Volition reveals character-sharing 'Initiation Station' for Saints Row: The Third

The ability to create ridiculouslyinappropriatecharacters isa hallmark of the Saints Row series', and today Volition revealed it'd be making the experience more communal with the addition of the Initiation Station for Saints Row: The Third.

Ready for use on launch day, the Initiation Station will let players upload their customized avatars to Volition's community site wheretheywill then be pimped out to other community members for use duringtheir own gang adventures. The feature will be free to use on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC, however it will be available one week early to those who pre-orderRed Faction: Armageddon, due out June 7th.

Character sharing is an alluring concept, but not at all unique. Players have been trading avatar designs via configuration codes for years, and Silicon Studio built in a similar, more user-friendly community feature for its 3D Dot Game Heroes. That said, Saints Row's character creation tools are more robust and NSFW than most, so maybeVolition's intentisn't so much aboutofferingsomething new as it is about offering a new way for players to showcase their inner freak.