The two rival series are once again in the race for the top spot, but Saints Row is still losing out to the decade-old GTA 5, even with a fresh game.

We didn’t want to believe that GTA 5, released nearly a decade ago, was still so competitive. But the Saints Row reboot isn’t performing as well as publisher Deep Silver and parent company Embracer Group certainly would have liked. Although the game has risen to the top of the charts, it has failed to overcome the most critical obstacle: the dethronement of perhaps its only significant rival, Grand Theft Auto. European game sales figures show that Saints Row is only second to GTA 5.

The game sales figures show that Saints Row came second on the list.

On the surface, that doesn’t seem like a lousy ranking. After all, Spider-Man Remastered was also released for PC in August and only managed to finish sixth. However, there was really only one game that Saints Row targeted, GTA 5. Unfortunately for Saints Row, the fifth Grand Theft Auto had a fantastic month in Europe and overtook Saints Row for the top spot. Clearly, GTA 5 is still going strong as gamers wait for its successor. According to a prominent leaker, GTA 6 is expected to be released in 2024 or 2025.

Saints Row, however, has no reason to complain. The game was released on 23 August, so although the August figures show an initial release peak, they only include roughly a week’s worth of sales. Considering this, the game’s position on the chart is by no means terrible. Comparisons with GTA 5 are harsh, regardless of how good sales were, and Saints Row should try to move away from direct comparisons with such a massively successful franchise that has become a phenomenon.

The ranking, while perhaps unfortunate in terms of optics, is not necessarily as poor a result as early reviews of Saints Row, including our own, have suggested.

The game will likely turn a profit for the companies involved, as Embracer chief Lars Wingefors has suggested to investors. It’s also worth noting that this figure is for Europe only. According to NPD data, Saints Row came in third place for best-selling games on consoles in the US, while GTA 5 was nowhere to be found on the lists.

Source: GamesIndustry.biz