10 Weirdest Genre Shifts In Video Games
7. Saints Row IV
As has been discussed on this website before, Saints Row IV is a superlatively weird game - a game that blends hyperkinetic superpowers, heartwarming camaraderie and Keith David into a ballistic cocktail of pure video game magic. You can sense the designer's sheer love of video games shining through each ridiculous scenario, and nowhere is that love more evident than in Saints of Rage.
A 16-bit homage to Sega's legendary beat-em-up series, Saints of Rage sees your protagonist engage in a side-scrolling beat-em-up to rescue their best friend from an alien mind prison. (Like we said - superlatively weird). The end result is honestly pretty basic, even for a beat-em-up, but the designer's passion for the genre carries the segment. The tinny sound-bites, flashing "GO" sign and even the colour of the health bars show a clear love for the classics of the beat-em-up genre, making Saints of Rage a heartwarming trip down memory lane.
It takes some doing to stand out in a game where the lead character goes from gangbanger to President of the United States in the first 15 minutes, but Saints of Rage manages that heady task.