Battleborn E3 Preview

How do you top Borderlands? The post-apocalyptic run and gun RPG/FPS hybrid was one of the highest-rated and most popular games of 2009, the recipient of several major accolades, including RPGLand’s ‘Game of the Year’ award and Game Informer’s ‘Best Co-op Game’ award. It received an 84/100 on Metacritic and an 8.8/10 on IGN. To this day, it stands as one of the greatest titles in modern gaming.

So how do you top it?

Well. Imagine Borderlands--its sprawling post-apocalyptic landscape, its irreverent characters, its in-your-face action. Now give the Vault Hunters ridiculous abilities, make Handsome Jack an over-the-top 80s villain, and add a better-written plot. Stir it up; let it cool overnight. That game you’re imagining--that’s Battleborn.

Battleborn is the next logical evolution of shooter-style gaming. By mixing elements from RPGs, MOBAs, and classic shooters like DOOM and Quake, Battleborn looks and feels like Borderlands’ sleeker, (arguably) more mature older brother. And it’s fun as hell.

Story

Borderlands’ ending is its only flaw, in my opinion. It left me wanting more. I cracked the vault, I killed the Iridium monster, and the game ended. That’s it; nothing else; no explanation; roll credits--anticlimax at its very worst. And though multiple DLCs and two sequels (one sequel and a pre-sequel, to be specific) further expanded the universe and brought me hours of awesome action, I felt scorned. And that bitter feeling followed me throughout all the game’s expansions and sequels. 2K, known for their incredible writing and world building, had written a crappy story, and they spent their remaining entries writing their way out of it.

Battleborn leaves no room for low-stakes storytelling. 2K has grown a lot in the last six years, and their writing proves it: the universe is ending.

“Welcome to the end of the universe!” Cleese says (cryptically) at the beginning of the E3 gameplay trailer. He interjects: “Oh! Don’t look so glum! Nothing lasts forever, you know. And science tells us all those billions upon billions of stars were bound to burn out someday!”

According to the E3 preview footage, a dark force is speeding up the universal decay process by killing star systems. Bad guys called Varelsi have destroyed almost everything, leaving one last star system, Solus. Together, the universe’s remaining survivors must work together to destroy the Varelsi and save Solus.

As popular YouTuber MatPat has shown, the lines between right and wrong in Borderlands are murky, at best. Are the Vault Hunters the good guys? Is Handsome Jack wrong for wanting to stop them? And who is Hyperion? Should I really hate them? Ambiguous plots and sidelines are justified when players are given an opportunity to choose or deviate from the tracks: side with money-hungry mercenaries or a power-hungry dictator, or side with no one. Borderlands cripples itself by removing the option of player choice.

But this elimination of choice is a strength in Battleborn. The universe is ending, and we have to stop it. The set-up instantly hooks me and invests me in the action. The heroes (claiming from worlds across the universe) are justifiably unique, and the bad guys are legitimately despicable. Complexity comes from how the survivors interact with each other, not from whose side is the ‘good guy.’ Watching the “debriefing,” I am sold within seconds. By the end of it, I am ready to kick some Varlesi ass.

Gameplay

Battleborn mixes the best parts of MOBAs, RPGs, and FPSs. Gone are Borderlands’ tedious travel times. Each mission is a “match” now. Battleborn are dropped into the map and given a set of perks (selected with the D-pad). These perks augment and change abilities to match playstyles. There are literally hundreds of perk combinations, infinitely raising the game’s replayability. Players kill enemies and progress through the level. Each level ends with a boss, and teams must work together to defeat it. Battleborn features several classes (familiar to MOBA or MMO players), including tanks, healers, ranged DPS, and melee carries.

At E3, only a handful of Battleborn were available for play. When the game releases, 25 will be available at launch. I played Miko. I fought on the frozen hellscape: Bliss.

Miko

In most online games, I gravitate toward supports. Miko is a fungi (get it?); he heals allies and poisons enemies. Right trigger launches throwing knives; left trigger heals. Other buttons throw poison pods and instantly heal Miko. During his Ultimate, Miko throws his head at the ground and uses it as a makeshift turret. It guns down enemies and heals all Battleborn in the area surrounding it.

As far as supports go, Miko feels incredibly well-balanced. When utilized correctly, he’s the difference between death and survival. During my short gameplay session, I teamed up with Orendi to devastate enemy forces. She would jump into battle, soak damage, and destroy baddies, and I would supply her a neverending stream of health. We rocked.
During our mission, we repowered a giant drill/tank and led it to a giant door. In-game currency is earned by killing enemies; we spent it on upgrades for the tank and turrets in the final boss room. The final boss was pretty easy--but I’m not sure whether it was easy due to the demo, our turrets and upgrades, or our incredible teamwork. Regardless, killing the giant monster was fulfilling. I hadn’t felt that good playing an FPS since the original Borderlands.

Conclusion

Battleborn is Borderlands on steroids. Every inch of the game feels polished. This is what a next-gen shooter should feel like. It’s mad; it’s chaotic; and it’s a lot of fun.