Someone at Gearbox Software probably asked the same question and decided to bring Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition over to current gen consoles (with a few bells and whistles in for good measure). By now, you know the story – four Vault Hunters, each with their own checkered past, arrive on Pandora in search of a mystical Vault. It’s rumoured to be full of treasure (spoiler: It wasn’t but has since been updated). Our Vault Hunters are helped along by a mysterious entity, one that wants them to succeed at all costs. Surely, this won’t end badly. As an overall story, Borderlands doesn’t feel as urgent, immediate or engrossing as Borderlands 2 did.

"There are plenty of other upgrades including support for 4K resolution but the real question is: How does Borderlands the game hold up after all these years?"

Improvements to texture quality and lighting abound here, highlighting the game’s sleek cel-shaded style all the more. The performance is very smooth and maintains a constant 60 frames per second even with all details on high. Various quality of life improvements help make the looting and shooting that much more endearing like immediate health and ammo pickups and the new mini-map which prevents you from running around in circles. That being said, given the smaller map size compared to Borderlands 2, it’s probably not all that strange in hindsight that a mini-map was missing at launch.

The new inventory system is also more seamless. It’s not super flashy but presents a wider view of your weapons and drops with the relevant stats while letting you switch between them quickly. There are plenty of other upgrades including support for 4K resolution but the real question is: How does Borderlands the game hold up after all these years?

The rough edges are pretty apparent but to the credit of Gearbox, it still holds up very well. Shooting feels slightly less refined and slightly less forgiving than Borderlands 2. That snappy feeling isn’t quite there yet and weapons like sub-machine guns and combat rifles feel like they sway a bit too much when aiming down sights than in the sequel. You may find some nice snap shot kills, which you landed with no problem in the sequels, missing more often than not here. It’s not a terrible thing, mind you, but it makes for a slower shooting experience altogether. The sickening “splat” from headshots feels as satisfying as ever so that’s a plus.

"Instead of the ham-fisted, silly-but-knows-when-to-get-serious attitude of the sequel, the original feels a lot more desolate and isolated. "

Otherwise, it’s amazing to see just how simplified Borderlands was back in the day. You choose from four character classes – Soldier, Hunter, Siren and Berserker – and the personality imbued in each definitely feels like a step back. Chalk this up to less voice-lines overall but even their customization trees feel gimped. Having seven skills in each tree for a class feels kind of limiting. There’s still the potential to create some fun builds – like Lilith having increased melee damage and the cooldown of Phasewalk being reduced with each kill, thus allowing you to chain melee attacks and Phase Blasts with Phasewalk – so don’t worry.

The characterization of NPCs also feels very streamlined. Dr. Zedd is still here as is T.K. Baha and their personalities are as endearing as ever. But they’re missing that extra bit of polish, that extra “oomph” that really pushed them to be full-fledged personalities. On the one hand, this also means certain NPCs like Claptrap are far less annoying than in subsequent titles. On the other hand, characters like Angel come across as all the more robotic (which was the intention here but still).

The tone of Borderlands is also significantly different. Instead of the ham-fisted, silly-but-knows-when-to-get-serious attitude of the sequel, the original feels a lot more desolate and isolated. You truly feel like an adventurer setting out an unknown world, filled with danger around ever corner. There isn’t as much NPC chatter during missions, which lends more to that lone wanderer feeling, and the music helps in that regard as well. Borderlands captures that far-future, Space Western mixed with Mad Max feel in its own unique way and thankfully doesn’t go too over-the-top to maintain it.

"In Borderlands, Legendary weapons simply drop, even during the initial stages, from chests and killing tough enemies."

The overall pacing of the game also feels far more reliant on completing side-missions before venturing further. Other titles might have let you cruise on a side-mission or two while primarily sticking to the main quest but Borderlands wants you to get out and explore Pandora. Death may happen more than once even though inherently the artificial intelligence isn’t as developed. Remember the days of bandits taking an adjacent staircase to reach you instead of rushing headlong, even if the flank was extremely telegraphed? They’re still here.

Looting is slightly different compared to what you’re used to in other titles. In Borderlands, Legendary weapons simply drop, even during the initial stages, from chests and killing tough enemies. These are capped by level so it’s possible that certain higher level items, despite having lower rarities and less affixes, may be better in terms of overall damage. The guns aren’t necessarily as zany but they each offer a unique look and feel that has a significant impact on gameplay.

Still, it offers a good level of variety and a constant sense of being rewarded throughout the campaign. I wasn’t a huge fan of certain weapon types like Repeater Pistols and Revolvers, both technically part of the same pistol class, having different ammo and different capacity upgrades but it’s not the worst thing. The same goes for the weapon proficiency, which increases damage, reload speed and other attributes for a weapon class the more it’s used. Is it an effective substitute for the Badass Rank System? Not really but it still offer passive benefits, even if they’re restricted to certain weapon types.

"There’s no denying that even today, Borderlands has a unique charm to it that the more modern looter shooters just can’t seem to capture."

It may sound like I more than my share of nitpicks for Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition. If we’re being honest, this is an inferior game compared to Borderlands 2, especially with all the quality of life improvements and content that the latter has received. Thankfully, the original stands on its own pretty well, offering a fun experience with a great amount of content and an intriguing story with strong atmosphere. The quality of life improvements bring it slightly up to date but for the most part, you’re investing in a fairly old-school title.

There’s no denying that even today, Borderlands has a unique charm to it that the more modern looter shooters just can’t seem to capture. If you haven’t played Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition, need an excuse to revisit the original or just couldn’t get into The Pre-Sequel for whatever reason, then this version is the best yet. At least, for solo players – those wanting to engage in online co-op might want to hold off until many of the issues are addressed.

The less snappy shooting, limited skill choices and pared down structure may have trouble competing with the very best of the best. However, Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition still proves to be a fun experience that will ensnare you in its own wicked ways.

This game was reviewed on PC.

With the announcement of Borderlands 3 also came the announcement that we could revisit the game that launched the series, Borderlands, with a new Game of the Year Edition release. Unfortunately, it seems the release has some issues The series can be played either solo or co-op, but the latter is a big attraction and a large part of why people fell in love with the series. Sadly, the newest release is having issues with its co-op mode, with many on Reddit and the game’s official forums not being able to connect with either friends or strangers online.

It’s not entirely clear what the issue is, with some players being unable to even start an online session. Many understandably aren’t pleased, what with co-op being such a defining feature of the series, but one of the official forum’s mods has assured that Gearbox and 2K are aware of the issue, and are working on a fix that will hopefully come soon.

Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition is available now for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.

Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition is out for Xbox One, PS4, and PC. This isn’t just the base game with all of the DLC included though. Gearbox Software has taken to visually remastering the title with better lighting, textures, and whatnot. There are also a number of quality of life improvements to be had.

These include a mini-map (which can be disabled), improved inventory management for locking items or designating them as junk, and so on. If you played either Borderlands 2 or Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel on PC, then you’ll receive a whopping 75 free Golden Keys and two new albeit random weapons for your first new character.

Gearbox has also taken to sprucing up the final boss in the campaign, while also adding six new Legendary weapons. Cosmetic options are also expanded upon, with each character receiving five new customizable heads, all unlocked and usable from the start. The best part is that if you own the base game on PC, you get this update completely for free. Non-DLC owners will thus net all the DLC, free of charge.

Revisiting Borderlands should help in the wait for Borderlands 3, which arrives on September 13th for Xbox One, PS4, and PC (where it is exclusive to the Epic Games Store until April 2020).

It seems like HDR support isn’t the only thing that the PC version of the upcoming Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition will be missing. The remaster of the first game in the beloved series will apparently also be missing on a crucial feature on PC—splitscreen support.

Once again, PC games often lack splitscreen support, especially relative to their console counterparts, so this kind of makes sense—but given how central splitscreen is to the Borderlands experience, this is a bummer anyway. You will, of course, still be able to play co-op online. Gearbox’s Patrick Fenn also confirmed that the PC version of the game will have no Ultrawide support.

That said, the PC version of the game will support FOV sliders—in fact, every version of the game will, he confirmed on Twitter. This is great news, especially since the original game has a bit of a claustrophobic FOV, given that it came out on far weaker consoles than the current generation ones.

Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition launches for PS4, Xbox One, and PC on April 3.

There is an FOV slider on all platforms for #BorderlandsGOTY

— Patrick Fenn (@patfenn84) March 29, 2019

EVERY CHANCE!
60 fps on consoles, 30 fps for split screen!
Auto pickup of any ammo you can pick up! pic.twitter.com/TdRe4k6A2d

— Patrick Fenn (@patfenn84) March 29, 2019

No Ultrawide support, but keep bringing the feedback. I'm loving the passion and can't wait to jump online next Wednesday

— Patrick Fenn (@patfenn84) March 29, 2019

I cannot. For split screen shall be a console exclusive feature.

But know that I love you and hold you in my heart… or something… sorry I may need a nap and I say strange things when tired… Still love you though pic.twitter.com/vqQAgmUVeV

— Patrick Fenn (@patfenn84) March 29, 2019

Although Borderlands 3 was the big announcement at their PAX panel last week, Gearbox also announced an Ultra HD update for Borderlands: The Handsome Collection (which contains Borderlands 2 and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel) as well as Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition, a remaster of the first game, also with Ultra HD support.

That said, these updates, while supporting 4K resolution on every platform they are hitting, will not actually support HDR across the board. Wccftech confirmed with 2K Games, the publisher of the series, that HDR will be supported on consoles (specifically, the PS4 Pro and Xbox One X), but not on PC. While this is disappointing, HDR support on PC is a bit of a crapshoot all around, so I don’t think this will be too surprising to most people, either.

Hopefully, however, implementing HDR support on the PC version is something Gearbox looks at with the upcoming Borderlands 3. That one is a bigger project, so it will be less acceptable there.

Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition launches April 3 for PC, PS4, and Xbox One.

Among the many announcements made yesterday, including the long-awaited reveal of Borderlands 3, Gearbox Software announced Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition. Along with four player co-op, a mini-map, remastered visuals, and a tougher final boss with more rewards, this edition will include all of the DLC. It’s out on April 3rd for Xbox One and PS4, but those who own it on PC won’t have to worry.

As per PC Gamer, 2K Games confirmed that the Game of the Year Edition will be a free upgrade for owners of the current PC version. No additional DLC is required either – once the upgrade is live, you get all of the new tweaks, including the four expansions, completely free. Furthermore, if you’ve played Borderlands 2 or Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel on PC, you’ll receive 75 free Golden Keys.

Two new random weapons when creating a new character, six new Legendary weapons, and more customization options are also on the menu. Suffice it to say that if you never played the original Borderlands, next week will be a good time to try it out. As for Borderlands 3, more information will be coming on April 3rd, so stay tuned.

Gearbox announced during their PAX panel today that Borderlands—the first Borderlands, the one that kickstarted the series back in the day—will be hitting current generation consoles, with the recently prematurely ousted Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition, bringing the title to PS4, Xbox One, and PC. We will choose to ignore that the Game of the Year edition comes ten years after the year in which the game first came out for now.

It seems like a hefty upgrade, too. The game will have new weapons, native 4K and HDR, co-op for up to four players, and all the DLC that has been released for the game. We also won’t have to wait long for the game to come out, since it’s announced to launch on April 3, 2019. That’s literally next week.

Borderlands: The Handsome Collection, which had previously brought Borderlands 2 and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel to PS4, Xbox One, and PC, will also similarly be updated for 4K support, so there’s a lot of 4K goodness waiting for Borderlands fans in the next few weeks. Then, of course, we have Borderlands 3 to look forward to as well.

It seems like Gearbox has a ton of Borderlands stuff planned in the near future. There have been plenty of rumours circulating (prompted by teases from Gearbox themselves) that Borderlands 3 is finally going to be unveiled at PAX East. As it turns out though, while looking to the future, Gearbox might also be looking to the past as well.

The ESRB have put vep an age rating page for Borderlands Game of the Year Edition. The listing mentions the PS4, Xbox One, and PC as the intended platforms. There has, of course, been no official announcements for this, but given how much Borderlands-related news has been going around of late, this wouldn’t come as too much of a surprise. Not too long ago, Gearbox was teasing something that many have assumed is a Switch port of Borderlands 2 as well.

Beyond Borderlands, Gearbox have teased a separate new announcement as well, as well as something Bulletstorm-related (which might also be a Switch port). One thing’s looking surer and surer every day though- PAX East might end up being packed with Gearbox announcements. We’ll find out at the end of the month, so stay tuned for more updates.