When the first Borderlands came out, Gearbox the developers behind it labeled it FPS and RPG made a baby. The genre quickly struck a note with the players and propelled the new franchise to great heights which spawned a second part. Now there’s a third installment which is like a filler for the events in between the first and second one. This time around the people at the helm of development are 2k Australia rather than Gearbox. What can the fans of the previous two installments expect from this one? The generous loot system, upgrading of skills and zany / simply wacky scenarios filled with equally humorous dialogs and memorable one-liners are order of the day.
Plot
Remember the wise cracking villain of Borderlands 2 named Handsome Jack? Well this time around he is the central figure. Handsome Jack working for Hyperion Cooperation is in charge of a space station named Helios which is attacked by a group called Lost Legion. Jack is ousted with four playable characters (all villains of the previous games) and attempts to win back control of Helios by defeating the Lost Legion.
New playable Characters
The four new characters introduced this time around are:
Athena, Nisha, Wilhelm and Claptrap. Yes, you can actually play as the beloved (or annoying depending on player’s perspective) robot. Each of the characters have their own unique skill tree which can be upgraded and enhanced to reap various benefits.
What’s new!
Aesthetics wise there’s nothing new that would distinguish this installment from the previous two. The same cell shaded characters and environments to behold but what does set this installment apart from its predecessors is introduction of new gameplay mechanics. Since the game takes place on the moon of Pandora called Elpis, the developers have accordingly incorporated low gravity environments, oxygen tanks and dropping from a height with tremendous velocity upon your opponents aka a butt slam.
Apart from the arsenal having elemental effect which was carried over from previous two parts, there’s a new elemental cryogenic elemental effect which can freeze and slow down enemies. Frozen enemies can be shattered using the butt slam or simply melee attacking the carp out of them. Thankfully new vehicles like the moon buggy and “Stingray” hoverbike have also been made available.
Upgrading characters and seeing them mow down the baddies is always pleasing but playing with claptrap was a share delight for this author. Claptrap’s skill “ValutHunter.exe” was unpredictable, random and didn’t always have the desired effect in a combat situation which also made for copious amounts of guffaws.
The solo campaign is fun but the real gist of the game is playing with some likeminded Borderlands loving friends. The action is unrelenting, the foes not as smart but nevertheless aggressive and numerous and the loot well that will put the best of friendships to test! The matchmaking aspect of the game is a bit anarchic and doesn’t work as smoothly as expected but that doesn’t dampen the overall fun of it.
Borderlands the Pre sequel has just enough meat and shenanigans to keep the ravenous fans of the previous games happy and thoroughly satisfied. New players who haven’t played the previous parts would be left in the lurch and are better off playing the second installment of the game first.
