Saints Row: 10 things you need to know to bring your criminal empire to life

Saints Row

Saints Row landed in stores a few days ago, ending a wait that had been going on for almost nine years now. However, this is not a direct successor to Saints Row 4, but rather a reboot of the series, aimed at rewriting the origins of the Volition saga while remaining faithful to its characteristic traits: chaos, rivers of bullets, explosions at will, all seasoned. gives you a good dose of madness and eccentricity.

Below we will take you on an accelerated tour of the opportunities offered by Santo Ileso with 10 things toa> know about Saints Row and that could help you take off your criminal career in the early stages of the game.

Customization without limits

The Saints Row editor offers thousands of options, even if you want to create a monster of rare ugliness Customizing your criminal avatar is always was one of the cornerstones of the series and also plays a leading role in Saints Row. Before even starting your illegal activities in Santo Ileso you will be asked to create the "Boss", or the protagonist of the game, through one of the most complete editors ever seen in a video game and with thousands of options available. There is no shortage of the most classic ones, such as choice of sex, build, skin color, hairstyle and facial features, to other more particular ones such as teeth, prosthetic limbs, tattoos, stickers for the censorship of the genitals and so on and so forth. put. There is also a huge selection of dresses and costumes to choose from, some even quite extravagant.

In short, there is everything you need to make the avatar of your dreams or real masterpieces of ugliness, if you prefer. Do you want a tough guy, muscular and full of scars and tattoos? You will be satisfied. Do you prefer to play the role of a plump, hairy character with little sense of modesty? No problem. Do you want to play Count Dracula or a Troll for some strange reason? Also in this case it can be done. You can test the rich Saints Row editor yourself and create your own "Boss" before you even buy the game, thanks to the free Boss Factory demo available on PlayStation Store, Xbox Store and Epic Games Store. Once you have created your avatar you can transfer it to the full game. You can also share your creations with the community or import those of other players.

Duty first, then pleasure

Saints Row offers many side activities, but don't forget the main missions Let's face it, Saints Row is the perfect game for those who want to try their hand at the noble art of "juggling" by sowing panic in the streets and extending their criminal record for no apparent reason. Obviously we do not advise against this approach, far from it, but we suggest that you fulfill your criminal obligations first by advancing in the campaign and completing the main missions as soon as possible.

The story quests in fact bestow large amounts of experience points to upgrade the character, money, unlock weapons and grant access to new side activities and resources. Not only will this increase your chances of survival but will also inflate your bank account, thereby dramatically increasing your options.

Fast travel

Saints Row, just in case you're asking, no you can't use fast travel when you have the police on your back Saints Row offers many different means of getting around racing cars, wingsuits, hoverboards and helicopters. However, especially in the initial stages, moving from one point to another in Santo Ileso takes a long time. And this is where Fast Travels come into play, thanks to which you will reach a point on the map in an instant. The advice, therefore, is to take some time to unlock them all as soon as possible, in order to facilitate movement right away.

To unlock the fast travel points you will have to photograph signs, statues and other elements specific scattered in the game world. To locate them, just travel to Santo Ileso until you see a yellow diamond-shaped icon with an image of a train on it. Opening the map and moving the cursor over these symbols you will be shown which subject you need to immortalize. Once you arrive at the place, you just need to activate the camera and take a photo of the lens, trying to position yourself at the right distance and making sure that nothing obstructs the view. Once you've done that, you've unlocked that fast travel point.

Weapons at will

Saints Row offers tons of options for customizing your favorite weapons In Saints Row, you shoot. It shoots a lot. And therefore it is important to always have a respectable paraphernalia at your disposal if you want to become the undisputed masters of Santo Ileso. You can buy new guns at Friendly Fire gun shops and then modify them to your liking by investing the money you have accumulated with your illegal activities. We advise you to do it as soon as possible.

The modifications not only allow you to change their appearance (after all, the eye wants its part too), but also to increase the damage inflicted, the capacity of the magazine , accuracy and so on, facilitating and not just the firefights. Each weapon also has a unique special ability, which you will unlock by completing a mini-challenge, which differs depending on the weapon. Some require you to kill a certain number of enemies, others require multiple eliminations. As you advance in the game the upgrades will get more and more expensive, but so too will the difficulty of the missions, so this is definitely a good investment.

Skills and Benefits

Saints Row In Saints Row you can upgrade your "Boss" through a progression and customization system based on Skills and Advantages. The former include special moves, such as placing proximity mines and delivering explosive punches, and passive bonuses, such as permanent health upgrades. You have four slots for special moves, while the effects of passive abilities are activated automatically. The Advantages, on the other hand, are passive bonuses, such as an increase in damage by attacking enemies from behind or ammunition collected, in short, effects that will come in handy in combat. They are divided into three different branches according to their usefulness (minor, major and elite), with five slots available to assign the ones you prefer.

Keep in mind that the Skills are unlocked simply by leveling up, while the Benefits only by completing all the objectives of the challenges listed in the appropriate section of the smartphone, so we advise you from time to time to take the time to try your hand at these secondary activities to have access as soon as possible to a large number of beneficial effects.

Pimp My Ride

Saints Row, every self-respecting criminal must drive a customized vehicle In Saints Row nothing prevents you, apart from law enforcement, from stealing cars from the honest citizens of Santo Ileso, but it is certainly better to have personal racing cars, modify them to your liking and have them delivered comfortably at any time and wherever we want.

If traveling through the streets of Santo Ileso you will come across a racing car that you particularly like, you can steal it and keep it in the garage, which will come in handy for example in those missions where having a fast car can make a difference. Furthermore, as you progress through the game, you will gain access to Jim Rob's Garage: by completing the missions related to this criminal activity, you will unlock the option to have one of your vehicles delivered to any point on the map simply by using your smartphone. As mentioned previously, you will also be able to modify practically every element of your cars at will, from painting to the rims, passing through the shape of the body or even add modifications such as the Nos and a cable to hook other cars. In addition, the vehicles also have a unique special ability, such as ejection seats and jumping, which you can unlock by completing small challenges, different depending on the model.

Online co-op: two players, the Double the fun

Saints Row lets you wreak havoc in Santo Ileso with a friend In case you're looking for an accomplice to your misdeeds, you'll be happy to hear that Saints Row includes a drop-in two-person co-op mode / drop-out, i.e. with a second player who can enter and exit the game at any time. You don't have to play the entire campaign with a partner, be it a friend or another player assigned by machmaking, with the possibility of alternating singleplayer and multiplayer sessions. Through the settings you can choose whether to allow anyone to enter at any time thanks to matchmaking or limit entry only to friends, with or without an invitation. Once the session is complete, all progress will be retained by both players.

This is an interesting alternative to liven up a gaming session. After all, double the number of players also means double the chaos and fun. Keep in mind that Saints Row supports cross-gen multiplayer, but not cross-play between different platforms, so for example a PS5 owner can play alongside PS4 players, but not Xbox and PC players.

Criminal Quests

Saints Row A key aspect of Saints Row to expand your empire and bank account is Criminal Quests. This component allows players to start various apparently legal businesses and then exploit them for decidedly unclean, but very profitable activities. With the Shady Oaks Clinic, for example, you will engage in insurance fraud by pretending accidents and injuries, while the Bright Future company is the ideal cover for disposing of hazardous waste illegally in unauthorized places.

Some criminal enterprises they also unlock new missions, weapons, and even means of transportation. In this sense, it is worth investing $ 100,000 to buy "Eurekabator!" and thus obtain the hoverboard. Buying a new business requires large amounts of money but we assure you that it is money well spent: the assets in your possession passively generate income and it will not take long before you fully pay back your investments.

Smartphone

Saints Row, if you find yourself in a similar situation, it might be a good idea to call for backup with your smartphone Man's best friend is the smartphone, at least in Saints Row. The apps on the device in fact guarantee access to a myriad of different functions, such as accessing the map and using fast travel, checking the available criminal activities, changing the appearance of your protagonist, as well as managing and assigning skills. You can even enlist the help of your allies to lend a hand in a particularly challenging battle. You will unlock new smartphone features as you progress through the main campaign and we advise you to practice using them right away to make your stay in Santo Ileso even more enjoyable.

A little trick to make easy money

Reconnecting to the previous two points, we conclude with a little trick to earn easy money, indeed very easy, since you will not have to do literally anything. But let's go step by step. One of the most useful applications on your smartphone is undoubtedly the Cash App, with which you can manage the profits of the criminal enterprises in your possession and transfer the money to your account.

Since the earnings from your businesses are generated passively and automatically over time, you can very well leave the game open while you do something else, come back after a while and collect the earnings. Easy isn't it? Remember to check and transfer the money periodically through the app, as there is a maximum limit of profits that can be accumulated without withdrawing. Also, make sure to disable the automatic shutdown of the controller, as if unplugged the game will automatically pause, blocking the generation of profits.

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