Has
Borderlands 2 managed to re-capture the cel-shaded magic of the first title?
Or, more importantly, has it brought enough guns? I can safely say it does and
that it goes above and beyond the first game.
Story
The story
is much more engrossing and substantial than it was in Borderlands and really
gives you a scope for how important it is that you stop Handsome Jack.
You are
tasked with thwarting Handsome Jack’s plans which will allow him to take
control of the world – this would be bad, folks.
Although
the story is well told, to learn more about the story and characters I strongly
encourage you to do plenty of side-missions to collect the audio logs for an
abundance of background information.
Characters
Many new
characters are introduced alongside the familiar favourites such as Dr. Zed,
Tannis, Moxxi and the original Vault Hunter crew, and they are all as quirky
and likeable as we remember them to be, with the Vault Hunter group being given
a personality outside of audio logs this time round.
Sadly, your
character’s backstory is limited to audio logs and outside of those the most
you’ll hear of them is grunting and screaming during battle.
Gearbox
prove their ability to create unique characters with Tiny Tina, although it’s
highly debatable whether she’s annoying or endearing, and Sir Hammerlock who is
a retired adventurer after he lost his arm to a Thresher Maw.
Claptrap is
still a lovable idiot who refers to you as ‘minion’ throughout the entirety of
the game but he provides much comic relief and you will genuinely care for him
at times, as you will with many of the characters.
Gameplay
Borderlands
2 manages to stand out in the crowd of first-person shooters by including solid
RPG mechanics and a wide array of unique weaponry – no two weapons are the same
and this is emphasised by their attributes such as being able to set fire,
corrode, electrocute and explode enemies.
The skill
trees make a return and allow you to upgrade defence, offence and special
abilities, allowing you to play to a style that suits you best. If you make a
mistake in placing your skill points, you can reset them at a character
customisation panel.
Although
you are given the option to whizz through the main story, you’re essentially
forced to do plenty of side-missions to level up your character so that they
stand a shadow of a chance against later enemies. Luckily, the side-missions
are enjoyable and sometimes hilarious and so there’s not much to complain about,
but for someone who would prefer to focus on them after the main story, it’s an
annoyance that the difficulty levels spike unnaturally high between areas.
Graphics
The
gorgeous cel-shaded art returns and gives character and colour to a world that
faces its darkest times. We’re treated to a fantastic world with much more
diversity than the first instalment; we now have snowy tundra, barren
wastelands and dank caverns to visit across the expansive map.
It’s an
absolute delight to look at and this is aided by the lack of screen tearing and
through its steady frame-rate.
Character
models are easy on the eyes – especially Moxxi – if not a bit jerky when they
try to look at you indirectly or are performing an action.
Sanctuary
Citizens and bandits are mostly re-used models that you’ll eventually grow
bored of, but, luckily, that doesn’t matter when you’re aiming to blow their
heads off anyway.
You can
customise your characters hairstyle colour and their clothing colour, giving
you a sense of individuality in a world where you will come across many forms
of Maya, Zer0, Salvador and Axton.
If you’re
playing on PC then you are in for a real treat as the PhysX engine delivers new
layers not seen on PS3 or Xbox 360 such as sprawling dust and debris,
environmental damage such as barrel leaks and cloth tearing and it all looks much
more satisfying. It’s something that needs to be seen in action rather than
read about as otherwise, like I had done, you may be thinking, ‘Nah, the PhysX
engine just adds a few insignificant details’, and while it may not change the experience,
it makes the action much more satisfying.
Audio
The
soundtrack gets your adrenaline pumping during battles but otherwise it’s quite
tame and not something you’ll find yourself humming tunes from when you’re not
playing the game.
Guns,
explosions, voice acting and Claptraps beat boxing sound spectacular and never
outstay their welcome. You’ll also become best friends with your characters
scream as they go in to ‘Fight for your life!’ mode as you will go down. A lot.
Quite
possibly my biggest complaint involves audio logs and characters communicating
to you. They constantly overlap each other and, unlike in the first game, you
can’t replay audio logs so if a character decides to talk over it, subtitles
will not save you and you won’t have another chance to listen to them. This is
a giant flaw in a game that heavily relies on audio logs to inform you of
characters backstories such as why the new Vault Hunters have come to Pandora.
Lasting
Appeal
There may
be no competitive multi-player but Borderlands shows that not every game needs
it, that all it needs is a reason to re-visit the world created by providing an
intriguing story which can be played through alone or with friends and family.
Also, with
plenty of upcoming DLC and many Easter eggs, you will have many reasons to
re-visit Pandora and many new locations.
If an
immersive adventure is what you’re looking for then make sure to purchase
Borderlands 2 and, if you can, convince others to buy it too as it makes for a
much more enjoyable experience than when you are playing the game alone.
Mitchell is a freelance
journalist, Senior Moderator at Playfire. You can find more of his work
at http://mitchjay92.blogspot.co.uk/ or
contact him at www.playfire.com/mitchjay1992.
