Saints Row: Gat out of Hell is short. There is absolutely no denying that. The implications of its short length, however, are that within 30 minutes of play, you’ll have traded out Gat for Kinzie, learned how to fly, unlocked the ability to summon imps to fight on your side, collected over 50 soul clusters and persuaded Shakespeare to fight on your side against Satan in your quest to save The Boss and keep him from being forcibly wed to Satan’s daughter Jezebel.

It is impossible to play Gat out of Hell without comparing it to Saints Row IV. Gat is the essence of SRIV distilled down to its very core. The map is smaller, so you’re never far from an activity, and the main narrative is shorter, so powers are doled out quicker. Arcane powers here are, for the most part, rehashes of powers from IV. You can still blast and stomp in addition to summoning imps and spires, but Gat out of Hell makes the blast feel much more useful because of the increased number of flying enemies. Turning a floating demon to stone, watching it plummet to the ground and shatter is a great use of a recycled power.

I spent the majority of my time in Saints Row IV gliding through virtual Steelport humming the Superman theme. Gat out of Hell though gives Kinzie literal wings. The flap system allows her to create and maintain momentum, the controls are great for flitting about New Hades and picking up soul clusters and the barnstorming activity (a replacement of SRIV’s Blazin’) showcases just how responsive and fun it is to fly.

I wish that there were more story missions though. Saints Row IV had you rescuing your cohorts from their cyberspace prisons via text adventure, fan-fiction combat scenarios and a stealth mission reminiscent of Metal Gear Solid. Gat out of Hell just introduces you to Blackbeard and makes you complete a few side activities, never hearing from him again. Where is the Ocean’s Eleven-inspired mission in which Blackbeard gets the big score he’s purportedly after?

The lack of main missions (which is actually mentioned in the cutscene two-thirds through the story) means that the side activities stand front and center. The side activities are good, but they’re better sandwiched between unique story missions. Here, the musical numbers are a good payoff, but I miss the equivalent of the Saints Row: The Third Killbane wrestling match.

Despite the lack of main missions, I had a ton fun flying around New Hades to collect soul clusters and wreak havoc. With weapons based on the seven deadly sins like a recliner with a built-in rocket launcher (sloth) and an SMG that shoots diamonds (greed). I’m curious where the series will go from here, and while I’m anxious for a full-length Saints Row V, Gat out of Hell shows that the formula and mechanics are just as much fun in a bite-sized chunk.

Pros: Flight is much-improved, musical numbers are great, summoning imps in combat is great fun
Cons: There are very few story missions and no real loyalty missions for your new Hellish compatriots