Saints Row Reboot puts customization back in the spotlight
Saints Row is back with a cavalcade of intricate customization options that will be familiar to longtime fans and a welcome return to form for the gaming industry that often restricts character customization. Free speech has been monetized so heavily that it’s refreshing to see a game give the player choice back with no strings attached. Restart Saints Row Initially, fans were worried about the series losing personality, but the latest customization trailer shows just how great Third Street this new game will be.
Customization naturally covers the appearance of the player character, but goes way beyond that with weapon, vehicle, and home customization this time around. Players are free to create their character however they want from the start and can unlock even more customization options organically as they progress through the game and accumulate more cash to spend in stores. The sheer scale of it all is a long-awaited feature for fans of the franchise.
This game is a full-fledged reboot of the series, with many fan-favorite features from previous entries making a return. Layered clothes are back from the beloved Saints Row 2 after being absent in Saints Row: The Third and Saints Row IV. This allows for an extra level of detail when creating the right look for The Boss, where players can choose specific T-shirts to wear under any jacket, or specific underwear under any pants. Another returning customization feature from Saints Row 2 is customizable nativity scenes to further customize the gang headquarters.
Not only does the reboot’s level of customization go back to its roots, but it’s also reminiscent of how older games handled customization. Character customization was not as abundant during the PS3/360 console generation as it is today, but the customization options were freer as they were designed solely around player expression. The majority of customization options were available from the start of the game and if they weren’t, they were usually simple to unlock through in-game currency or by completing missions.
Even though character customization has grown in popularity today, it has only remained to extract real money from fans’ wallets. What was once easy to unlock only through in-game means is now locked behind huge amounts of grinding to trick players into buying it with real money instead. The business model turned beloved customization features into money grabbing schemes for player expression to have a price.
The developers go one step further and lock specific customization items behind grind-inducing challenges that are only available for a limited time. Even things as simple as different clothing colors will be locked for players at first. Choice is removed when players are forced to engage in games in undesirable ways just to look the way they want.
If this version of character customization is mainly reserved for online games, unlike Saints Row, which is a single-player focused open-world game, single-player games always find ways to minimize customization in the same way. Loot collecting has become a popular trend in modern game design, and clothing now comes with stat boosts sewn into the seams. It might look nice to get certain buffs based on the clothes worn, but this design hurts a player’s freedom of expression as their favorite look might not be worth wearing when the stats attached to them don’t fit their style of play. Player choice should be a liberating experience rather than a restrictive mode versus function experience.
Saints Row will challenge modern trends and separate customization from gameplay so neither can get in the way. Like its predecessors, Saints Row wants to give players plenty of options without overwhelming them. If creativity isn’t their forte, players can always choose pre-made templates instead of diving into the details. Freedom is the important part of customization that is lost on many games, but Saints Row never forget.
Longtime fans of the series have plenty to be excited about creating their own Custom Boss. Saints Row focusing on cosmetics purely for aesthetic reasons is an old-school idea. This makes the game stand out from modern games.
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