| Borderlands - review |
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| Written by Alexis M. (Rivithed) | |
| Friday, 06 November 2009 | |
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Borderlands
Borderlands review Borderlands drops you into the dusty wasteland of Pandora. It's a post apocalyptic setting, whose humans mainly take the occupation of the scavenging Vault Hunter. Your ride into Pandora begins with a selection of one of four characters, each with their own specialized skill set. You can choose to go the route of a Soldier, Siren Phasewalker, Hunter, or Berserker. Throughout your adventure, you're guided by a mysterious "Guardian Angel." She tips you on your main quest to locate the Vault, the ultimate stash of loot on the land. There are plenty of side-quests to keep you busy in the open world of the Wastelands. If you're to have any luck at reaching the Vault, you'll need to load and level up. Although you define your character class at the start of the game, how you build up your character's skill is up to you. You can distribute your skill points through three different skill trees for each character. Each character also has a unique Action Skill. I went for Mordecai, a Hunter (or better known as a sniper) who has the Bloodwing Action Skill, a bird of prey that you can unleash on distant enemies. Borderlands allows you to redistribute Skill Points if you are undecided or want to do some experimenting. Your weapon proficiency is also defined by how often you use a specific weapon type. Each weapon type has its own level meter. For example, the more I used my sniper rifle, the more proficient I was at using it (steady aim, more damage).  You can pick your missions from Bounty Boards, adding as many as you want to your to-do list. This adds a bit more to the story of Borderlands. There are a few characters that add to the story's plot as well, but I wouldn't say story plays such a huge role in Borderlands. There are some defining moments, but the show stealer is the one-wheeled robot, the CL4P-TP (known as "Claptrap"). The Claptraps seem to be the only ones who display any emotion in Pandora's wasteland. As you play in a first-person perspective (or third-person when driving), you'll be up against a variety of wasteland mutants. These include Skags, Rakks, midget bandits, and boss beasts. Environments aren't just the expected dusty brown desert wasteland. Caves, towns, building interiors and more environments keep the settings as fresh as they can be in Pandora.  If you've been following the previews and promotions of Borderlands, you've undoubtedly heard that this game is packed with a "gazillion" guns. It is! Boy, are there a ton. Assault rifles, SMGs, shotguns, revolvers, rocket launchers, sniper rifles. They each have their own stats and perks as well. You'll find your inventory filling fast with them. Many times, I found myself gauging which would offer the most damage, grant the best special effects, or have the most value. Some are common, others are rare. I wish there was a place where I could stash all the goods, like in Oblivion or Fallout 3. You can always sell your guns and buy them back later if you want. For the most part, you won't look back and your weapon slots will continue to expand by rescuing disabled Claptraps. For those of you that have played a game like Diablo or Sacred, Borderlands' skill building and gameplay is just as addictive. 2K Games and Gearbox rightfully call it an "RPS," a role-playing shooter. Borderlands nails the bullseye between role-playing game and first-person shooter. If you're wondering how it compares to a game like Fallout 3, Borderlands is heavier on the action shooting gameplay and lighter on the dialogue. Gearbox Software did make a shift in the art direction of Borderlands during its development, going for a cell-shaded-like cartoon look rather than a more 3D graphic look like Fallout 3. That shift makes the color palette much more vivid than Fallout 3, so you rarely suffer the dark screens that you may find on some HDTVs.  There are a few minor blemishes in Borderlands. Sometimes you might see some low-resolution/blurry textures loading in when you are first starting to play (something that is common to Unreal Engine games). A gameplay element that felt rough was when the vehicle would get stuck. The game's manual does advise you jump out and "give it a whack" to get it unstuck. Distance traveling to mission waypoints may be tiring or slow the action sometimes. The waypoint indicators may also throw you off on a few missions. These were really the only little details, which don't take away too much from the overall fun. The gameplay value in Borderlands is great. Just when you think Borderlands is coming to an end, it doesn't. Eventually when you complete a playthrough, you can continue to advance your character's skills and level through more playthroughs. You can also play with up to three other friends (4 total) online. The missions you play go according to wherever the host player is at with their game. In addition to this adding extra gameplay value, 2K Games and Gearbox Software will continue to offer more missions with expansion packs, the first being The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned. To sum it up, Borderlands takes some of the best of action-RPG play with the action-gunplay of FPS games. Borderlands is a keeper. My wife asked once when I was playing Borderlands, "Does this game make you feel like a badass or something?" I smiled back and replied, "Yeah, it does."
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