The Saboteur is a unique third-person action game in which you takeon the role of Sean Devlin, an Irishman who inexplicably winds up joining the French Resistance during World War II. Your mission is to defeat occupying Nazi forces by any means necessary, including shooting, bombing, stealing vehicles, and generally causing all kinds of mayhem across an open-world Paris. Think Assassin's Creed, Grand Theft Auto, Mercenaries, Red Faction, and Inglorious B******s thrown into a blender and you'll have a good idea of what you're in for.
In the positive side, the setting and atmosphere of this game is fantastic. Its refreshing to see a game portray World War II from a perspective other that of the "Big Three" (USA, UK, USSR), and 1940s Paris is lovingly recreated in a detailed, if somewhat superficial, open world that was legitimately ahead of its time when this game was released. The stark black and white graphics and sleazy jazz soundtrack add to the atmosphere. Gameplay is varried and always fun, and the game generally leaves it up to you how to handle most missions. Infiltrate in disguise, set off an explosion as a distraction, or go in the front door blazing away with a machine gun? The choice is yours.
Unfortunately, the game falls short in several areas that undermine its promising concept. The tone of the story is weirdly inconsistant; it seemingly can't decide if it wants to be a serious war drama or a cheesy B-grade action affair, and the switiching between the two is jarring. The controls can at times be clunky and awkward, and it's frustringly easy to accidentally jump off a ledge insatead of climbing it or accidentally pop out of cover duing a shootout and get killed. Finally, this game was originally made for consoles and ported to PC, and the lack of optimization and options definitely shows at times. Reccomend you play with a controller/gamepad if possible.
Overall, The Saboteur is a great concept unfortunately let down by spotty execution.
