Saints Row: The Third is a 2011 developed by and published by . It is the sequel to 2008's and the third installment in the series. It was released on November 15, 2011 for , , and , and May 10, 2019 for the . The game's story follows the same unnamed from the first two installments, who became the leader of the fictional 3rd Street Saints gang. Five years after the events of Saints Row 2, the Saints have grown into a media and consumer empire with their own brand, and find themselves stranded in the fictional city of Steelport (based on ), controlled by the international crime organization, the Syndicate. While becoming caught in a war against the Syndicate, who are trying to destroy their reputation, the Saints must also contend with S.T.A.G., a violent contracted with restoring order to Steelport.
Development of Saints Row: The Third began in late 2008, shortly after the release of Saints Row 2. There was high staff turnover from the previous Saints Row team, with only one-fifth of the final 100-person staff having worked on a previous title in the series. They aimed to improve on the series by giving the game a coherent tone, and found it in films such as and the game's signature bat. Saints Row: The Third was built using a proprietary engine known as Core Technology Group and the physics engine.