Volition inspired by Saints Row: The Third's dildo bat

Saints Row: The Third's most infamous weapon helped Volition overcome a serious case of developer's block.

As reported by Gamasutra, Saints Row: The Third design director Scott Phillips said during a GDC presentation that Volition had lost its way with the game part way through development.

At one point, Saints Row: The Third was to be an undercover cop story, with the player making significant choices; the result didn't feel like Saints Row, so Volition scrapped it. But while the developer had a handle on what Saints Row is not, it still wasn't sure what it is.

Then the art team got a bit carried away with the dildo bat, and it all clicked into place.

"I feel like I'm playing something unlike anything else - we know what Saints Row is now," Phillips remembered.

"Initially it was just one bullet-pointed weapon in one mission spec out of 30 mission specs. It wasn't a big part of the game. But the artists went crazy with it and made something that was even crazier."

Saints Row: The Third shipped for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 last year, and it's pretty alright.