Crazy Gamers Podcast

Borderlands (Xbox 360, PS3, PC)
Fun Factor: 5/5
Where do I even begin? To be brief, Borderlands is a self-promoted “RPS,” or Role-Playing Shooter, as developer Gearbox has dubbed it, on a fictional extraterrestrial planet called Pandora. Players choose from one of 4 playable characters, each designed uniquely as a separate class (Hunter, Soldier, Siren, Beserker) similar to most games relative to the genre (of the RPG persuasion at least.) Players arrive at their aforementioned destination during a brief introductory presentation that does little to dissuade sufferers of attention deficit disorder. If you can sit through what is roughly a 2-3 minute scene of story enlightenment, you’ll promptly be rewarded with what is essentially a God-only-knows how many hours of minimum interruption, action-packed game play.
Borderlands is an experience that provides ample opportunity for single player enjoyment (I’m about half-way through the story at level 27, with the cap being 50, and I’ve already dedicated between 40-45 hours of play time) or co-op multiplayer via online parties of up to 4 players and likewise split-screen local options. Despite the fact that you’ll only be playing with up to 3 other people at a given time, Borderlands in many ways is structured like an MMO, minus the “massive” element. Hell, this game doesn’t even know what it is, and honestly I don’t believe it cares, and neither should you. It’s a shooter, an RPG, an open world MMO-esque game, a racer, and an action game all rolled up into a highly addictive crack-infused package. I purchased this game upon the day of its release, and as of this writing 6 days have elapsed. I’ve already told you how many hours I’ve put into the game, so draw your own conclusions. I have not inserted another game besides Borderlands into my 360 since I brought it home, and this was not intentional, it just is.
The game is advertised as having “a bazillion guns,” or some other hyperbolic twist on wording. Either way, it’s irrelevant; you could invest disgusting amounts of time trying to tally the exact number, but not only could you end up unsuccessful, but there’s no point. If ratings and ethics were non-existent, they could just say on the box “there’s a SHIT load of guns,” and they’re not kidding. I would hate to recommend a game based solely on its weapon variety, but this is gun porn folks. The sheer vastness of just how many different ways you can kill things in this game is amazing, and besides just the sake of this is also how damn cool and inventive the weaponry is in its description. Each class has its own method of playing, with individually existing characters that lean either to combat rifles, SMG’s, Melee or Snipers. Worth noting is that even if your character is designed as a class that excels with a specific weapon or tactic, this does not limit you from becoming proficient with other weaponry and having a well-rounded experience and options as to how to approach your attacks.
For me personally, this game is killing and looting. That’s all there is to be said; enemies spawn regularly and without warning, and the enemy variety is decent enough to earn an above average grade. Psychos and bruisers are sadistic human agitators, Rakks attack from the sky as winged pterodactyl-like creatures, Skags are the mutant offspring of dogs and lizards, spider ants and crab worms are self-explanatory, and most of the bosses, although human, have some sort of gimmick or feature about them that make them identifiably different and fun to confront. In regards to the looting, it’s mind-blowing how much its presence is highlighted. As time unfolds in the game, previously looted areas respawn items, and anytime the player quits the game and returns, no matter how much time has passed, all areas are updated with new loot to obtain. Any listeners who are privy to my game preferences know that I am partial to Fallout 3, Bioshock and Dead Space specifically. Part of the reason I am thoroughly enjoying Borderlands is because the item drops and exploration features are similar to these games, and of course the Diablo and WoW comparisons deserve to be in the same breath. It has the most in common with Fallout 3, especially due to the Wasteland aesthetic of the environment, and the looting is in the same vein as well because picking up actual money in cash form is just as inundated as the bottle caps in Bethesda’s game. Fallout 3 had a brilliant weapon selection, and it actually somewhat scares me to think that, by God, Borderlands’ just might be…better. I won’t overstep my fan-boy boundaries, but fellow Fallout fiends know what I’m talking about.
I will go more in depth on the next podcast about this game, so for the sake of making this review more of a short story instead of a novel, quite simply, this is one of the most fun games I have ever played. Single player or co-op, yes and yes, I’ll take it either way. It’s like letting your girlfriend decide which sexual position you will engage in; are you really going to complain about the verdict? No…either way you’re going to get your noodle wet, and I have drowned my e-noodle in Borderlands glory for up to 6 hours at a time without piss or cigarette breaks. I never imagined a game could surpass Fallout 3 in its addictive “just one more quest…” time eater fashion, but Borderlands does. Don’t even attempt to play this game if you can’t afford a wedding ring or just aren’t commitment material.
“Replay” Ability: 5/5
I am of the opinion that games excelling in this area and are most likely to never see the light of Gamestop again are games with dedicated multiplayer modes or full scale, 50+ hour RPG’s. I’m not going to trade in Halo or Call of Duty, I’m not going to trade in Fallout or Mass Effect, and for both reasons I’m not going to trade in Borderlands. If you do every single plot driven quest, every side quest (there’s if not 100, then close), take time to build your character and loot/horde your weapons, and then REPEAT this to see the differences across the 4 different characters, you’ve got hundreds of hours of game play. The fact that you can do this at any time with a couple buddies makes it even more rewarding, and I know in the last 6 days I have played with 3 different people who, like me, appear to be playing this game exclusively. It’s immensely satisfying to meet up with your buddies after you hear that  “bloop” sound of a party invite, and then compare weapon acquisitions, quest rewards and share opposing outcomes you’ve encountered. The story is more linear than your standard RPG’s, so every player will progress the events the same, but depending on what level you were when you did so, you’re certainly not going to kill that one boss the same way as your friend, or receive the same rewards/loot. This game is full of water cooler moments for sure, assuming you still have a job where you stand by a water cooler, considering you may lose it after no call/no showing because of Borderlands.
Emotional Investment/Worth Playing?: 4.5/5
Above all else, I would recommend this game to you if for no other reason than the fact that it is one of the best games of the year for any platform. If you consider yourself a gamer, and especially if you are partial to the genres outlined above, I would consider it a crime if you don’t play Borderlands at some point. There’s no demo available at present time, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it never comes because I don’t believe it needs one. If 2K and Gearbox haven’t gotten the attention of their target demographic based on the nature of their selected cover art (one of the game’s psycho characters boldly expressing a suicide gesture via two trigger simulating fingers aimed at his skull, splattering hypothetical “brain matter” which is filled with an in-game scene) I’m not sure what else they can do. If you’ve seen the cover art and have spent full price on shooters/RPG’s in the past, just go buy Borderlands, ’nuff said.
In light of this avalanche of positive praise, I will admit Borderlands’ story is as chunky as Kate Moss compared to games in the same family tree. The majority of the NPC’s don’t really emote much, and other than initial quips or commentary upon approaching them, there is little character interaction, with the exception of the combat obviously. Most of the story and mission objectives are detailed via the inventory logs the player uses to navigate his or her path, along with periodical voice logs the player picks up. Instead of these logs being randomly scattered, like in Bioshock or Dead Space, they are intentionally designated as components integral to quests; you’re looking for them on purpose and they don’t interfere with the game play. Despite this, I have found myself, at times, disregarding what these logs actually tell me because I can get the gist of what I’m supposed to do according to the objectives themselves; close this valve, find this item, light this fuse, etc. Understanding why I’m doing these things and what effect they have on the story is easy to ignore and therefore detracts from the plot, but it is a minor flaw at the most. When your options for customization, exploration and death device discovery are so in depth, you’ll find yourself not really letting it bother you. It is a shame to note though, because ultimately games like Fallout excelled in all of the same areas and did have much more character interaction and strong story aspects. Don’t let it bring you down too much, however, because you’ll be having too much fun with what the game does give you to worry about what it may lack.
Polish/Quality/Presentation: 4/5
This is the bulk of where my criticism for the game will lurk, and what holds it just a hair’s length from being a perfect game. For starters, the game currently has several achievement glitches preventing players from upping their gamerscore. Without starting a debate about the credibility and opinions regarding achievements, it is an annoying presence that I can see disappointing some players. I can’t speak on the PC and PS3 versions, although Sony adopters have reportedly experienced some online co-op complications, but 360 gamers who consider achievements important will get agitated if they experience these glitches. Certain cheevies relating to killing enemies with particular weapons or vehicles, or acquiring specific sums of in-game currency have not unlocked for some, myself included, but this is something Gearbox could fix with a patch, which I predict we will see at some point indefinitely. It doesn’t hurt the quality of the game, but it is a problem that I haven’t seen elsewhere really to this extent and should meet the expectations implied when playing a 360 game.
Besides the more trivial complaint above, I have encountered numerous glitches, most of them ragdoll. I killed one behemoth boss early on in the game and upon him expiring, I walked right through what became his transparent corpse. My buddy played the same boss and claimed the body just disappeared for him. I’ve seen enemies float mid-air after dying, and loot dropped from enemies perched from above likewise float instead of hitting the ground. Some of the entrances in the game show dark shadowed rooms, but upon walking through their thresholds the rooms suddenly become well lit. After exiting, the rooms once again appeared dark. None of the above contribute to the prevention of progression, but lose points just for a lack of shine the game could have had.
Invisible walls are sporadic, with the player becoming unable to cross certain barriers although they can clearly see the environment continue due to the draw distance. There’s a fair amount of geometry sticking, sometimes with the character getting stuck in places they may not have sought out intentionally. I fell down the shaft of an elevated platform by accident, only to get stuck at the bottom and had to reload the game to get out. Vehicles control good for the most part, but the sticking problem is more common with them in general. The game allows the player to hit the right thumbstick to melee vehicles they intend to “unstick” or flip, but it doesn’t always work. Luckily, there is no limit to how many times you spawn a vehicle, so it doesn’t detriment the game too much.
One design choice that could have received more thought was the organization of split-screen menus. The screens are the same size as when playing single player, therefore when playing on the same TV players must use the joysticks to move the menus horizontally in order to see all information contained to account for sharing the screen. I also noticed considerable lag whenever I opened my personal menu as I played with my buddy, causing some screen stuttering I could have dealt without.
The menu interface is designed intuitively well, providing screens to outline missions, skill points earned per level to bulk up individual player “special” abilities (such as turrets, phase walking, etc), weapons, shields and item inventory, an overhead map, overall player stats and even a special page dedicated to separate in-game “challenges,” earned by racking up kills or performing actions that provide bonus amounts of XP. The level design is fantastic, and the choice to incorporate cell-shaded concept art was for the best. The game has a beautiful aethetic and is in its own league as far as visuals, and although not quite as heavy on the gore as Fallout 3, it is respectable in its own right and satisfyingly gruesome. Shadowing and particle effects are particularly well done, as shadows cast from the sun render gorgeously, and sparks from currents and fire from explosions sometimes force you to pause momentarily to gaze at the spectacle before you. I found myself doing this on an SD TV, and in 1080p it’s a monumental feat of animated splendor.
The voice work is top notch, as each of the 4 character classes have little one liners and mannerisms they contribute during the heat of battle to set them apart. Dying enemies express torment, pain, suffering and fear in an unrivaled sense of reality. If you light a guy on fire, his reaction is as believable to really setting someone on fire as you could portray. You do some horrific shit in this game, and honestly more often than not it’s not heavy in a “gamey” sense. The voice actors don’t really “act” as much as they convey convincing responses to context sensitive in-game scenarios and proceedings. Okay, maybe it is acting, just not in the traditional sense. Furthermore, the soundtrack mirrors the pace of the frantic action and matches the intensity of the altercations. It sets mood accordingly, and at the appropriate times.
Some criticisms I feel are unjust, such as the lack of a trading mechanic. Players must drop items at will if they wish to swap, and just hope the other person uses proper trustworthy morals. I could see MMO players finding this discouraging, but honestly the game is so good that it’s not the game’s problem if you don’t have a friend to play with. My friends list is fairly small and I still have 3 people to play with, and if they screw me out of an item I know where they live. There should be enough people playing this game if early sales indications are accurate, that I wouldn’t suggest playing with “random” people anyway; it’s a game intended to play with your friends, the people you are most likely to pursue fun with. Co-op in general is more of a “play with friends” thing; if it were competitive multiplayer it would make more sense, but for the sake of its design I don’t believe this lack of inclusion weighs too heavy on the quality of Borderlands. Play with your pals, but if you do play with strangers then just use caution and don’t give “that weird dude” your most prized weapon in an attempted trade. You should be spending more time in the ubiquitous weapon, health, and ammo vending machines and pursuing their offerings, and there are over a million guns; even if that other dude has a sweet weapon you haven’t found, you probably have one just as awesome that he doesn’t, so move along.
Similarly, the game will not let players host the sessions if they are too far ahead in the story compared to other players. They can still play, but won’t be able complete their current quests due to the others who are still climbing the ranks. Money and XP are shared no matter how you do it, however ammo is first come first served. I wasn’t perturbed by this because the game hands out money and items like candy, so just because you didn’t get that last pile of SMG rounds doesn’t mean there won’t be another drop right ahead, or a conveniently placed ammo machine that you have more than enough dough to afford browsing. In juxtaposition, players who are far ahead can let the lesser ranked players host, and just assist them in completing the quests they’ve personally already finished. So to sum up, if you’re far ahead of someone you have two options: either take a break from your quests and help them out for a bit, or just tell them you’d rather wait until they catch up. You can’t go into your buddy’s level 30 character game as a level 10 and expect to decimate foes in a believable manner. The game’s difficulty scales to the number of players, so with 2, 3, or even 4 total participants the brutality will be maximized. Lesser ranked dudes would get stomped, and even allowing this would make it silly. You should start together and play through the game as a team, that way you remain close in level, otherwise don’t plan to play co-op until you’re each ready to create a new character and start a new playthrough.
I’ve also heard negativity directed at the game’s map and the fast traveling system. In short, the map doesn’t allow you to manually adjust your waypoints, and sometimes markers appear in places that aren’t exactly right on top of the item or location in question. I do agree that it’s weird not being able to set your waypoints, but as mentioned earlier the plot missions are sided in favor of the linear approach, so the game will make it clear where to go even if you don’t know “where” is yet. You’ll figure it out when you get there. I think the map fulfills its duties adequately, and sometimes markers not appearing right on top of their location is just an example of difficulty in precision with these types of games. It’s not exactly easy to find a used car part in a pile of rubbage in a world as big as this, considering the marker on the map is bigger in size than the tiny outlined drawings of where it was hidden. This is trial and error at its core; don’t fault the developers for actually having to challenge yourself sometimes to emerge victorious. Otherwise, you might as well have them play the game for you.

From the compelling and vibrant art direction, the branding of the term “Role Playing Shooter,” and randomized weapon generating mechanic, Borderlands is a fresh and exciting spin on both the shooter and RPG categories of video games. I can’t think of another game with as many options, customizations, replayable qualities or absorbing characteristics. The character guide named Claptrap, a loud mouthed witty little robot fellow, is a nice touch (there’s 10 of him spread out across the levels, and each one of them can be fixed after finding a repair item that enables new slots of inventory space.) The fact that this is a quasi-RPG and has 4 player co-op, while maintaining enough intensity and fast paced chaos to also be considered a shooter, is thoroughly remarkable. You get to feel in touch with your character by deciding what upgrades they utlilize and the approachs and tendencies they develop, while simultaneously releasing frustration with friends in a co-op atmosphere. Call it mindless, call it gratuitous, call it whatever you want…but for my money, Borderlands is an undeniably special experience, and one hell of a great time.

I think you’ve been reading long enough. Occasionally irritating glitches here, and questionable design choices there, Borderlands has enough nit-picky concerns to make it just a tad shy of gaming utopia. However, due to the mild nature of the problems these things cause, and how some things, like achievements, may not even matter to some, I would not argue with someone who declared they thought this was a 5 out of 5. For my preference, it certainly is, but in order to stay impartial as a reviewer, I need to point out problems when they exist. Borderlands is not a flawless game…but any flaws you can point out would be less severe than the flaw of you never deciding to play it.
BEATZ