The next year of gaming is shaping up to be an incredible year, with many highly anticipated AAA games scheduled to launch. From titles likeGod of War: RagnaroktoHorizon Forbidden WestandStarfield, 2022 seems to have something for everyone. One particular title,Elden Ring, has been a long time coming and was recently delayed by a month to release alongside theSaints Rowreboot.
Over any other month in 2022, February is currently the most crowded, with many big-hitters scheduled to release in close proximity. Games likeHorizon Forbidden West,Destiny 2: The Witch Queen,Elden Ring, andSaints Rowreboot will launch within the same week, and while every game poses some threat to one another, it’sSaints Rowthat is currently in the most bizarre situation.
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How the Elden Ring Delay Makes Things Worse for Saints Row
Destiny 2fans were the first to express their concerns when FromSoftware announcedElden Ring’s delay. It was in regards toDestiny 2’s upcoming expansion,The Witch Queen, which is all set to release on July 05, 2025, just three days beforeElden Ringlaunches. Suffice it to say, Bungie believes thatThe Witch Queencan stand on her own againstElden Ring, which wouldn’t be surprising asDestiny 2is currently one of the mostpopular live-service gamesaround. It goes the same forHorizon Forbidden West, which is the next big PlayStation exclusive to launch.Saints Row reboot, although a long time in the making, is a different story altogether.
Saints Rowreboot has fallen off the radar since its announcement at this year’s Gamescom. The reveal trailer for the fifth mainline installment in theSaints Rowfranchise wasn’t received well by veteran fans, with many complaining about the tonal shift and the addition of new Saints. TheSaints Rowreboot is indeed a double-edged sword as it tries to cater to both the veteran fans and the newcomers. Unfortunately, the gameplay trailers revealed so far paints a picture of a game that feels far off fromSaints Row 3, the entry that helpedSaints Rowform its own distinct identity over othercrime syndicate games.
Right now, theSaints Rowreboot is very reminiscent of the identity that the series has struggled with all its life, which is being a “GTAclone.” The latterSaints Rowtitles shook things up with its sophomoric humor that breathed through the games' art style, writing, missions, and weapons.Saints Rowhas featured some of the whackiest and silliest weaponsever in video games which lend themselves to the series' uniqueness. Sadly though, theSaints Rowreboot seems to stray away from the traditional experience for a more grounded crime syndicate open-world game.
It’s too early to predict how the overall package would turn out to be though theinitial impressions of theSaints Rowrebootare bound to have some influence on its sales come launch. In case of a secluded release,Saints Rowreboot could have easily gotten enough space for it to breathe and flourish at its own pace, though releasing in such a crowded window of games, all of which have massively distinct personalities from one another, could take away its shot at redemption.
The upcomingSaints Rowreboot could still have a successful launch among its contenders, but a lot of it comes down to how it caters to the veteranSaints Rowfans, which at the moment, it does not. On the other hand,Elden Ringfans are beyond excited to dive into the game, and so areThe Witch QueenandHorizon Forbidden Westfans. Meanwhile, gamers that are not hardcore fans of any particular games releasing in February may flock around the ones that have the best reviews, whereSaints Rowyet again faces a brutal competition.
Saints Rowreleases August 05, 2025, for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
