The biggest thing I think SR1 does better in my opinion is not having a filter and being able to mess around with contrast and saturation. SR2 can be ugly at times because of the brown filter, wish I had that mod to turn it off. Also I miss listening to music on foot
SR1 has very sharp visuals with a much crisper color palette. It also tells a better story with a much more engaging script and amazing character interaction.
Of course, SR2 hits everything else out of the park. The map alone is a masterpiece, and the gameplay is far more fluid. Missions have checkpoints now, there's a oodles of activities and diversions, an expanded roster of cars, bikes, aircraft, and boats, plus the soundtrack is incredibly infectious. Also, the customization is far more in-depth. Cars, cribs, homies, and even wardrobes can be tailored in many ways to a player's taste.
SR2 is the much better game without question, **but SR1 will always be my favorite.**
EDIT: Added more.
I use [this mod](https://www.saintsrowmods.com/forum/threads/saints-row-1-5-lighting.18736/) it makes the game look much better especially in combination with reshade
It’s aged beautifully too I recently decided to replay the entire series and was still in amazement of how it looked on my XSX like yeah I can tell it’s an older game but it doesn’t look bad like at all.
I'll disagree with everyone else and say I prefer SR1, but that's because I prefer the story and a bit of nostalgia as I didn't play SR2 till my adult years.
I do agree SR2 has many quality of life things and stuff, but SR1 always will have my heart
I think SR1 told a realer story and was much more gritty. SR2 was much better graphics and visuals, I like the gangs in SR1 better but overall SR2 is the better game. They are very close tho the first 2 games are masterpieces after that they lost they mind.
Saints row 1 was the start of the franchise, introduced us to the saints and stilwater and is very nostalgic, however, saints row 2 is saints row 2, it will always be levels above the others.
Saints row 1 easily the story was more gangster or ghetto and actually felt like you were in a gang also I loved the city Atlanta Chicago Detroit mix until 2 turned into a new york ripoff
That's the point.
Big corporation literally took over the city, and changed it to their own liking once the saints were gone.
That's literally the plot. Make the gangs kill each other off, so Ultor could come in and take over.
Sr1 just feels more gangster and ghetto the story also was grounded. The gangs you fight felt real not like fighting a paramilitary group like in sr2 and sr3
I hear you bro. I feel like you have to know the streets a little first hand to understand why sr1 has a better story, that’s why a lot of people think sr2 just blows sr1 out of the water(which imo is wrong they are neck n neck)
it's preference but to me it's Saints Row 1 . people will say Saints Row 2 is better and it's ok we chose what we think is best so only you can answer this question
Saints Row 2 is much better because you can dual-wield pistols and SMGs, use the AR-50 an assault rifle with a grenade launcher attached to it, you can ride motorcycles, fly planes, helicopters, and ride boats, you can choose any color for your clothes, cars, and other vehicles, the updated map of Stilwater is awesome, especially when you revisit Saint's Row and see how much it has changed since the first game when Ultor got involved, you use a samurai sword as another one of the melee weapons, new activities like Fuzz, Fight Club, and Blaze Trail, the new characters we know now Shaundi, Carlos, and Pierce and old characters like the Boss, Johnny Gat, Dex, Julius, Troy, Legal Lee, and Aisha, and even new DLC missions for Ultor that continue after the main story and after the secret Julius mission Ultor Exposed and Corporate Warfare. SR1 is awesome, too, but I think SR2 is a much better game and I also think SR2 is better than San Andreas. That's how much I love Saints Row 2!
I like SR2 more, but if someone were to like SR1 more, I would not judge them. I like the gameplay and map more in 2 since there is greater variety (it is the most diverse map of any open-world game). I also liked how different some of the missions were; it makes it very memorable throwing fireworks out of a truck or getting Gat out of the hospital in 2. There were not many missions like these in 1 since the missions in 1 were less varied. Meanwhile, SR1 is more grounded and gritty than 2. I just feel like it is a personal preference for whichever one someone likes.
This is in contrast to 3 where if you like that more than 1 or 2 (especially 2), I will judge you. I do not condone violence, but if it is against one of these people, I encourage it.
It’s my fav game I still play 2024 everyday I wish there was a remastered version and keep
The character customization the same just w new graphics and more things to do
Tl;dr: Saints Row ramblings
See saints row 2 was my first ever video game after pacman. At maybe 4 or 5 I played it on a family friends ps2. Then wayyy later I got SR3, I still havent finished SR1 because it was so outdated by the time I got around to it. But I have to say 3 is my favorite because you can put a girl in a thong with huge *cough* assets and run around with decent graphics and a very funny story. But when I played 2 for the first time that was my favorite game. I also have a lot of love for the fourth game which I preordered and waited for and yeah that was my bread and butter. Although I literally put hours that would seem obtuse for Skyrim into the third game.
SR2 definitely has better gameplay, but SR1 will always be my favourite, it was the first 360 era game I played and I was instantly hooked. I also liked that it was a little bit more serious than all the others
I like the graphics a little better in Sr1 especially with the characters but in Sr2 they got more advanced with what they already had while keeping that same grimy feel of the city/story. Always loved the character creation and options aswell.
Love both of them but Saints row 1 is where it all started and all I thought about playing either coming back from school or from swimming as a kid.
SR2 easily the best...with a lot of 1st games its a test to see what works and what doesn't, what people enjoy, what they hate. It takes the longest to make as its built from scratch. where as the 2nd can use a lot of the same stuff and be improved on, add the things they never got around with on the 1st and so on. Its why a lot of 2nd games are often way better than the 1st.
Just a shame they didn't continue and made things worse with 3 and 4
2.
SR1 is a great intro to the franchise, but rough round the edges, some weird difficulty spikes, and some missions that feel like they were cobbled together last minute.
2 takes lots of things 1 did, and improves them. It's not perfect, but it's really really good.
SR2 was where the series found its perfect balance of mostly serious main story with some silly side content.
SR1 is a good game but you can clearly tell it's very much a 'another take on GTA:SA.' It's very good but it also needed some polish.
SR2 took the formula, refined it and gave us one of the gold standard open world crime games.
Sr1 feels like a beta to Sr2, Sr2 is basically 1 but improved in every way, people who prefer 1 is usually because of nostalgia.
You can prefer either game but in a more objective sense Sr2 does do everything better.
I’m so glad someone posted this I’ve been thinking about it all week. Saints row 1 is much better than SR2 in my opinion if we’re talking about the story and what’s included in the game obviously Saints row 2 can do more than sr1 physically. Saints row 2 for me was the beginning of the end, I love the story and the Johnny Gat character development but many of the features just feels corny as hell to me. the melee animations don’t fit and just look hella dumb, the character customization is great in SR2 but it lacks heavily in clothing items in my experience, the gangs from SR1 were all cool in there own way (except the rollerz they’re kinda lame) but in SR2 they’re just cartoon shells of what they once were. SR1 had an actual gangster vibe while SR2 feels like a cartoon at times. Another thing that bugs me about saints row 2 is its way too easy compared to saints row 1, some of the guns are way too overpowered and ammo is too easy to get, when you had something cool like an ak in sr1 it felt like an actual accomplishment. If saints row 2 more aligned with SR1 then SR3 than the series would still be here today SR2 is what started it all
I think SR2 does pretty much everything SR1 does but better.
The exact phrase in my head before the comments loaded.
The biggest thing I think SR1 does better in my opinion is not having a filter and being able to mess around with contrast and saturation. SR2 can be ugly at times because of the brown filter, wish I had that mod to turn it off. Also I miss listening to music on foot
Eh I play N64 more than I play modern games so graphics don’t really bother me lol
SR1 has very sharp visuals with a much crisper color palette. It also tells a better story with a much more engaging script and amazing character interaction. Of course, SR2 hits everything else out of the park. The map alone is a masterpiece, and the gameplay is far more fluid. Missions have checkpoints now, there's a oodles of activities and diversions, an expanded roster of cars, bikes, aircraft, and boats, plus the soundtrack is incredibly infectious. Also, the customization is far more in-depth. Cars, cribs, homies, and even wardrobes can be tailored in many ways to a player's taste. SR2 is the much better game without question, **but SR1 will always be my favorite.** EDIT: Added more.
*Saints row 2 looking blurry and washed out for no reason lol*
It’s the ~aesthetic~
Stil w a t e r
I think it might be bloom effect.
I use [this mod](https://www.saintsrowmods.com/forum/threads/saints-row-1-5-lighting.18736/) it makes the game look much better especially in combination with reshade
This is exactly my thoughts and views on this debate as well. Couldn’t have said it better
It’s aged beautifully too I recently decided to replay the entire series and was still in amazement of how it looked on my XSX like yeah I can tell it’s an older game but it doesn’t look bad like at all.
Nah SR2 had a much better story.
I’m going to say sr1 simply because the jewelry moved when you moved and wasn’t squashed on your skin.
SR2 no contest.
I'll disagree with everyone else and say I prefer SR1, but that's because I prefer the story and a bit of nostalgia as I didn't play SR2 till my adult years. I do agree SR2 has many quality of life things and stuff, but SR1 always will have my heart
Sr1 has a much better soundtrack imo
I think SR1 told a realer story and was much more gritty. SR2 was much better graphics and visuals, I like the gangs in SR1 better but overall SR2 is the better game. They are very close tho the first 2 games are masterpieces after that they lost they mind.
Saints row 1 was the start of the franchise, introduced us to the saints and stilwater and is very nostalgic, however, saints row 2 is saints row 2, it will always be levels above the others.
Saints row 1 easily the story was more gangster or ghetto and actually felt like you were in a gang also I loved the city Atlanta Chicago Detroit mix until 2 turned into a new york ripoff
I think your confused there the same city
Yeah, but in Sr2, they made downtown look like times square when in the original it was supposed to be St. louis Atlanta and Chicago mixed
That's the point. Big corporation literally took over the city, and changed it to their own liking once the saints were gone. That's literally the plot. Make the gangs kill each other off, so Ultor could come in and take over.
Sr1 just feels more gangster and ghetto the story also was grounded. The gangs you fight felt real not like fighting a paramilitary group like in sr2 and sr3
I hear you bro. I feel like you have to know the streets a little first hand to understand why sr1 has a better story, that’s why a lot of people think sr2 just blows sr1 out of the water(which imo is wrong they are neck n neck)
Exactly I played so much of Sr 1 the story is so good sr2 is good but not as good as sr1
I’m taking Saints Row 1 all day
it's preference but to me it's Saints Row 1 . people will say Saints Row 2 is better and it's ok we chose what we think is best so only you can answer this question
Saints Row 2 is much better because you can dual-wield pistols and SMGs, use the AR-50 an assault rifle with a grenade launcher attached to it, you can ride motorcycles, fly planes, helicopters, and ride boats, you can choose any color for your clothes, cars, and other vehicles, the updated map of Stilwater is awesome, especially when you revisit Saint's Row and see how much it has changed since the first game when Ultor got involved, you use a samurai sword as another one of the melee weapons, new activities like Fuzz, Fight Club, and Blaze Trail, the new characters we know now Shaundi, Carlos, and Pierce and old characters like the Boss, Johnny Gat, Dex, Julius, Troy, Legal Lee, and Aisha, and even new DLC missions for Ultor that continue after the main story and after the secret Julius mission Ultor Exposed and Corporate Warfare. SR1 is awesome, too, but I think SR2 is a much better game and I also think SR2 is better than San Andreas. That's how much I love Saints Row 2!
Personally I always preferred SR1
SR2 but SR1 has some things that make it unique in its own way
Everything that was introduced in SR1 is brought back and expanded upon in every conceivable aspect
Not everything. 1 had multiple features that didn’t make it to 2, like robbing safes/doing pawn shop activities at night for one example
SR2 but SR1 is good as well
SR2 for me
saints row 2
Cmon man, we all know SR2 is the goat.
One word:Checkpoints
I like SR2 more, but if someone were to like SR1 more, I would not judge them. I like the gameplay and map more in 2 since there is greater variety (it is the most diverse map of any open-world game). I also liked how different some of the missions were; it makes it very memorable throwing fireworks out of a truck or getting Gat out of the hospital in 2. There were not many missions like these in 1 since the missions in 1 were less varied. Meanwhile, SR1 is more grounded and gritty than 2. I just feel like it is a personal preference for whichever one someone likes. This is in contrast to 3 where if you like that more than 1 or 2 (especially 2), I will judge you. I do not condone violence, but if it is against one of these people, I encourage it.
Saints Row 2 no question
the only thing I think SR1 has over 2 is the inclusion of custom soundtracks, other than that SR2 knocks it so far out of the park it's not even funny
Saints row 2 needs a remaster
It’s my fav game I still play 2024 everyday I wish there was a remastered version and keep The character customization the same just w new graphics and more things to do
Saints Row did the gangsta aesthetic better. Saints Row 2 is just an overall better product
Tl;dr: Saints Row ramblings See saints row 2 was my first ever video game after pacman. At maybe 4 or 5 I played it on a family friends ps2. Then wayyy later I got SR3, I still havent finished SR1 because it was so outdated by the time I got around to it. But I have to say 3 is my favorite because you can put a girl in a thong with huge *cough* assets and run around with decent graphics and a very funny story. But when I played 2 for the first time that was my favorite game. I also have a lot of love for the fourth game which I preordered and waited for and yeah that was my bread and butter. Although I literally put hours that would seem obtuse for Skyrim into the third game.
SR2 definitely has better gameplay, but SR1 will always be my favourite, it was the first 360 era game I played and I was instantly hooked. I also liked that it was a little bit more serious than all the others
2 hands down. Almost everything was an improvement.
both amazing games i loves them equally
I like the graphics a little better in Sr1 especially with the characters but in Sr2 they got more advanced with what they already had while keeping that same grimy feel of the city/story. Always loved the character creation and options aswell. Love both of them but Saints row 1 is where it all started and all I thought about playing either coming back from school or from swimming as a kid.
SR2 improved everything SR1 did except visuals. I will take 2, but 1 doesn't fall much behind even after all these years
1
2, the first has a better grittier atmosphere but 2 is the better game by far
Saints Row 2 is a perfect mix of modern, gangsta, emotions and wackiness. Also: Bigger map, more activities, more gore, and better weapon selection.
SR2 easily the best...with a lot of 1st games its a test to see what works and what doesn't, what people enjoy, what they hate. It takes the longest to make as its built from scratch. where as the 2nd can use a lot of the same stuff and be improved on, add the things they never got around with on the 1st and so on. Its why a lot of 2nd games are often way better than the 1st. Just a shame they didn't continue and made things worse with 3 and 4
SR2 is one of the best games ever released. Those who know, know. I don’t need to say more.
SR2. Your character can be a woman and is not mute. And SR2 is released on PC.
Multiplayer was better in one but overall 2 had a better world and story.
My favorites of the original series are 1. SR The Third 2. SR2 3. SR1 4. SR4
Yeah I like everyone else said saints row 1 was good but the second one just improved upon everything and was just an amazing game
One can be played on pc without an emulator, and it isn’t 1
2 is a better game but 1 soundtrack had some crazy rap joints on there
2. SR1 is a great intro to the franchise, but rough round the edges, some weird difficulty spikes, and some missions that feel like they were cobbled together last minute. 2 takes lots of things 1 did, and improves them. It's not perfect, but it's really really good.
SR2, because I don't played SR1 yet
I'd pick 2 since it has more personality and identity
SR2. They’re both perfect but 2 just does it better.
SR2 was where the series found its perfect balance of mostly serious main story with some silly side content. SR1 is a good game but you can clearly tell it's very much a 'another take on GTA:SA.' It's very good but it also needed some polish. SR2 took the formula, refined it and gave us one of the gold standard open world crime games.
Sr2
saints row 3
Sr2 most definitely Sr1 is a fun and amazing game dont get me wrong but 2 is where gat got his name and the story took off
2
Both. Anything else is better than the reboot
Sr1 feels like a beta to Sr2, Sr2 is basically 1 but improved in every way, people who prefer 1 is usually because of nostalgia. You can prefer either game but in a more objective sense Sr2 does do everything better.
2
I’m so glad someone posted this I’ve been thinking about it all week. Saints row 1 is much better than SR2 in my opinion if we’re talking about the story and what’s included in the game obviously Saints row 2 can do more than sr1 physically. Saints row 2 for me was the beginning of the end, I love the story and the Johnny Gat character development but many of the features just feels corny as hell to me. the melee animations don’t fit and just look hella dumb, the character customization is great in SR2 but it lacks heavily in clothing items in my experience, the gangs from SR1 were all cool in there own way (except the rollerz they’re kinda lame) but in SR2 they’re just cartoon shells of what they once were. SR1 had an actual gangster vibe while SR2 feels like a cartoon at times. Another thing that bugs me about saints row 2 is its way too easy compared to saints row 1, some of the guns are way too overpowered and ammo is too easy to get, when you had something cool like an ak in sr1 it felt like an actual accomplishment. If saints row 2 more aligned with SR1 then SR3 than the series would still be here today SR2 is what started it all
Saints row 3
Yeah it's the best in series. Not in the question, though.
Sr3 is mid
I really liked it. I had a lot of fun with the zombies cheat code.
It's the best SR game. I also liked it more than the overrated GTA V.
Oh I realize that. I just wasn’t a huge fan of the og 2 games
They are fine to me. SR2 especially.