Borderlands Reviews

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Written by BuckGB on October 21st, 2009

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After you uncover the secrets of the Vault, you are once again set loose into Pandora, where you are free to quest on and remember why you enjoyed your previous hours with the game. Borderlands has tens of hours of quests to fulfill, and you'll likely find yourself enticed back to explore new skills, find new guns, and kill more enemies. Though the core action doesn't change drastically over the course of the game, it is woven together in such a way that once it ensnares you, you'll want nothing more than to plunge into Pandora at any chance you get. Combat is satisfying, and upgrading your skills and equipment is engaging. The constant stream of loot and experience is rewarding, and sharing it with some friends makes the experience that much richer and more exciting. Despite its hostile (albeit stylish) environment, Pandora is a great planet to visit if you want to shoot some stuff. Just be sure to bring some friends along for the ride.

Playing with friends often leads to some hilarious moments, but I vastly preferred playing solo, as the slower-paced single-player game allowed me to thoroughly consider each loot drop. The accessible nature of Borderlands -- with its relatively non-punitive deaths, constant checkpoints, and convenient fast-travel systems -- makes it a fantastic game for introducing FPS fans to some basic RPG tropes. And, most importantly, the killing and looting never ceases to be fun.

With so much hoo-hah over the surprise redesign, it's funny to think that this little gem could've easily have slipped under the radar; the gameplay is identical, after all. As it stands, by emulating some RPG standards and reapplying them to the gorgeous setting, Borderlands actually manages to stand out. This is a significant thing, we think. With the right blend of attitude, solid gameplay and an unapologetic focus on making a really entertaining co-op experience, Borderlands isn't just an alternative to Valve's co-op zombie-blaster this holiday season, it's really the alternative.

All the developer interviews, all of the hype and conversation around Borderlands has been right. It's a shooter meets Diablo meets World of Warcraft, and while on face value it sounds like a horrible concoction of "buzz" gameplay systems and ideas, it works. Borderlands is a game that players are going to latch onto, it's got sleeper hit written all over it. This is the Crackdown of 2009 and we're all better off for it.

Borderlands is a very enjoyable game with a very unusual mix of genres which works very well. The graphics are very inventively created and the role playing influence should attract a wide audience not normally associated with a simple run and gun first person shooter. The only issue the game has is that after a while it gets a little repetitive, but if you like grinding and collecting Loot this should already be on your must have list.

As we mentioned at the start, genetics are a funny thing but Gearbox has managed to deliver the plucky child of two proud parents: the loot-whoring RPG/MMO and the tight, combat-focused FPS successfully combining the character, guts and style of both. It's also one of the best games this year, and everyone should play it.

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