Borderlands 2 takes what the first game
offered, and adds more, larger areas to explore, more characters, a
fantastic story, new enemies, new ways to play, a great soundtrack
and stylized graphics that are just as unique as before, but now look
even better. And like the first game, it is playable as a four-player
co-operative game with easy drop-in / drop-out. If you're an fps fan
you owe it to yourself to get this game. I realize that sounds a bit
fanboyish, but really, Borderlands 2 is THAT good.
Installed size on my hard-drive (GOTY
edition): 10.4 GB.
The number of areas to explore is huge.
I don't have the exact data, but it feels several times larger than
the first game. There is a lot of snow at the start, but there are
rocky deserts, alpine meadows, and a slag-riddled environmental
monstrosity awaiting at the end. Quick-travel points abound (usually
at the entrances to areas), so it's easy to go from one place to
another. In-game save points are unfortunately like the first game;
even if you passed a quick-save point, then quit the game thinking
you'll resume where you left off, well, you won't. When you resume,
you'll be back at the start of the level. Levels are well designed,
too – twisting and turning at times, while others are wide open.
The characters that we played in the
first game (Roland, Lilith, Mordecai and Brick) are NPCs here, with
the story centered around them. Angel, Claptrap, Moxxi, Scooter, Dr.
Zed and Marcus return as well. So right away, stepping out into the wastes of Pandora has a familiar vibe. Except now the enemy is the boss
of Hyperion Corp, Handsome Jack. Colorful and distinct, there are
enough personalities here to never lose interest – even when doing
several of the fetch-quest filler missions (yes, they're back, but
given the looting-and-leveling nature of the Borderlands games,
probably unavoidable). While the story is great, I can't talk too
much about it here without spoiling it. The early stages play out as
a defy-the-odds hero tale as the player character defies Handsome
Jack and escapes to the town of Sanctuary. Angel is still guiding you
on your HUD, but your character catches her in a bit of deception.
The second act reveals who (and where) she is – and sets the stage
for the third act, which culminates in the showdown with Handsome
Jack. I was genuinely curious about how this was going to resolve,
and kept playing all the way through. This isn't even touching the
side missions and quests for secondary characters. Side quests are a
mixed bag. I was more than happy to free some animals for Mordecai;
collecting body parts for Dr. Zed while a timer counted down was just
annoying, and the rewards were barely worth it in either case
(usually XP and a weapon which was far below my current level). The
only reason to do a number of the side missions is because of the
possibility of rare loot and character backstory. The rest are grindy
level-fodder, needed for leveling up, but nothing else.
I solo'd most of Borderlands 2 –
yeah, crazy – and the game worked well as a solo experience. The
bosses were never too hard; just long. One boss took me 45 minutes of
running, hiding, sniping, and running again (I was playing the
commando class). Clearly the bosses were not designed for soloing.
The loot drops were also disappointing. The guns for sale at the
kiosks were always – and I mean always – worse than what I was
carrying. It's better to loot new weapons than buy them. Which means
that other than ammo, there's nothing to spend money on (except
respawning). The best weapons are acquired by using a “golden key”
on the special loot-drop chest in Sanctuary, so sometimes it's just
easier to spend a golden key than spending hours poring over loot
(some side-missions for Moxxi do provide decent weapons).
If there is a drawback to Borderlands
2, it’s the amount of DLC. There is a lot. Tiny Tina’s Assault on
Dragon Keep was one of the best pieces of DLC I’ve ever
encountered, having a fun story that was uniquely told. The Captain
Scarlett DLC, the Creature Slaughterdome DLC and Torgue’s Campaign
of Carnage DLC provide solid additional content. But additional
player classes as DLC? (The Psycho and Mechromancer DLCs) Raising the
character level cap via DLC? (Ultimate Vault Hunter Upgrade packs)
There are a number of DLC packs that focus on skins and such, but
this level of “parting out” the game verges on the ridiculous. If
the game were not complete without the DLC, it’d be time for a
rant. However, without the DLC, Borderlands 2 still feels like a
complete experience. Thus I lament the DLC situation, but deduct no
points for it.
In an age when it’s cool to have “the
latest” at expense of forgetting the hit games of yesteryear,
Borderlands 2 inspires the sort of interest that kept me coming back
again and again. A great achievement in fps video games, and a game
that belongs in the library of every fan of the genre.
