I finished this at 78%, great game. I'll try and finish Dead Space next and concentrate on Fable II and Fallout 3.

Does anyone know where the Heron Hotel is? I am looking for a hitman target that is supposed to be there, but I have spent 20 mins looking and can't find it. It says it is in the Marina district.

You and me both man.

I think it's on the same road as Poseidan's Palace. You have to enter the hotel from the side. Look for a statue of a golden heron. I know that doesn't sound like much help, but I was in the same predicament but that's how I found it. There's no sign at least not visible from the road. Look for a side entrance and then it's cake.

I just beat this tonight. The cinematics were amazing. The missions were tons of fun and pretty fair. Overall this lived up to my own hype and it's such a damn shame that this game won't sell nearly as many copies as GTA IV when it's better in every single way.

I was walking around looking for a Sign, and a front entrance, so this info should help. I don't like that the crosshair icon doesn't show up untill you get into certain buildings.
I think I am having more fun playing this than GTA4. I enjoyed both, but this is more fun to me. I like the fact there are not as many chase missions also, I always hate those.

The checkpoint system helped alot, and I felt like I liked these characters more then the GTA IV characters.

GTA IV had some better things, but the music on this game and the fun factor kills GTA IV.

I found the Heron today. The gold Heron was inside the lobby, so It is very hard to find if you don't know what you are looking for. It is the first building to the NW of the casino, it is shaped like a U on the map and I found an entrance on the east side.

This game is definitely fun, but NO WAY is it 'better in every single way'.

There are a few things that irk me with Saints Row 2...the driving isn't realistic...the people are like rubber (when you fall from a short distance and your character doesn't even ragdoll...it's like he's made of rubberbands)...many, many things that are complete ripoffs of GTA.

It's a very fun game, but it's definitely not better than GTA.

= J

I'm having a lot more fun with it than I did GTA though, so that speaks volumes to me about what's a better game. Naturally, this is all in my opinion though.

A lot of ways, yes - I'll even concede to most ways, depending on what someone wants out of a game. But "every single" way? C'mon dude, you know better than that.

Saints Row 2 is definitely more fun then GTA IV, but it's not the better game. Some things I can remember (I haven't played it in months) that GTA IV has that Saints Row 2 doesn't are:

Taxis to your destination. The instant warp there is great.

Being able to look around in the Taxi and ask the driver to change the station (which is funniest with Roman's drivers). Also, getting a wanted level and have the cops chase you while your driver tries his hardest to escape is a blast.

The TV shows, and comedy clubs.

I think the driving is better. I had no problems with the driving in Saints Row 2, but it feels better in GTA IV for some reason.

The internet feature.

Drunk driving is great. Try calling for a taxi while shit-faced. "HEY YELLOW CAR!!"

Dating is great, too. The reactions Niko has to the women are classic.

Better graphics and sound, but this isn't a big deal. The future DLC is a bonus, too.

Now the stuff that Saints Row 2 has that I wish GTA IV had:

Planes.

Mission checkpoints.

More activites. Saints Row 2 is the most fun because of these.

Customization options.

Better music.

Parachutes.

Throwing people.

Human shields.

I agree with most of your points nickdawgy... but I hated drunk driving. It made me nauseus.

Here's hoping that SR2 also gets some dlc love. They could easily expand with a new rival gang.

PS- the Brotherhood missions are fantastic. How the two gangs go back and forth at each other is great. I just completed the mission with the fireworks and Merrill (sp?) driving the monster truck

I am LOVING this game so far. Got a little bored with GTA4 and SR2 rocks. I love the music and mission checkpoints, but as has been said I miss the taxis. I don't mess around with it a lot, but I definitely liked making my own character to begin with. Very cool.

I'm also glad SR2 is a little more generous with the wanted level, i.e you have to do a bit more damage before the cops are on you. GREAT game overall, and I'm liking it much better than SR1.

It's much easier to evade the cops in SR2 and you can even pull into the "Forgive & Forget" garages with a cop car
I always avoided making too much of a ruckus in GTA because getting away from the cops was a chore.

I dig the Mayhem missions. Blowing massive amounts of shit up with a rocket launcher never gets old.

Re: homies/gang members/AI teammates: it's great to have backup, especially in Pushbacks. I also like having the ability to bring them back to life. It's nice not to fail a mission just because a mission critical NPC got him or herself killed... which happened all the time in GTA4. But the AI is horrible at times. Sometimes they get stuck because they refuse to step up/jump over a curb, yet they have no problem hurdling a fence. And heaven forbid one of your homies actually picks up a rocket launcher... he'll shoot that thing around wrecklessly like its a pistol.

I agree with you on both parts, the animation when the character falls down. The bugs the crap out of me. The driving isn't realistic, like most things in this game.

That's part of the reason why I love it so much. GTA IV, which I thoroughly enjoyed, tried to be too realistic. They tried to make a straight-on 3rd person game with cinematics rather than a true sandbox game with tons of different options. If I had known this, maybe I would've enjoyed it more. And despite that, the cinematics and missions were much more fun in Saints Row 2. I loved the bank robbery mission in GTA IV, the only mission, I can remember, but it was also done in Vice City. I loved going on dates and picking up hookers, you can't do that in Saint's Row 2. But the good in Saint's Row 2 far outweighs the bad.

Human shields was something GTA IV should've thought up. The one bank hostage mission was so great and innovative and more importantly, fun. Oh, and little thing I always thought they should have had since Vice City, riding a motorcycle while cutting people up with a katana. I had always though that would be cool, even though SR2 isn't quite as bloody as Vice City or San Andreas.

When I completed GTA IV, I was relieved that it was finally over. I had pretty much the opposite reaction with SR2, and savored the last few missions.

Perhaps Saint's Row 2 isn't better than GTA IV in every way. However, since so many critics kissed Rockstar's ass, I feel like needing to defend Saint's Row 2, a truly superior game.

So, who's in for multiplayer?

Good point, but I think the cops chase you easier on some things. Like if you crash into a stop sign or hit another car, the cops will give chase. In GTA IV, they don't.

Two very good points. So annoying when you fail in GTA IV because of someone else.

I still have to finish GTA IV, was the ending any good? I think I had just completed the bank robbery mission when I stopped playing in June or so

I'll play multiplayer sometime to get some achievements. Same for Fable II. My GT is babycow93.

I noticed that you can do the Taxi warp in SR2 today. You have to call the cab company and the car they send has the option to get in as a passenger.

That's not a warp, is it? They just drive you there I am assuming.

No, it's a warp. You pick where you want to go then the screen fades and you appear at the location. The thing is, you can only do it once a day and you can't flag down a taxi either.

Once per day? That stinks, what was the point of limiting it to once per day. Sometimes I don't feel like driving from one side of the map to the other.

Anyone know how to perform a "mugging" in his game? Is it an actual activity you need to initiate or can you just walk up to someone and pop them in the face and take their cash once they're dead?

Go into 'aim mode' (click on right stick on 360) and hold the aim cursor on the person's body. Most of them put their hands up and look scared. Keep holding it on them for a few seconds and they throw down their cash and run away. Some of the in-game characters will just run or ignore you, though. And antagonistic characters (rival gangs, cops) will attack you.