My previous assessment of this game’s writing still holds up. Seemingly based on a middle-schooler's idea of what's cool and funny, Borderlands 2 is a cringey, deeply embarrassing time capsule of my tastes at age 13. It's not all bad, it made me crack a smile once or twice, but it definitely misses more than it hits. Every time they say the word “badass” in this game I can see those fucking sunglasses in my mind’s eye.
It's a joy to play, though. This is the only looter shooter I could ever get into, where each drop is so radically different from whatever you're currently using that you’ll never get bored. Every weapon in this game looks and functions like a child's drawing of a firearm, and I mean this as a compliment. These delightful cartoon guns are mixed with a handful of interesting skill trees and a variety of enemy types to make for some pretty damn fun combat. The bones of this game are solid enough that I can forgive the unlistenable dialogue.
It's a joy to play, though. This is the only looter shooter I could ever get into, where each drop is so radically different from whatever you're currently using that you’ll never get bored. Every weapon in this game looks and functions like a child's drawing of a firearm, and I mean this as a compliment. These delightful cartoon guns are mixed with a handful of interesting skill trees and a variety of enemy types to make for some pretty damn fun combat. The bones of this game are solid enough that I can forgive the unlistenable dialogue.
2 Comments
I don't think later self-described looter-shooters really have that much in common with borderlands tbh? they don't really capture what's fun about it in any case. there's more to it than just number go up
MiraMiraOTW
1 month ago
That aside, yeah: This game is so cringe but I don't think anything in the genre it spawned actually trumps it.