Saints Row 4 character creator released as a free demo on Steam

The Saints Row IV: Inauguration Station, which is just the executive branch's fancy way of saying "character creator," is now available on Steam as a free demo. After making or signing into a Saints Row account and designing a stupid, stupid human avatar, you can upload your character to be retrieved when Saints Row IV releases later this month. Series veterans can also download and work with their Saints Row: The Third characters, because what if you just can't get "Rasta Shrek" right again?

Uploaded characters go on display at the Saints Row website . Currently popular are Marvel and Star Wars characters, as well as a topless woman whose nipples are frighteningly approximated by pink pasties.

I've got to say, for a game so bent on being raunchy, the male "sex appeal" slider is disappointing. What's with the A-cup bulges? Maxed out women grow county-fair-winning gourds, so shouldn't maxed out men be tripping over themselves? I guess the costume below will just have to do.

Saints Row IV releases August 20th in the US, and August 23rd in the UK.

Tyler grew up in Silicon Valley during the rise of personal computers, playing games like Zork and Arkanoid on the early PCs his parents brought home. He was later captivated by Myst, SimCity, Civilization, Command & Conquer, Bushido Blade (yeah, he had Bleem!), and all the shooters they call "boomer shooters" now. In 2006, Tyler wrote his first professional review of a videogame: Super Dragon Ball Z for the PS2. He thought it was OK. In 2011, he joined PC Gamer, and today he's focused on the site's news coverage. His hobbies include amateur boxing and adding to his 1,200-plus hours in Rocket League.