Two new previews here:
http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=206951" target="_blank
In light of every developer ever's recent decision to set their game in the aftermath of a fictional apocalypse, it's easy to assume Borderlands is much the same. It's got barren, desolate plains, the locals are dressed up in rags and desert goggles, and all the jibber-jabber's about settlements and bandits.
...however, that's not the case. This is actually a distant planet called Pandora, where failed colonisation has left disparate groups of maladjusted individuals to fight over the scraps on barren, desolate plains in rags and desert goggles while talking about settlements and bandits. Completely different, see?
If you can get past the theme though, you may be richly rewarded, because Borderlands is an interesting-looking cross between first-person shooter and role-player. You take on one of three roles (two of which we see during our demo), each with unique skills, abilities and backgrounds, and developer Gearbox Software is pushing the RPG angle heavily.
For starters there's an experience-points bar at the bottom of the screen, and as you level up you get to make decisions about how to develop your abilities (using a software interface to hack into your existing hardware augmentations), and improve your proficiency with specific weapons based on their use. Shotgun-lovers may learn to absorb recoil and get better results at range, for instance.
Your character is also persistent across different game sessions, which brings us to the co-operative angle. Gearbox demos the game in co-op and says it's meant to be played that way, and in order to promote and encourage that you will be able to take your character - whatever his current level, equipment and abilities - into another player's game, however much progress he or she has made. Any progress you make there and any items you collect can then be transported back to your single-player game, or indeed taken to another friend's co-op game.
http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2008/08 ... rderlands/" target="_blank
From what we’ve seen so far, however, the story is one of the least interesting aspects of the game. What’s rather more enticing is the fact that Borderlands seems to be a remarkably open ended shooter with vehicles, bandit-dudes, wide-open environments, dungeons, and gigantic, roaming monsters. It’s ripe for that kind of wandering and poking about in virtuality that we love so dearly. So are we actually looking at it being a large, explorable game like Stalker or Oblivion? What kind of story should we expect? Something wide open and sandbox, or fairly linear? “The game can be played both ways”, says Hurley. “There is a main mission storyline that advances the story and the game, and there are large, open environments in Borderlands that are ripe for exploration.” Ah, sweet exploration, how we savour it in our games. It is too rare a commodity in these modern times.
Hurley continued: “You will come across all sorts of enemies, loot, and gameplay experiences along the way. We also have several vehicles to help you get around (in addition to doing crazy vehicle combat with) so you won’t be slogging along on foot all the time. Because of both the dynamic nature of the game, the size of the world, the randomization of certain aspects of gameplay, and game adjusting itself based on the number and experience level of the players, it’s a different gameplay experience every time you go through it. If you just want to go exploring, there is always new stuff to find and new enemies to fight.”
And nor should that exploration be solitary: there’s a chance to play through with a chum or three. How do Gearbox expect the co-op to work? Will PC players be hosting a game for others to join?
“We designed Borderlands as a 4-player co-op game from the ground up,” says Hurley. “Anyone who has the game can begin a game instance, and invite others to join that game instance (that they are hosting) at any time. Any player joining can either start a new character, or bring their character from a different game instance with them to their friend’s game, along with any experience, gear, loot, etc. that they already have. They can trade or sell their current gear, find or buy more, level up, etc., and then take their persistent character back to their own game.”
I find that last part interesting. Has anyone done anything like that before?
I just hope these guys do it better than Hellgate London did it
