THQ sent out a press release today confirming the cancellation of the Enter the Dominatrix expansion pack for Saint's Row The Third. The expansion was originally teased as an April Fool's joke, but when the internet responded with enthusiasm to the idea the troubled publisher decided to make the joke into a reality. A price of $29.99 and a release window of this fall were announced for the expansion, which was set to spoof The Matrix (a little late on that one, but maybe that's part of the point?) by putting players into a computerized world and giving them an irradiated Saint's Flow drink that would bestow super powers upon them. 

With little in the way of funding, THQ is balancing on the brink. It's a delicate act, one that will take years to play out, and if the company isn't careful with where it spends its money it could mean the loss of hundreds of jobs and several great IP. With such huge stakes, it's not surprising that the company has opted to put the money that it was funneling towards Enter the Dominatrix towards a new Saint's Row game instead. 

In THQ's press release, new company President Jason Rubin says, "When I looked at the Enter the Dominatrix expansion in production at Volition, I was blown away by the ideas and the desire to expand the franchise. I asked the team what it could achieve given more time, more resources, and a broader scope for the project. We all agreed we wanted to play that game. When it comes to Saint's Row, it's clear our fans want bigger, better, and even more over the top, and that's why Enter the Dominatrix will now be incorporated into a vastly expanded, full-fledged sequel, scheduled for calendar 2013."

So there you have it, Saints! Expect a brand new game in the lauded franchise to drop sometime next year, and expect the Enter the Dominatrix expansion to play a pretty significant part in it.