By Ben Mapp
You could write a whole case study on the development of Enter the Dominatrix. It was originally announced as a DLC for Saints Row the Third, but with the option to be sold separately too (like Red Dead Redemption’s Undead Nightmare). It would have served as its own separate experience from Saints Row the Third. The story of Enter the Dominatrix featured the Saints of Steelport under attack by aliens led by Lord Zinyak.
You could write a whole case study on the development of Enter the Dominatrix. It was originally announced as a DLC for Saints Row the Third, but with the option to be sold separately too (like Red Dead Redemption’s Undead Nightmare). It would have served as its own separate experience from Saints Row the Third. The story of Enter the Dominatrix featured the Saints of Steelport under attack by aliens led by Lord Zinyak.
Much of this concept was later fully adapted for Saints Row IV instead and the original planned DLC was scrapped. What narrative strands remained unused however focused on an alternative scenario where the Saints dealt with Zinyak almost immediately after the invasion of Earth, but still found themselves helplessly imprisoned within the Steelport simulation.
Without Zinyak’s control the simulation became self-aware and self-dictating, adopting the cruel and twisted guise of the Dominatrix – a super-powered femme fatale (who looks a little like a darker Loki-cosplay model). Ultimately the Saints must unite to overcome her forces and track her down to her hiding place within the simulation in order to finally escape. I have become known for my defence of the Saints Row series. I still think that Saints Row IV is one of my top favourite games of 2013 (and that’s saying something!) mainly because of the sheer amount of fun you can have whilst playing it. I also made a point in my review a couple of months ago that what Saints Row IV lacks is extended gameplay once you’ve passed the main story. So you can imagine my excitement when they announced that Enter the Dominatrix was finally coming as a DLC. Of course Volition couldn’t just release that original planned DLC, as most of it was transferred over to Saints Row IV during development, and so what we have instead is a satirical commentary on the project – as told by the characters themselves – as they walk the player through their favourite ‘lost’ scenes.
We are treated to the return of old friends such as Donny and Zimos, and are given a glimpse into an alternate world of what could have been. It occurred to me immediately when I started playing that Volition has never been shy to ridicule itself. In fact you could argue that the entire opening monologue of Saints Row IV is a theatrical metaphor for the Saints Row series in general and how it turned from being ‘pretenders to the throne’ (i.e. a possible rival to the Grand Theft Auto series) to ‘puckish rogues living a life of mirth and whimsy’ (i.e. adopting the quirkier direction the series took after Saints Row 2).
Without Zinyak’s control the simulation became self-aware and self-dictating, adopting the cruel and twisted guise of the Dominatrix – a super-powered femme fatale (who looks a little like a darker Loki-cosplay model). Ultimately the Saints must unite to overcome her forces and track her down to her hiding place within the simulation in order to finally escape. I have become known for my defence of the Saints Row series. I still think that Saints Row IV is one of my top favourite games of 2013 (and that’s saying something!) mainly because of the sheer amount of fun you can have whilst playing it. I also made a point in my review a couple of months ago that what Saints Row IV lacks is extended gameplay once you’ve passed the main story. So you can imagine my excitement when they announced that Enter the Dominatrix was finally coming as a DLC. Of course Volition couldn’t just release that original planned DLC, as most of it was transferred over to Saints Row IV during development, and so what we have instead is a satirical commentary on the project – as told by the characters themselves – as they walk the player through their favourite ‘lost’ scenes.
We are treated to the return of old friends such as Donny and Zimos, and are given a glimpse into an alternate world of what could have been. It occurred to me immediately when I started playing that Volition has never been shy to ridicule itself. In fact you could argue that the entire opening monologue of Saints Row IV is a theatrical metaphor for the Saints Row series in general and how it turned from being ‘pretenders to the throne’ (i.e. a possible rival to the Grand Theft Auto series) to ‘puckish rogues living a life of mirth and whimsy’ (i.e. adopting the quirkier direction the series took after Saints Row 2).
Although the wackiness is definitely there and Enter the Dominatrix certainly pays homage to certain media through notable – though often admirably obscure – references (there’s an Iron Throne made of dildo-bats for instance), it’s not difficult to see why many of these ideas were disregarded in the final cut of Saints Row IV. The character Don describes this DLC as ‘too crazy for Saints Row’ which – in itself – is an amazing feat, but he’s right. Enter the Dominatrix takes influence from the first mission you meet Zimos in Saints Row the Third, in the brothel (the one which if followed by that infamous ‘chariot race’), and just about every joke included is as crude as it is cringe-worthy. Saints Row IV ultimately found humour down other avenues thankfully. But Enter the Dominatrix holds no limits on where it will take you as a guest in this world, at least story-wise. Having played other such DLC like Undead Nightmare (by Rockstar) and Dragon Age: Awakening (by Bioware), I have learned that the way to do it properly is by expanding on your original game through adding in something completely new. With Undead Nightmare it was a zombie apocalypse, which subsequently transformed the entire landscape, and with Dragon Age: Awakening it was a whole new country to explore (Amaranthine). The latter of the two even gave you the option to start as a new different character than the Grey Warden!
Unfortunately by comparison, Enter the Dominatrix falls massively short. It feels like a complete missed opportunity which is a shame, particularly with its long and troubled development. Simply put – and despite all of its humour and satire – this DLC misses the mark.
The mission starts with the Zin invasion of Steelport. Three or four repetitive shoot-em-up missions later and the DLC is finished, taking maybe an hour at most to get through (and that’s without rushing). It’s short, snappy and – although comical (in parts) – overall not a great addition to this game world. Volition had an opening here to extend this open-world in a really cool way and just didn’t deliver on that, leaving me both disappointed and frustrated. There’s potential for greatness here, guys! They could have used the DLC to explore new settings, maybe a full return to Stilwater (which was teased at in the main game), or new powers or alternate, fully-customisable costumes. That said. The DLC does include a range of new vehicles and homies to summon once you have completed it, but one of the largest criticisms of the main game was the player’s lack of interest in controlling the vehicles – which is fair enough considering that the game gives you superpowers – and Enter the Dominatrix provides the player with a unique gimp suit. But that’s it. It was definitely fun to return to Steelport with something else to do other than fly around and cause panic, but this feels like more of a stocking filler than anything else.
The mission starts with the Zin invasion of Steelport. Three or four repetitive shoot-em-up missions later and the DLC is finished, taking maybe an hour at most to get through (and that’s without rushing). It’s short, snappy and – although comical (in parts) – overall not a great addition to this game world. Volition had an opening here to extend this open-world in a really cool way and just didn’t deliver on that, leaving me both disappointed and frustrated. There’s potential for greatness here, guys! They could have used the DLC to explore new settings, maybe a full return to Stilwater (which was teased at in the main game), or new powers or alternate, fully-customisable costumes. That said. The DLC does include a range of new vehicles and homies to summon once you have completed it, but one of the largest criticisms of the main game was the player’s lack of interest in controlling the vehicles – which is fair enough considering that the game gives you superpowers – and Enter the Dominatrix provides the player with a unique gimp suit. But that’s it. It was definitely fun to return to Steelport with something else to do other than fly around and cause panic, but this feels like more of a stocking filler than anything else.
Next up - How the Saints Save Christmas!
Our celebration of Saints Row IV continues later this week with our final retrospective, covering the previous DLC expansion How The Saints Save Christmas.
Did you enjoy Enter the Dominatrix? Or did you feel it flopped? Come let us know in the comments below or on our Twitter/Facebook feed, we'd love to hear from you!
Did you enjoy Enter the Dominatrix? Or did you feel it flopped? Come let us know in the comments below or on our Twitter/Facebook feed, we'd love to hear from you!
RSS Feed
