Saints Row was released in 2006 for the Xbox 360. And to the astonishment of many game critics, it was rather great. On the surface it was little more than a clone of the popular open-world, Grand Theft Auto-style of play. But if you dug deeper there was plenty to love: sparkling hi-def visuals, amusing lowbrow wit, and a bevy of bizarre side missions (such as Insurance Fraud) that were actually more enjoyable than the main storyline. It was, and is, a great game.

Since Saints Row sold oodles of copies, it's no surprise that the developers at Volition (of Red Faction fame) are hard at work on a sequel, due out this year for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. We recently saw the game in action on the Xbox 360, and these were the highlights.

Meet the Sons of Samedi, one of the new gangs in Saints Row 2. They fight with capoeira, one of many unique touches Volition is making to ensure the gangs have personality.

More is More

One of the main complaints about the original Saints Row was its skimpy selection of vehicles, which were limited primarily to four-wheeled cars. Not this time: Saints Row 2 goes all-in with a huge fleet of new vehicle types, including motorbikes, planes and choppers, boats...even jet skis. We saw a mission where the player piloted a helicopter while firing heat-seeking rockets at targets below. Not too shabby!

Saints Row 2 includes several new features designed to make combat feel beefier and more fleshed out. Right away we noticed a new over-the-shoulder "fine aim" mode, ala Gears of War, that helped us land headshots and "nut shots" from a distance. You can now pick up objects - chairs, lamps, ashtrays - to throw at nearby enemies, or just grab a bystander to use as a human shield. Hand-to-hand combat has also been beefed up, and you'll be able to earn and swap fighting styles by beating various gang bosses. No matter your play style, Saints Row 2 tracks all of your accomplishments and rewards cash and Respect appropriately, so it will pay to experiment with the different tactics if you want to unlock the endgame missions.

Planes, trains, and automobiles: Saints Row 2 includes just about every vehicle type you can image. Except for hot air balloons.

Stilwater Runs Deep

Surprisingly, our favorite new feature in Saints Row 2 is literally skin deep. You can still customize your character from head to toe, but this time the options are awesomely comprehensive. You can imbue your gangster with a distinctive walk (thug swaggers, pimp struts, and dozens more), taunts (from throat slices to "the finger"), and compliments (salutes and, believe it or not, riverdancing). Even the final frontier, gender, is now fully customizable! If you want your badass to show a more feminine side, tweak the new "gender slider." The flipside is true, too, so you can create a beefy looking woman with a deep, manly voice for additional chuckles. True, many of these customizations are silly in nature, but we dare you to not crack a smile when you see "The Wanker" taunt in action.

Character customization sees a massive upgrade in Saints Row 2 -- you'll be amazed at the sheer number of options available.

Though we got a peek at an early, pre-alpha build of the game, it didn't answer all of our questions. Word is that online play is a key focus for Saints Row 2, but aside from an announced online cooperative play mode, we don't know any firm details. We expect THQ and Volition will share online details soon, so stay tuned.

Though Saints Row 2 is far from complete, it's clear that Volition is putting a lot of work into making it a more balanced, expansive game than its predecessor. Whether it'll be enough to convince the Grand Theft Auto IV crowd is another question, but we have a hunch that Volition thrives on being the underdog.