Borderlands (video game)
Encyclopedia
Borderlands is a science fiction
based first-person shooter
with RPG
elements that was developed by Gearbox Software
for PlayStation 3
, Xbox 360
, Microsoft Windows
and Mac OS X
. It was first revealed in the September 2007 issue of Game Informer
magazine. The console versions of the game were released in North America on October 20, 2009, and were released in PAL countries on October 23. The console version release for the Japanese market was made available on February 10, 2010. The Windows version was released on October 26 for North America and then on October 29 internationally. The Mac OS X
version of the game was released on by Feral Interactive
. A sequel, Borderlands 2
, is currently in development.
Borderlands includes character-building elements found in role-playing games
, leading Gearbox to call the game a "role-playing shooter". At the start of the game, players select one of four characters, each with a unique special skill and with proficiencies with certain weapons. The four characters are: Roland the Soldier, Mordecai the Hunter, Lilith the Siren, and Brick (a Berserker) "as himself". From then on, players take on quests assigned through non-player character
s or from bounty boards, each typically rewarding the player with experience point
s, money, and sometimes a reward item. Players earn experience by killing foes and completing in-game challenges (such as getting a certain number of kills using a specific type of weapon). As they gain levels from experience growth, players can then allocate skill points into a skill tree that features three distinct specializations of the base character; for example, Mordecai can become specialized in sniping
, gunslinging
with revolver
s, or using his pet Bloodwing to assist in kills and health boosting. Players can distribute points among any of the specializations, and can also spend a small amount of in-game money to redistribute their skill points.
Players start the game with the ability to equip two weapons, but can later gain up to four weapon slots, as well as slots for an energy shield, a grenade modification, and a class modification. Items collected but not used can be sold back at vendors for money that then can be used to buy better items. One of the key features of Borderlands is the randomly-generated weapons and items created either as dropped by enemies, found in storage chests about the game, sold at vendors in the game, or as quest reward items. The game uses a "Procedural
Content Creation System" to create these weapons and items, which can alter their firepower, rate of fire, and accuracy, add in elemental effects such as a chance to set foes on fire, and at rare times other special bonuses such as regenerating the player's ammo. A color-coded scale is used to indicate the rarity of the weapon or item. It was estimated that the random system could generate over 17 million variations of weapons, but actually only resulted in 987,564. The Procedural system is also used to create the characteristic of random enemies that the player may face. This allows for enemies of the same species to have widely-varying attacks: for example, variations of "spiderants" in the game could leap around and would jump onto players' faces, while another variant can roll up into a ball and attack people, depending on the content generator.
When in combat, the player can take damage if their shield is depleted, affecting their health. If they lose all their health, they must either wait to be revived by another player or attempt to kill an enemy to achieve a "second wind", or otherwise will be regenerated back at the last "New-U" station that they passed, losing a small percentage of their money in the process. Players also must respawn at the 'New-U' station after a certain amount of time. Players quickly gain access to two-passenger vehicles, and can engage in vehicular combat with other enemies. Eventually, a system of fast transit points between the game world is available to the player; until then, players must walk or drive between areas to get around.
The game can be played alone, but also supports two-player cooperative play through split-screen (on consoles), and up to four players playing co-operatively online or over LAN
. The game follows the progress of the host player, rewarding the other active players for completion of quests for their characters. If the other players are doing the same quests in their campaign, the completed quests remain the same in their campaign as well as the host's. When more players are present, the game alters the statistics of the generated enemies, balancing the game due to the larger number of players. Players can take part in one-on-one duels anywhere in the game world, or can visit arenas in the game world to participate in free-for-all, 2-on-2 or 3-on-1 combat battles with their fellow players.
Borderlands is notable for its visual graphic style. A cel-shading
technique was used when the developers decided that their original concept artwork would suit the game better than a more realistic, polished method.
This makes for somewhat cartoon-like action visuals; for example, the experience points gained and any special hit damage information float up from the enemy upon a successful hit. This method also enables the landscape and weapons to be highly detailed.
Prior to the events of the game, one of the other mega-corporations, known as the Atlas Corporation, had found an ancient vault on a nearby planet known as Prometheus, filled with alien technology that allowed them to make leaps and bounds in starship and weaponry technology, and overtake their competitors. The presence of similar alien ruins scattered across Pandora spurs the Dahl Corporation to undertake an extensive search for a possible vault on Pandora, headed by a respected xeno-archeologist by the name of Tannis.
However, the Dahl-sponsored search for a vault on Pandora turns out to be fruitless, and the massive industrial mining operations soon deplete the bulk of the mineral deposits. Furthermore, the coming of the planet's summer unleashes hordes of dangerous alien wildlife coming out of hibernation.
Those who are rich and important enough to leave the planet do so, leaving the rest of the population to scavenge for their living in isolated settlements, seeking out a living in the barren wastelands and industrial trash heaps across the planet. To make matters worse, the Dahl Corporation simply opened the gates of the prison labor camps during their departure, and gangs of bandits terrorize the populace. Despite the lack of evidence of its existence, legends persist of "The Vault"—a supposed treasure trove of alien artifacts, technology, and of immeasurable wealth—but it is rumored that any who had discovered it were wiped out by a protective force, leaving few clues as to its location or purpose while a myth was born of the marvelous treasures within.
While the player is able to secure the second and third Vault key pieces without incident, they find that the final piece is not where it is expected. Steele contacts the player, revealing that Tannis had betrayed them and that there are in fact only three pieces, then proceeds to cut off the planet's ECHO network disabling further communication with the Guardian Angel. The player infiltrates the Crimson Lance's headquarters and finds Tannis locked up; she claims she had no choice but to betray the player under force, but urges the player(s) to restart the ECHO network and to prevent Steele and the Crimson Lance from using the key. After restoring the network, the Guardian Angel urges the player to hurry and stop Steele. The player finds, as they approach the Vault, that the Crimson Lance are in combat with alien Guardians; after bypassing both forces, the player finally arrives at the Vault, too late to stop Steele from using the key. However, when the Vault opens, Steele and her guard are wiped out by a giant monster that is attempting to escape the vault. The Guardian Angel explains that the monster is called the Destroyer, imprisoned in the Vault by the alien Eridians long ago to prevent it from destroying the universe, with the Guardians present to prevent anyone from opening it. The player is able to defeat the monster, sealing the Vault for another 200 years. The player is shown that the Guardian Angel is a Hyperion satellite orbiting around Pandora communicating with the player through the ECHOnet. The game ends with the Hyperion satellite sending a signal to a claptrap robot on the planet, changing it into a "Interplanetary Ninja Assassin" (leading into the plot of the DLC "Claptrap's New Robot Revolution").
(DLC) for Borderlands and includes new quests, items, and enemies—including WereSkags and various zombie
s. The storyline takes place in an area known as Jakobs Cove which is a small town built by the Jakobs Corporation. Dr. Ned had been in charge of keeping the workers of Jakobs Cove alive, but ended up transforming them into zombies. The main plot revolves around finding previous visitors to Jakobs Cove and investigating Dr. Ned himself after the Jakobs Corporation become suspicious of his work. The playable area includes a large outdoor map with several further areas branched from the main zone—including a dark, abandoned version of previous area 'Old Haven'. The installment was released for the Xbox 360 (for 800 Microsoft points) and PlayStation 3 versions on November 24, 2009, which was celebrated with a trailer. The PC version was released via Steam with SecuROM
on December 9, 2009.
gave Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot a 6.0/10, praising the fact that friends can be added in to play, and stated that everything else needed work. "There's no more gun, money, or ammo drops, and no XP" and stated that "the only decent amount of guns you'll find are in Marcus Kincaid's vendor machine."
by Gearbox creative director Mike Neumann on January 21, 2010, said the pack would also include "more Scooter", who is a character in the game. This was followed by an official announcement from Gearbox via Gearboxity on January 29, 2010, confirming the release, level cap increase, brand new weapons, and "brutal, never-before-seen enemies in a huge new environment complete with tons of brand new missions" according to Gearbox, developer of the game. Not to mention, the most powerful creature in all of Borderlands labeled as a "Secret Final Boss" or "Crawmerax the Invincible". The DLC package became available February 23 for Xbox 360, and February 25 for PlayStation 3 and PC.
This DLC however received some negative impact due to players complaining about the size of this DLC's maps.
On August 11, 2010, 2K confirmed the title of the content, Claptrap's New Robot Revolution, and its main premise. The DLC has 21 missions (split between 9 main missions and 12 side quests), 2 new skill points, and six additional backpack slots. The game focuses around a rogue army of malfunctioning Clap-Traps (led by CL4P-TP, Interplanetary Ninja Assassin, the same Claptrap that is seen getting struck by lightning just after the end credits), along with an army of familiar enemies transformed into Clap-Trap styles (i.e., Crab-Traps, Rakk-Traps, and Skag-Traps). A wide variety of old cast members return alongside new faces. New fast-travel destinations are also expected, a first for Borderlands DLC.
On September 5, 2010, Pitchford announced at the Penny Arcade Expo that the release date was scheduled to be September 28, 2010. Pitchford also announced a free patch to increase the level cap by 8 for all players (to a maximum of Level 69, or 58 for those without Knoxx's Armory), regardless of whether the General Knoxx expansion had been purchased.
score of 84 and 83 for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 respectively.
Jeff Gerstmann
from Giant Bomb
gave Borderlands 4 stars out of 5, called it a successful loot-driven first-person shooter "where plenty of other Diablo
-inspired games have failed miserably", but criticized the "paper-thin story" and the "predictable AI". Charles Onyett from IGN
awarded Borderlands an 8.8/10 and an Editor's Choice Award. He noted that fans of RPGs would enjoy the streamlined item management, and treasure hunting, but criticized the lack of character skills. With "beautiful visuals, tried and true RPG mechanics, and solid first-person-shooter gameplay", Onyett felt that the game was very enjoyable. RPGLand's Ivan Taran gave it a rating of "Great" and the game went on to win the site's Xbox 360 Game of the Year award, and be named the Runner-up for overall Game of the Year 2009, losing out to Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.
told GameSpot
"... Borderlands could very well surprise the market and consumers as BioShock
did in 2007." As of December 2009, the game had sold over 2 million copies according to Take-Two's financial report. By February 2010, the number had risen to 3 million.
Since its release, the game has sold 4.5 million units worldwide.
was announced on August 2, 2011 for the PlayStation 3
, Xbox 360
, and Microsoft Windows
platforms. The game is being developed by Gearbox Software
and distributed by Take-Two Interactive
, and is expected to be released in the 2012 fiscal year, which lasts between April 2012 and March 2013. The game features many technical improvements and follows four new characters on Pandora as they battle Handsome Jack and the Hyperion Corporation.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
based first-person shooter
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
with RPG
Role-playing game (video games)
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
elements that was developed by Gearbox Software
Gearbox Software
Gearbox Software, LLC is an American video game development company based in Plano, Texas.-History:Gearbox Software was founded in January 1999 by five members of the content team from the defunct developer Rebel Boat Rocker: Randy Pitchford, Brian Martel, Stephen Bahl, Landon Montgomery, and Rob...
for PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
and Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
. It was first revealed in the September 2007 issue of Game Informer
Game Informer
Game Informer is an American-based monthly magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of popular video games and associated consoles. It was formed in August 1991, when FuncoLand started publishing a six-page magazine, free in all its retail locations...
magazine. The console versions of the game were released in North America on October 20, 2009, and were released in PAL countries on October 23. The console version release for the Japanese market was made available on February 10, 2010. The Windows version was released on October 26 for North America and then on October 29 internationally. The Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
version of the game was released on by Feral Interactive
Feral Interactive
Feral Interactive is a publishing company founded in 1999 that publishes games and other software that did not fit in with the release programs of the large established publishers. It publishes Macintosh games and has relationships with publishers such as Electronic Arts, Eidos Interactive,...
. A sequel, Borderlands 2
Borderlands 2
Borderlands 2 is a science fiction–based first-person shooter with RPG elements and the sequel to 2009's Borderlands. It is currently under development by Gearbox Software for the Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 platforms...
, is currently in development.
Gameplay
Role-playing video game
Role-playing video games are a video game genre with origins in pen-and-paper role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, using much of the same terminology, settings and game mechanics. The player in RPGs controls one character, or several adventuring party members, fulfilling one or many quests...
, leading Gearbox to call the game a "role-playing shooter". At the start of the game, players select one of four characters, each with a unique special skill and with proficiencies with certain weapons. The four characters are: Roland the Soldier, Mordecai the Hunter, Lilith the Siren, and Brick (a Berserker) "as himself". From then on, players take on quests assigned through non-player character
Non-player character
A non-player character , sometimes known as a non-person character or non-playable character, in a game is any fictional character not controlled by a player. In electronic games, this usually means a character controlled by the computer through artificial intelligence...
s or from bounty boards, each typically rewarding the player with experience point
Experience point
An experience point is a unit of measurement used in many role-playing games and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's progression through the game...
s, money, and sometimes a reward item. Players earn experience by killing foes and completing in-game challenges (such as getting a certain number of kills using a specific type of weapon). As they gain levels from experience growth, players can then allocate skill points into a skill tree that features three distinct specializations of the base character; for example, Mordecai can become specialized in sniping
Sniper
A sniper is a marksman who shoots targets from concealed positions or distances exceeding the capabilities of regular personnel. Snipers typically have specialized training and distinct high-precision rifles....
, gunslinging
Gunslinger
Gunfighter, also gunslinger , is a 20th century word, used in cinema or literature, referring to men in the American Old West who had gained a reputation as being dangerous with a gun...
with revolver
Revolver
A revolver is a repeating firearm that has a cylinder containing multiple chambers and at least one barrel for firing. The first revolver ever made was built by Elisha Collier in 1818. The percussion cap revolver was invented by Samuel Colt in 1836. This weapon became known as the Colt Paterson...
s, or using his pet Bloodwing to assist in kills and health boosting. Players can distribute points among any of the specializations, and can also spend a small amount of in-game money to redistribute their skill points.
Players start the game with the ability to equip two weapons, but can later gain up to four weapon slots, as well as slots for an energy shield, a grenade modification, and a class modification. Items collected but not used can be sold back at vendors for money that then can be used to buy better items. One of the key features of Borderlands is the randomly-generated weapons and items created either as dropped by enemies, found in storage chests about the game, sold at vendors in the game, or as quest reward items. The game uses a "Procedural
Procedural generation
Procedural generation is a widely used term in the production of media; it refers to content generated algorithmically rather than manually. Often, this means creating content on the fly rather than prior to distribution...
Content Creation System" to create these weapons and items, which can alter their firepower, rate of fire, and accuracy, add in elemental effects such as a chance to set foes on fire, and at rare times other special bonuses such as regenerating the player's ammo. A color-coded scale is used to indicate the rarity of the weapon or item. It was estimated that the random system could generate over 17 million variations of weapons, but actually only resulted in 987,564. The Procedural system is also used to create the characteristic of random enemies that the player may face. This allows for enemies of the same species to have widely-varying attacks: for example, variations of "spiderants" in the game could leap around and would jump onto players' faces, while another variant can roll up into a ball and attack people, depending on the content generator.
When in combat, the player can take damage if their shield is depleted, affecting their health. If they lose all their health, they must either wait to be revived by another player or attempt to kill an enemy to achieve a "second wind", or otherwise will be regenerated back at the last "New-U" station that they passed, losing a small percentage of their money in the process. Players also must respawn at the 'New-U' station after a certain amount of time. Players quickly gain access to two-passenger vehicles, and can engage in vehicular combat with other enemies. Eventually, a system of fast transit points between the game world is available to the player; until then, players must walk or drive between areas to get around.
The game can be played alone, but also supports two-player cooperative play through split-screen (on consoles), and up to four players playing co-operatively online or over LAN
Local area network
A local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building...
. The game follows the progress of the host player, rewarding the other active players for completion of quests for their characters. If the other players are doing the same quests in their campaign, the completed quests remain the same in their campaign as well as the host's. When more players are present, the game alters the statistics of the generated enemies, balancing the game due to the larger number of players. Players can take part in one-on-one duels anywhere in the game world, or can visit arenas in the game world to participate in free-for-all, 2-on-2 or 3-on-1 combat battles with their fellow players.
Borderlands is notable for its visual graphic style. A cel-shading
Cel-shaded animation
Cel-shaded animation is a type of non-photorealistic rendering designed to make computer graphics appear to be hand-drawn. Cel-shading is often used to mimic the style of a comic book or cartoon. It is a somewhat recent addition to computer graphics, most commonly turning up in video games...
technique was used when the developers decided that their original concept artwork would suit the game better than a more realistic, polished method.
This makes for somewhat cartoon-like action visuals; for example, the experience points gained and any special hit damage information float up from the enemy upon a successful hit. This method also enables the landscape and weapons to be highly detailed.
Setting
Borderlands is set on the planet of Pandora. Lured by its apparent vast deposits of minerals, several colonization ships sponsored by the Dahl Corporation (one of several diversified mega-corporations that appear to control and govern entire planets) journey to the planet and build settlements there. The mining operations are cost-effectively manned by large amounts of convict labor brought to the planet by Dahl.Prior to the events of the game, one of the other mega-corporations, known as the Atlas Corporation, had found an ancient vault on a nearby planet known as Prometheus, filled with alien technology that allowed them to make leaps and bounds in starship and weaponry technology, and overtake their competitors. The presence of similar alien ruins scattered across Pandora spurs the Dahl Corporation to undertake an extensive search for a possible vault on Pandora, headed by a respected xeno-archeologist by the name of Tannis.
However, the Dahl-sponsored search for a vault on Pandora turns out to be fruitless, and the massive industrial mining operations soon deplete the bulk of the mineral deposits. Furthermore, the coming of the planet's summer unleashes hordes of dangerous alien wildlife coming out of hibernation.
Those who are rich and important enough to leave the planet do so, leaving the rest of the population to scavenge for their living in isolated settlements, seeking out a living in the barren wastelands and industrial trash heaps across the planet. To make matters worse, the Dahl Corporation simply opened the gates of the prison labor camps during their departure, and gangs of bandits terrorize the populace. Despite the lack of evidence of its existence, legends persist of "The Vault"—a supposed treasure trove of alien artifacts, technology, and of immeasurable wealth—but it is rumored that any who had discovered it were wiped out by a protective force, leaving few clues as to its location or purpose while a myth was born of the marvelous treasures within.
Plot
Borderlands begins some time after the Dahl Corporation's abandonment of Pandora; several fortune seekers, including the player, are drawn to the planet by its legends of an unopened Eridian Vault. After arriving at the town of Fyrestone, the player sees an image of a mysterious woman, the "Guardian Angel", who is aware they are here to seek the Vault and directs them to follow her instructions. The player meets a man named Dr. Zed and the doctor helps the player through the beginning of the game. The Angel eventually leads them to collecting one of the several artifacts needed to open the vault. This causes Patricia Tannis, an archaeologist/scientist, to contact the player and urge them to collect the other three pieces of the Vault key. Tannis reveals that the Vault opens every 200 years and the time of the next opening is approaching. At the same time, Commandant Steele of the Crimson Lance, a well-outfitted mercenary force in the employ of one of the game's several mega-corporations, Atlas, threatens to declare martial law over the planet and demands the vault key pieces.While the player is able to secure the second and third Vault key pieces without incident, they find that the final piece is not where it is expected. Steele contacts the player, revealing that Tannis had betrayed them and that there are in fact only three pieces, then proceeds to cut off the planet's ECHO network disabling further communication with the Guardian Angel. The player infiltrates the Crimson Lance's headquarters and finds Tannis locked up; she claims she had no choice but to betray the player under force, but urges the player(s) to restart the ECHO network and to prevent Steele and the Crimson Lance from using the key. After restoring the network, the Guardian Angel urges the player to hurry and stop Steele. The player finds, as they approach the Vault, that the Crimson Lance are in combat with alien Guardians; after bypassing both forces, the player finally arrives at the Vault, too late to stop Steele from using the key. However, when the Vault opens, Steele and her guard are wiped out by a giant monster that is attempting to escape the vault. The Guardian Angel explains that the monster is called the Destroyer, imprisoned in the Vault by the alien Eridians long ago to prevent it from destroying the universe, with the Guardians present to prevent anyone from opening it. The player is able to defeat the monster, sealing the Vault for another 200 years. The player is shown that the Guardian Angel is a Hyperion satellite orbiting around Pandora communicating with the player through the ECHOnet. The game ends with the Hyperion satellite sending a signal to a claptrap robot on the planet, changing it into a "Interplanetary Ninja Assassin" (leading into the plot of the DLC "Claptrap's New Robot Revolution").
Characters
There are four playable characters in the game; though each is given the character's official name by default, the player may change their character name or the colors of various parts of their outfits at "New-U" stations throughout the game. Brick is a Berserker, a tank-style character who is strong in melee combat. Brick's preferred weapons are explosives and rocket launchers. Brick has the special ability to temporarily enter a berserker rage mode during which he cannot wield guns, instead using his massive fists to rapidly pound his enemies to death, and rapidly regenerates health and is resistant to damage during the rage. Besides being a melee expert, Brick can use explosive damage more efficiently than the other classes. Lilith is one of only six known Sirens in the galaxy, beings with superhuman power.Lilith's Phasewalk ability allows her to temporarily enter another dimension, which renders her invisible to enemies, makes her move faster and she is unable to take damage from enemies (and only give damage when exiting Phasewalk). Her Phasewalk causes a powerful shock-wave blast that can damage nearby enemies whenever she enters and exits Phasewalk. Liliths' preferred guns are elemental tech weapons and some of her skills focus on improving her "damage over time" with elements. Mordecai, a Hunter, specializes in using Sniper Rifles and Revolvers and is aided by his pet Bat-like bird, Bloodwing, which can be used to assist in his long-range attack skills and scavenging for loot. Roland, a former member of the Atlas Corporation's private Crimson Lance army, is described by the game as a "Soldier" and is able to deploy an automated gun turret that can be upgraded with a wide range of offensive and defensive abilities. Roland is a good freewheeler and prefers shotguns and combat rifles. Accompanying the standard weapons, all characters also have a melee attack.Development
Borderlands was developed by Gearbox Software and published by 2K Games. It runs on a modified Unreal Engine 3.Retail versions
Borderlands was released in three separate versions:- The Standard Edition includes the game disc and instruction manual with no extras.
- The Retail downloadable content packs which includes the first two episodes of Borderlands DLC: The Zombie Island of Doctor Ned and Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot was released on February 23, 2010, in North America.
- The first Game of the Year Edition, released on October 12, 2010, in North America, included the original Borderlands game, one-time use vouchers for all 4 of the downloadable content packs, and a hand drawn bonus map. Players who bought this edition gained access to the Duke Nukem Forever First Access Club, granting them exclusive items, including early access to the Duke Nukem Forever playable demo before it is publicly released. The second GOTY version included all 4 of the DLCs on a second disc on Xbox 360, but on the same disc on PS3.
The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned
The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned is the first installment of downloadable contentDownloadable content
Downloadable content is official additional content for a video game distributed through the Internet. Downloadable content can be of several types, ranging from a single in-game outfit to an entirely new, extensive storyline, similarly to an expansion pack. As such, DLC may add new game modes,...
(DLC) for Borderlands and includes new quests, items, and enemies—including WereSkags and various zombie
Zombie
Zombie is a term used to denote an animated corpse brought back to life by mystical means such as witchcraft. The term is often figuratively applied to describe a hypnotized person bereft of consciousness and self-awareness, yet ambulant and able to respond to surrounding stimuli...
s. The storyline takes place in an area known as Jakobs Cove which is a small town built by the Jakobs Corporation. Dr. Ned had been in charge of keeping the workers of Jakobs Cove alive, but ended up transforming them into zombies. The main plot revolves around finding previous visitors to Jakobs Cove and investigating Dr. Ned himself after the Jakobs Corporation become suspicious of his work. The playable area includes a large outdoor map with several further areas branched from the main zone—including a dark, abandoned version of previous area 'Old Haven'. The installment was released for the Xbox 360 (for 800 Microsoft points) and PlayStation 3 versions on November 24, 2009, which was celebrated with a trailer. The PC version was released via Steam with SecuROM
SecuROM
SecuROM is a CD/DVD copy protection and digital rights management product developed by Sony DADC. SecuROM aims to resist home media duplication devices, professional duplicators, and attempts at reverse engineering software. It is most often used for commercial computer games running under the...
on December 9, 2009.
Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot
Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot is the second piece of DLC for Borderlands. It features three new riot arenas (Hellburbia, the Gully and Angelic Ruins) and storage for players' items. The plot of the DLC is Moxxi, a crazed lover who is setting out to find her 4th husband, leading her to make the arenas in the DLC. Players fight several of the game's enemies, including bosses, in arenas. No experience is gained from killing enemies in the arena battles, but experience can be gained from completing challenges or quests in the arena. New game modes are added, such as low gravity fighting, enemy health regeneration, and shieldless fighting. It was released on December 29, 2009, for the Xbox 360 and was released January 7, 2010, for the PlayStation 3 and PC. IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
gave Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot a 6.0/10, praising the fact that friends can be added in to play, and stated that everything else needed work. "There's no more gun, money, or ammo drops, and no XP" and stated that "the only decent amount of guns you'll find are in Marcus Kincaid's vendor machine."
The Secret Armory of General Knoxx
The Secret Armory of General Knoxx was unofficially announced on January 21, 2010, via the official Gearbox forums, posted by Gearbox level designer Jason Reiss saying the pack will increase the level cap to level 61, and is "the biggest DLC we have made". A tweetTwitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
by Gearbox creative director Mike Neumann on January 21, 2010, said the pack would also include "more Scooter", who is a character in the game. This was followed by an official announcement from Gearbox via Gearboxity on January 29, 2010, confirming the release, level cap increase, brand new weapons, and "brutal, never-before-seen enemies in a huge new environment complete with tons of brand new missions" according to Gearbox, developer of the game. Not to mention, the most powerful creature in all of Borderlands labeled as a "Secret Final Boss" or "Crawmerax the Invincible". The DLC package became available February 23 for Xbox 360, and February 25 for PlayStation 3 and PC.
This DLC however received some negative impact due to players complaining about the size of this DLC's maps.
Claptrap's New Robot Revolution
On March 3, 2010, Take-Two officially announced a fourth piece of downloadable content, stating that they will "continue to support the title with more add-on content, and our approach to digital content for Borderlands gives [Take-Two] a road map for other titles going forward." On July 15, 2010, General Knoxx's Twitter page was updated for the first time in months, stating that he had "new orders (sent from the future)" On July 30, 2010, Randy Pitchford, Co-founder of Gearbox Software and current CEO, announced via Twitter regarding the content "I get a LOT of questions about more DLC for Borderlands. Yes, more is coming! T2 already said so! Let's talk soon :)" On August 5, 2010, a long list of content that was supposedly going to be included in the content was posted on the Gearbox Forums. The data was gathered from files in the 1.31 update for the PC version of Borderlands.On August 11, 2010, 2K confirmed the title of the content, Claptrap's New Robot Revolution, and its main premise. The DLC has 21 missions (split between 9 main missions and 12 side quests), 2 new skill points, and six additional backpack slots. The game focuses around a rogue army of malfunctioning Clap-Traps (led by CL4P-TP, Interplanetary Ninja Assassin, the same Claptrap that is seen getting struck by lightning just after the end credits), along with an army of familiar enemies transformed into Clap-Trap styles (i.e., Crab-Traps, Rakk-Traps, and Skag-Traps). A wide variety of old cast members return alongside new faces. New fast-travel destinations are also expected, a first for Borderlands DLC.
On September 5, 2010, Pitchford announced at the Penny Arcade Expo that the release date was scheduled to be September 28, 2010. Pitchford also announced a free patch to increase the level cap by 8 for all players (to a maximum of Level 69, or 58 for those without Knoxx's Armory), regardless of whether the General Knoxx expansion had been purchased.
Reception
Borderlands has garnered mostly favorable reviews from game critics, with an average GameRankings score of 85.84% for Xbox 360 and 83.76% for PlayStation 3 and MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
score of 84 and 83 for Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 respectively.
Jeff Gerstmann
Jeff Gerstmann
Jeff Gerstmann is an American video game journalist and former editorial director of the gaming website GameSpot and the founder of the gaming website Giant Bomb. He began working at GameSpot in the fall of 1996, around the launch of VideoGameSpot when GameSpot separated PC and console games into...
from Giant Bomb
Giant Bomb
Giant Bomb is an American video game website and wiki that includes gaming news, reviews, commentary, and video, created by former GameSpot editors Jeff Gerstmann and Ryan Davis in collaboration with Whiskey Media...
gave Borderlands 4 stars out of 5, called it a successful loot-driven first-person shooter "where plenty of other Diablo
Diablo (video game)
Diablo is a dark fantasy-themed action role-playing game developed by Blizzard North and released by Blizzard Entertainment on December 31, 1996....
-inspired games have failed miserably", but criticized the "paper-thin story" and the "predictable AI". Charles Onyett from IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
awarded Borderlands an 8.8/10 and an Editor's Choice Award. He noted that fans of RPGs would enjoy the streamlined item management, and treasure hunting, but criticized the lack of character skills. With "beautiful visuals, tried and true RPG mechanics, and solid first-person-shooter gameplay", Onyett felt that the game was very enjoyable. RPGLand's Ivan Taran gave it a rating of "Great" and the game went on to win the site's Xbox 360 Game of the Year award, and be named the Runner-up for overall Game of the Year 2009, losing out to Uncharted 2: Among Thieves.
Sales
In late August 2009, EEDAR analyst Jesse DivnichJesse Divnich
Jesse Divnich is the Vice President of Analyst Services for Electronic Entertainment Design and Research .- Background :Divnich was born in LaSalle, Ontario, but currently resides in Carlsbad, California...
told GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
"... Borderlands could very well surprise the market and consumers as BioShock
Bioshock
BioShock is a first-person shooter video game developed by 2K Boston and designed by Ken Levine. It was released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 on August 21, 2007 in North America, and three days later in Europe and Australia. It became available on Steam on August 21, 2007...
did in 2007." As of December 2009, the game had sold over 2 million copies according to Take-Two's financial report. By February 2010, the number had risen to 3 million.
Since its release, the game has sold 4.5 million units worldwide.
Sequel
A sequel, Borderlands 2Borderlands 2
Borderlands 2 is a science fiction–based first-person shooter with RPG elements and the sequel to 2009's Borderlands. It is currently under development by Gearbox Software for the Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 platforms...
was announced on August 2, 2011 for the PlayStation 3
PlayStation 3
The is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment and the successor to the PlayStation 2 as part of the PlayStation series. The PlayStation 3 competes with Microsoft's Xbox 360 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
, and Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
platforms. The game is being developed by Gearbox Software
Gearbox Software
Gearbox Software, LLC is an American video game development company based in Plano, Texas.-History:Gearbox Software was founded in January 1999 by five members of the content team from the defunct developer Rebel Boat Rocker: Randy Pitchford, Brian Martel, Stephen Bahl, Landon Montgomery, and Rob...
and distributed by Take-Two Interactive
Take-Two Interactive
Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. is a major American publisher, developer, and distributor of video games and video game peripherals. Take-Two wholly owns 2K Games and Rockstar Games. The company's headquarters are in New York City, with international headquarters in Windsor, United Kingdom...
, and is expected to be released in the 2012 fiscal year, which lasts between April 2012 and March 2013. The game features many technical improvements and follows four new characters on Pandora as they battle Handsome Jack and the Hyperion Corporation.
External links
- http://www.feralinteractive.com/game/borderlandsgotyBorderlands: Game of the Year Edition at Feral InteractiveFeral InteractiveFeral Interactive is a publishing company founded in 1999 that publishes games and other software that did not fit in with the release programs of the large established publishers. It publishes Macintosh games and has relationships with publishers such as Electronic Arts, Eidos Interactive,...
] - The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned
- Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot
- The Secret Armory of General Knoxx
- Claptrap's New Robot Revolution