Yet it occupies a frustrating and somewhat annoying middle ground: the upgraded version isn’t the fan service many people like me expected, and I worry that it’s not up to scratch for new players demanding a genuinely modern action-adventure game. Ultimately, Saints Row the Third Remastered breathes a new lease of life into a game that was shockingly overlooked in its heyday. If there's one takeaway, it's that Professor Genki knows that Murder Time is Fun Time.

The act of shooting gimp-drawn rickshaws in an escape from a BDSM club holds up surprisingly well.

You get the chance to add one of the greatest actors of all time to your crew, should you make the absolutely correct decision when prompted and.

The upgrades eventually make you into a demigod, impervious to fire and bullets, which is the most rewarding outcome given the hours you put into it.

The variety of “missions” makes it consistently diverse–for each one you don’t like, there are two you will.

Its soundtrack is eclectic and you can make your own mixtape– Stand and Deliver, Epic and Holding Out for a Hero on repeat, please.

The sense of humor, despite being very 2011, still gives belly laughs like no other game of its kind.

The sheer wealth of customization across the board is wonderful, particularly in the garage.

Professor Genki’s Super Ethical Reality Climax is still the greatest game within a game ever, complemented perfectly by inspired commentary.

I’m so glad it exists because so many other people will get to learn why this 2011 magnum opus for the series was so good–for so many reasons: My lord, Saints Row the Third Remastered is still so great, even if it’s literally just a nicer-looking Saints Row the Third. But I kept playing, and playing, and clearing out entire islands, because it’s just as addictive as it was in 2011.

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