Agents of Mayhem, the Saints Row spin-off from developer Volition, isn’t quite as packed with Easter eggs as those other games in the sort-of same franchise, but it does sneak in tons of references to Saints Row and other classic video games. The biggest bombshell is the weirdest — Agents of Mayhem, in actuality, is a reality concocted by Jane Austen. There’s a lot to unpack in that statement, so let’s breakdown exactly what that means in our Agents of Mayhem Easter egg guide.
Agents of Mayhem is an irreverent open-world shooter, putting you in control of three simultaneous heroes. Each hero features a variety of customization options, unlocking new random special abilities and enhancements to increase your power exponentially while kicking butt. There are 12 heroes in total, and you can mix-and-match your teams as you see fit. The games are full of humor, but we’re focusing on the Easter eggs only — the stuff that’s easier to miss.
All the Easter Eggs We’ve Found (So Far)!
[Work-in-Progress: We’re still working through the full game, so check back soon once we find more wacky stuff to reveal.]
Agents of Mayhem – By Jane Austen
The Saints are no longer a “thing” in the world of Agents of Mayhem. The AoM have a strangely similar logo, purple is their color, and the various heroes in the organization love causing chaos and mayhem. It’s in their blood — and like the later Saints Row games, they’re the good guys. There are many, many more similarities we’ll get to in later entries, but for now, we can say that the Agents of Mayhem are an alternate-universe version of the Saints. Alternate dimensions are part of the plot in Agents of Mayhem, after all.
So, what’s with this Jane Austen business? Let’s get into the horrid details. At the end of Saints Row IV, the Saints have escaped the evil Zinyak and are let loose in his ship after the evil alien overlord completely blows up Earth. With nowhere to go, the Saints decide to reverse time and do things all over again. Yes, the street-level gang from Saints Row 1 are now on an alien spaceship that can travel back in time.
Oh, there’s more. After tiring of “fixing” time, the narrator of the game finally reveals herself — it was Jane Austen all along! Famous author of enduring classics like Pride and Prejudice, freed from Zinyak’s prison of historical figures — she’s now one of the Saints, and rewriting history with a little more subtly than the Saints. Jane Austen lends her narrator abilities to another semi-spin-off for the Saints franchise in Gat Outta Hell. But, how do we know Jane Austen is the primary force behind Agents of Mayhem? The final piece of the puzzle; Friday.
A conspicuously British narrator, Friday is the grounding force for Agents of Mayhem, and the one player you can always trust that never gets in on the action. Always watching from the side-lines. They’re not the same voice-actress, so this might just be one big conspiracy theory. The hunt for evidence continues…
The Vice Kings Are Back
In a deep-dive, the Vice Kings from Saints Row 1’s city of Stillwater make a splash with the hero Kingpin. This guy is the son of the Vice King’s original leader Benjamin King, and without those pesky Saints tearing things up, his gang rules Stillwater. Not even LEGION can deal with this guy — and his intro video includes tons (and we means) or references to Saints Row 1.
In the intro, you can see Freckle Bitches (an awful Wendy’s rip-off), Anthony “Big Tony” Green (Vice Kings second-in-command), an adult Angelo Lopez (Los Carnales second-in-command), Joseph Price (Westside Rollerz second-in-command), and Tanya. The begin stand-off against LEGION even goes down on 3rd Street, the street where the “3rd Street Saints” got their name.
Ultor Is Back Too
In Hollywood’s intro video, the infamous Ultor Corporation rears its ugly head — revealed as one of the major backers of the Agents of Mayhem. Ultor has a long history with the Saints Row franchise, but the evil company actually got its start in Red Faction. In that sci-fi FPS, Ultor cruelly exploits their Mars workers and kills without hesitation. The company returns in Saints Row 2 as the primary antagonist, with the now-hellbound CEO appearing in Gat Outta Hell.
I’m not too far in Agents of Mayhem yet, so there might be more to the company’s involvement than meets the eye. I’ll update this area with more details — if they’re cool, and not totally, completely lame.
Street Fight
Complete agent missions with Braddock to unlock the final face-off against Hauser, the traitorous soldier she trained. Before the mission begins, a Street Fighter 2-style “opposing heads” graphic appears on the screen, aping that popular Capcom fighting game. Go home and be a family man, Hauser.
There are many more Easter eggs, references, call-back and secrets in Agents of Mayhem. Check back here for new updates, or drop a comment if there’s something brain-bustingly obvious we missed.
