its fledgling lineup. Look for more on Saints Row this October when we bring you more information on the game from Microsoft's X05 press event in Amsterdam.