This game is great, love the feeling of nostalgia when i play. The only downfall is you HAVE to have saints row 2 juiced mod for it to work properly. Without the mod be prepared to feel like it was a waste of money.
Saints Row 2 is probably the best sandbox style crime themed game I have ever played, but the port is notoriously bad. So bad in fact that it is unplayable for some, fortunately for me it works well enough to be playable even if newer games run better. Port issues aside it offers a character creation system more robust than many MMOs I have played(which you can access in game if you want), a vehicle customization system, a good sized city to play around in, decent combat and driving, one of the best sountracks of any GTA type game, and tons of missions/activities/collectables/races.
So, should you try this game? Yes, and if it doesn't work I would be sad that you couldn't play Saints Row 2 but you can always get a refund if you buy it here on GOG.
SR2's PC port is notorious for being terrible. GOG's version is still better than Steam but its capped at low FPS and still buggy. If you want to play this, I recommend SR2 Juiced for a vanilla experience and Gentlemen of The Row in addition for further fixes, small additions and installing mods.
That aside, Saints Row 2 is one of the most underrated games in the open world crime sandbox genre. This game understands what the players WANT. Memorable characters, amazing story, tons of customisation options and side activities that are actually FUN!
Unlike future games in the franchise, SR2 perfectly balances over the top moments with serious ones. The story is grounded and serious with memorable moments and characters, while the side activites and open world give you the freedom to be fun and whacky Saints Row is known for.
And yes, this game has a tight-knit modding community on saintsrowmods.com. So if you run of stuff to do in the base game, you can add in new cars, new clothes, graphics mods, etc.
Definite buy, definitely use SR2 Juiced, though.