If anyone noticed a lack of my spamming dumb jokes all over the site it's because I just spent the last three days not eating, not sleeping, and not bathing (I have an excuse since my mom is regrouting the bathtub) while completely sucked into Saint's Row 3. The first was a knockoff of GTA that was a highly decent stopgap between San Andreas and GTA 4. When GTA 4 turned out to be a highly decent turd I turned to Saint's Row 2. It did everything the first one did but better. The tongue-in-cheek humor became delightfully cartoonish at times and started to set itself apart from GTA to some extent.

The third game has set itself apart about as much as a knockoff game possibly can. From the word go it took the cartoon component that 2 sometimes devolved into and blew it completely out of control. I honestly am not sure just what the **** I just played. All I know is that it was awesome. Futuristic soldiers declaring martial law, a zombie breakout, uploading your consciousness into a cyber world, cloned Russian superhumans...WTF?! The new GTA is gonna have to be jaw droppingly amazing to win back my loyalty.

You haven't played GTA V yet?

I also recently started up Saints Row the Third but I left it alone after playing it for two hours straight. Not because I didn't enjoy the silly off the wall crap that was going on. I just had other games that I need to finish up first. I will get back to it eventually. It hasn't won me over from GTA though.

No, I'm waiting for the price to drop. And you liked GTA 4 so it's no surprise. It's been a decade since I've really liked a new GTA game so I'm vaguely indifferent right now, as opposed to three consecutive games that just keep getting better. I actually want to get Saint's Row 4 more than the new GTA. The off-the-wall, at times downright offensive humor is perfect for me.

lol Don't hold my love for GTA 4 against the new GTA though. It goes back to having similar feeling that all the San Andreas fanboys love with the added bonus of being able to control three main characters at various points throughout the heists.

I loved GTA 4 for the setting being from NY and all.

So I've heard. If it's as good as San Andreas then it'll probably be better than Saint's Row, but I still have built up resentment toward Rockstar. I seem to remember hearing that they did away with the aiming system that GTA has always used and replacing it with free-aiming. I ****ing hope so. That was one of the things that Saint's Row legitimately did better than GTA. That and the ridiculous level of character/vehicle customization.

No they still have the same targeting they just don't have the little reticle thing but you can still auto-aim in the same way.

Can I free aim if I want? And not in an awkward kind of way. Can I actually free aim for realz? If not then Saint's Row still has a point in it's favor. It's just one thing, and it's not in any way a revolutionary thing, but it still seriously affects gameplay. I've never particularly liked that auto-aim thing. I have no idea why they do it.

They always had the option to free aim. All you had to do was change the settings. I used to play with free aim during the multiplayer stuff and people just break down and can't hack it so it ends up being a grenade/sticky bomb fest haha.

I don't pit the two games against each other. I like both of them. Saint's Row for being goofy and not taking itself seriously right out of the gate. I also like the complexity of GTA on their story lines and how much they parody pop culture.

I seem to remember doing that and not liking it. It's been so long that I can't be sure though.

I'll love them both regardless, but I have a special emotional connection to Saint's Row cause I see it as being like the band that never sold out while your old favorite releases St. Anger or Risk.

GTA 4 is a lot of fun. Especially with mods. So. Many. Mods.