If you weren’t gaming on PC a decade ago, you might not know how much better we have it these days. Back then, we’d often get console to PC ports with bad controls and wonky bugs that could only get fixed with the efforts of the modding community. Such was sadly the case with Saints Row 2 back in 2009 – but developer Volition says it’s about to get fixed.
Volition says a small team is working on the update alongside ongoing development of Saints Row 5, according to a recent dev stream (via Polygon). The studio is focused on the upcoming game, so there’s no ETA on the update just yet, but it will be provided for free to existing owners of the game on Steam.
The update will remove the need to mod Saints Row 2 for play on modern PCs, and will replace the previous GameSpy hooks with Steamworks. We’ll also see the launch of the previously console-exclusive DLC, Ultor Exposed and Corporate Warfare, on PC. The only real caveat is that the update appears to just be for the Steam version, so if you’re playing on GOG it looks like you’re out of luck.
This project is happening because the devs finally managed to dig up Saints Row 2’s source code, which had previously been thought lost after THQ’s bankruptcy auction.
I’d say this is unexpected, but under the auspices of THQ Nordic, no game is truly dead. If we live in a world where SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom can be remastered and Destroy All Humans can get a remake, it’s little wonder that we’re going to see a major update for Saints Row 2.