mhg83

I used to be a big fan of the GTA series (San Andreas is still my favorite) But this gen they made the series too serious and realistic leaving behind a lot of the fun stuff in last gens GTA's had that made them so great.

I started playing Saints Row 2 and it has everything that made GTA fun and some new stuff that for the most part works. The missions are crazy and over the top and the side missions are varied enough to keep from being repetitive. I love the mayhem and Insurance Fraud side activities. I've heard great things about SR3 so I can't wait to get into that after I'm done with SR2. Also have SR4 pre-ordered. I can't wait to see what they do with the franchise next.

tonyc3742

I enjoyed a few of the GTAs I played, but I agree that they got too serious and realistic and just 'dark'. I liked some of the storylines, but SR2 and SR3 were just a whole lot more fun for me.

Edison

I also used to be into the GTA games (Vice City was my favorite), but I really did not like IV at all. I switched over to the Saints Row and loved the first two because they were fun to play and had a sense of humor to them that I enjoyed. That being said I own SR 3, but haven't played it yet so I'm not in a hurry to grab SR 4.

I'm more excited to try GTA V after watching the last trailer that was released. I like the idea of having three different protagonist, and being able to switch between them or having them group for a mission. It's also one of the last games I'm interested in on the $20 Best Buy Gamer Reward list so I've got it preordered at BB.

nickdawgy

Saints Row has gotten way too ridiculous.

mattysemo247

I've only played Saints Row 1 & 2, but have played and finished GTA4 and both DLC packs. To me, GTA is a bore compared to Saints Row now. Enough that I canceled my preorder for GTA5 and instead decided to finish up SR2 and begin SR3. I get it that SR is wacky and sometimes broken sandbox game, but at least you're having fun with everything you can do in their world.

wlj

I would say Saints Row probably. I have only played 1 and 2, but they were alot of fun. They are certainly over the top, but I like it. I also really like the character customization. I like making my own character look the way I want. I didn't like being the idiot russian guy in GTA4. I just got SR3 in the humble bundle so I am looking forward to it when I can ever get around to it. I loved San Andreas and GTA3, but I didn't care much for Vice City. I despised GTA4. The driving mechanics were FUBAR and it was so difficult for me to do any aggressive driving so I ebayed it rather quickly. Like I said earlier, I hated the character in it as well

chess

GTA is obviously the innovator here, and Vice City is still the best game in either franchise...but I voted for Saints Row. It's currently a much tighter package, is more fun, has a better sense of humor and most importantly has FAR better shooting and driving controls.

starseed1981

GTA are the better games but I still prefer the over the top insanity of SR.

Maxflier

Have to go with GTA.
I played Saints Row (the first one) but the controls ruined it for me. You had to constantly control the camera with the thumbstick to keep it behind your character instead of it being locked that way like in GTA.
I do prefer a more serious tone in my crime games, too.

chuckd21

Have you played GTA4? The camera isn't locked to a damn thing.

chuckd21

If we were just talking about open world-ish games of the GTA ilk this generation, my order of preference would be:

Saints Row 3 > Saints Row 2 > Sleeping Dogs > GTA 4

Decker

I personally hated GTA IV and its protagonist. Still, as a franchise, it's easily GTA over SR. GTA really revolutionized gaming in the 21st century. SR is a funny and fun spoof, but it's hardly revolutionary (and I'm getting a little irritated with the over-the-top parise it's been garnering on this site lately. SR3 did nothing for me as it was so over-the-top to the point of being meaningless as a game.

It's sort of like comparing 2001 A Space Odyssey to Spaceballs. You might enjoy Spaceballs more, it might be more fun to revisit, but it's certainly aiming at a lower target.

As far as open-world mindless destruction games goes, I preferred Just Cause 2 to any other game this generation, with Crackdown as my #2 choice, then Mercenaries 2, then SR2, then GTA IV and SR3.

chuckd21

If you enjoy Spaceballs more and it's more fun to revisit, then you like Spaceballs more than 2001.

Decker

You're right. In the context of this question, absolutely.
Which is better is another question entirely.

Nausicaa

Wow, all the hate for GTA in this thread is shocking to me.

GTA is better than Saints Row in every conceivable way, and IMO this isn't even up for debate. SR had some great ideas in the original game, and I really enjoyed a lot of the side missions (robberies, etc.) and customization options, but it was still an imitation of GTA. The game world wasn't nearly as dynamic and interesting, the story and writing weren't as clever, and the humor was overly juvenile. Unfortunately those negatives have only gotten worse with subsequent titles. I really do not enjoy the absurd, over the top gameplay, and humor fit for middle school passing period.

I guess I take a different approach to the series than others here, in that I want GTA to get more realistic, and was very pleased the direction GTAIV went over previous titles, even if BoGT was what the game should have originally been. The level of detail and authenticity in the game world is amazing, and unmatched among open world games to this day (except for maybe, Assassin's Creed 2). I loved the controls, on foot and in vehicles. I loved the realistic physics and weight your character and the cars displayed - it took practice and skill and isn't just standard arcade controls like SR.

I still fire up GTA IV every once and a while to have fun playing around in the game world, SR titles grow stale and I never play them again (although I admit I never played 3).

GTA V looks outstanding and seems to keep the best elements of GTA IV while adding on some new features and ideas from previous games that were requested but didn't make it into IV. I can't imagine anyone looking forward to SR IV more than GTA V.

Raul3

I have never been a big fan of the GTA series but I tried GTA IV, finished the game, got most of the achievements, and really liked it. I got some of the DLC but never played it.

I heard so many good things of SR, comparing it to GTA, that I got SR2 when it was released. Unfortunately it wasn't my kind of game. It was a chore, for me, to complete the tasks. I wasn't having fun, so I left the game unfinished at 10 hrs or so.

chuckd21

Guru Askew

This is like the video game equivilent of The Simpsons vs. Family Guy. Even though the right one is winning it still sickens you to see how many people are voting for the other.

dsa_shea

v > iv

mugwump

GTA: Vice City is the game that got me back into consoles and GTA: San Andreas is probably my most played game ever which is why I'm geeked for V. That being said I played through IV but never really enjoyed it from a sandbox angle and got a lot more random fun from Saint's Row 2. Still, GTA is my winner by a mile.

Decker

Hang on, let me check with my Roman math teacher.......


Yup, you're right.

Decker

It's more a testament to how many people were turned off by GTA IV than anything. I hope Rockstar took all the criticism to heart and made V a better, "funner", more lighthearted, more enjoyable game. It certainly looks like they have

Nausicaa

I can agree with that complaint about GTA IV, that Niko's story wasn't that great and it was kind of dark and the missions weren't very fun. I think Ballad of Gay Tony is what the game should have been from the start, and that tone will be more in line with what we get in GTA V.

Rob V

Both games have their merits but comparing SR to GTA is kinda like comparing RBI Baseball to The Show. One is all about over the top fun and the other is almost too in depth for its own good.

atrium

Every GTA of the PS2 gen is better than the best Saints Row game. IMO one misstep doesn't make the series worse than SR, and GTA III was the most innovative game of the last 15 years IMO.