Survival

Overview

Survival is the most complex and challenging diversion in the game. It is a brand-new feature for the Saint Row series and something everyone will want to check out.

Survival occurs when you are not engaged in any other form of active gameplay. One of the Saints, an anonymous tipster, or even an enemy calls you on the phone with a tip for where to find some action. If you accept the call and reach the location they mention quickly, a radius will be marked on your map and you’ll find some enemies in the area. Taking them out will start the survival.

Once survival starts, you must face repeated waves of enemies. You can flee and abandon the fight, but if you want the rewards, you must stand and face them. Sometimes you need to kill off a set number of enemies to progress to the next wave, and other times you just need to survive while the timer counts down.

There are 26 survival fights scattered around Steelport. Most are against the law or the Syndicate: Morningstar, Luchadores, or Deckers. There are a few unique scenarios to find as well, such as the battles against hordes of mascots near Let’s Pretend and other crazy situations. You could start receiving calls for survival fights as early as the end of Mission 3, but there are additional scenarios that become available after the Pool Party and Zombie Attack missions in the Campaign. If you want to complete all 26 battles, you’ll need to wait until later in the game.

How to Start Survival

You’ll only be called for survival when nothing else is going on. If you have law or gang notoriety, if you’re driving, if you’re shopping at a store, or if you’re doing a mission or activity, then you won’t be called. Therefore, survival works best when exploring the city for collectibles, running around to purchase properties, or doing short bursts of light harassment of citizens. In these circumstances, you’ll get a call every five minutes, give or take.

Your phone rings and you’ll hear a random tip for a nearby opportunity to fight and your GPS will be marked with the location. When this happens, you’ll have only a few minutes to reach the location before you are too late. There is no penalty for not responding to a survival call and if you take the call and change your mind, the opportunity will just come up again later.

Every wave that you complete pays a reward in cash and respect, so even if you’re taken down partway through, you’ve gained something for your trouble. The rewards are paid out are based on level of notoriety and the difficulty of the enemy wave (length or number of kills, plus enemy types included).

Difficulty

Survival grows with you, increasing in difficulty as you increase in rank. Below is a breakdown of how the missions are effected depending on your ranks.

Easy Versions (Player Rank 1 to 11)

No Brutes
No tanks
No police attack choppers
Specialists only at notoriety 5

Medium Versions (Player Rank 12 to 23)

Brutes only at notoriety 5
No tanks
Specialists only at notoriety 4–5
Cash and respect rewards are about 25% greater
Some locations gain additional waves

Hard Versions (Player Rank 24+)

Brutes at Notoriety 4–5 (just like default notoriety)
Specialists at Notoriety 3–5 (just like default notoriety)
Tanks and police attack choppers in use (just like default notoriety)
Cash and respect rewards are about 80% greater
Some locations gain additional waves

Endless Action

Survival is also a great way to get another crazy firefight after you’ve taken over most of Steelport. Until you complete all 26 survival fights, you’ll only get calls for locations you haven’t beaten yet. But once you have completed them all, they will all unlock again. If you beat most of them early in the game, they’re likely to be much more intense when you take on the harder versions!