Get your guns and backpacks ready vault hunters! Borderlands is back this October with the Pre-Sequel. What is a Pre-Sequel I hear you asking? Simple, the game is set between the events of the first and second Borderlands games, meaning it a sequel to the first and a prequel to the second. The game is due to be released on Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and PC on 14^th October but not currently set to be released on next gen consoles. This likely means that it is intended to be a tiding over game until the unannounced, but surely in development, Borderlands 3 gets released. However that does not mean that 2K and Gearbox are resting on their laurels. They are intending for the Pre-Sequel to be the most feature heavy game yet, with a story that will appeal to casual fans but also be intriguing enough for long time fans of the series to come back for more.

Glance at some of the screenshots and you could be forgiven for thinking that you are seeing a DLC expansion to Borderlands 2. The old adage of if it isn’t broke don’t fix it appears to have been used here, as presentation wise it is very similar to previous games in the series. The same graphics engine is being used for that unique cel shaded look and the menus and customisation screens are virtually identical. Where the developers are focusing their attention though is in refreshing the core gameplay experience.

First up, the game is set in a brand new location. Ever since Borderlands 2, when the Evil Handsome Jack set up camp in his Hyperion Moon Base, fans have been clamouring to visit that locale and developers Gearbox, ever mindful of what the fans want, are delivering that very wish. That’s right, the Pre-Sequel is taking us to the moon!

 

However, there is more to this than just giving the fans a new location to play and loot in. Taking things to the moon will open up interesting new gameplay mechanics for the player. Being the moon and all, there is very little natural oxygen floating around, meaning that when you are out on the surface you will need to where breathing apparatus. Naturally, the oxygen reserve will deplete the longer you use it and if it runs dry completely you will start to suffocate. O2 can be replenished at beacons located around the world and by finding rich geysers, but it should still give a bit more tension to battles out in the wild and an extra dimension to consider.

 

It’s not all bad though, having an oxygen kit on your back will also have its advantages. All players will be equipped with a jetpack, meaning you will be able to make jumps that were never before possible and potentially save yourself for fatal drops. It also allows the player to perform the new slam attack. When airborne, you will be able to slam with great force into the ground below, causing huge damage to anyone caught in your radius. Both of these will sap O2 though, so will need to be used sparingly. Fire and explosive weapons will also not prove as effective on the moons surface, so players may need to manage their inventory more carefully than before.

 

The other main new features pertaining to gameplay are in the form of a new weapon type, laser, and a new elemental effect, cryogenic. The new laser weapons appear to come in two main variants, one that shoots a constant beam, and one that fires small bolts of energy. However from what has been shown so far neither appears to vastly alter gameplay, but it is still nice to have a new option. Cryo elemental, however, will change up gameplay tactics quite a lot. Firing cryo (ice) bullets will slow down enemies and even in some cases allow you to freeze and shatter your foes. This should be very effective against fast enemies and give you a new tactical option when working as a team.

 

Being a new Borderlands game it also gives you four more vault hunters to play as. The interesting thing about it this time around is all the protagonists have featured in the Borederlands series before. The vault hunters all work for Handsome Jack, the second games antagonist, and the story promises to show how Jack, despite having good intentions, came to be the scumbag we loved to hate in the second game.

First up for the new players characters is Wilhelm. You may remember him as a souped up loader boss you fought early in Borderlands 2. However in the Pre-Sequel he is not a loader, at least not yet. Interestingly enough, Gearbox has shown that the more you upgrade him the more mechanical he will become visually, adding a new dimension to the customisation. He appears to function as the jack-of-all-trades class, similar to Axton in the second game and his action skill allows you to summon two drones, one to attack enemies and one to protect Wilhelm.

 

Next is Athena, who is going to be the new tank class character. She was an NPC in the original Borderlands DLC, The Armory of General Knoxx. Her skill lets her bring up a shield which will absorb all frontal damge for a small period. The shield can then be thrown back at enemies to deal a portion of the absorbed damage back.

 

Third is a Nisha the Lawbringer, who was the mini boss the Sheriff of Lynchwood in Borderlands 2. Being a Sheriff, she is naturally very good with pistols and appears to be a raw damage over elemental character. Her action skill gives her an autolock ability, along with increasing virtually every gun based stat (damage, reload speed, aim time etc…).

 

Last up for playable characters is erm….. Claptrap? Yes, you read that right, the idiot robot companion who is routinely bested by a set of stairs will be available to play as in the Pre-Sequel. Gearbox is keeping their cards close to their chest with regards to how he (it?) will play, but based on the other characters skills I would assume he will play more of a support role, maybe even a medic focused class.

 

My only concerns for the Pre-Sequel at this stage is that it may be too familiar or too gimmicky. As a self confessed Borderlands obsessive all I want is more of the same, but I worry this may not be enough to entice back the ‘casual’ fan. Also, the new features, particularly relating to O2 management, appear to have a gimmicky vibe to them and may become more of a nuisance than anything else after repeated play. Also, Borderlands 2 got some of the best post release support ever from the developers with countless patches, hot fixes and numerous bits of exciting DLC. I fear that the Pre-Sequel wont get the same love, especially if the team are focusing on Borderlands 3.

 

All things considered though, the Pre-Sequel is shaping up very nicely indeed. With more loot than ever promised and a fresh new world with new characters to level up, I am already counting down the days until October 14^th. As long as the team give the game the care and love that the franchise deserves, then this could turn out to be another winner for 2K and Gearbox.

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