You know who likes Borderlands? Clifford Bleszinski! The Epic Games designer has spoken incredibly highly of Gearbox Software's "roleplaying shooter," going so far as to compare it with the classic Blizzard RPG Diablo.
"Borderlands, I adore you," Tweets the handsome Gears of War creator. "You’re Diablo for a generation raised on first person shooters. I want a Claptrap."
I've spent the past two weeks playing Borderlands whenever I can get a spare minute, and I must say that I have loved almost every second of it after the a rather dull start. Once the game kicks into high gear, it becomes an addictive loot fest and the power that players feel when they start customizing their characters is incredibly rewarding. I feel inclined to agree with Cliffy in part. This is very much the Diablo of first-person-shooters.
Oh, and I also want a Claptrap.
Jim Sterling serves as reviews editor for Destructoid.com, head of the Podtoid podcast, and produces a number of news stories, original features, one-of-a-kind videos. With his passionate argumentative style, controversial opinions, harsh delivery, and dedication to brutal honesty Sterling is a name that you can't help but recognize.
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Contest:
8:00 AM on 11.07.2009
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I doubt Borderlands will have legs after the DLC is said and done in six-eight months, because of the fact that they went the DLC route instead of elongating base playthroughs.
Sorry but I have to disagree with you. I think it is a fair comparison as far as FPS is concerned or it is a best attempt today to match something similar to Diablo in the FPS. This game is truly addictive and I could not stop playing this game for 2 days in a row. I avoid all the main quests b/c I want t the experience to last as long as it can. I am soooo looking forward to start the co-op missions with my buddies. I still like the Fallout 3's mission varieties, but this is a real gem that grows on you. As a one snippet comment, I think the comparison is a good one.
Phantasy Star had hundreds of levels for a cap as well, and people still play Blue Burst on PC (free servers) because of the replay value included in the base game.
Borderlands needs to patch in a higher cap.
He's not saying Borderlands is *exactly* like Diablo and should be comparable on every single level. He's saying that if you grew up on FPS', then this is your Diablo, as in, the closest equivalent you'll get in the FPS genre. I think that's a very fair statement.
Oh, I love the game man! I fell asleep playing it just three days ago, and I'm addicted as hell. But it only took me 40 hours to get max level, as opposed to the 500+ hours I spent playing Phantasy Star/Diablo: and that was only to max out, much less finish.
@Jim
I feel you. I just think that base longevity (sans DLC) over a number of years is really a huge part of what makes Diablo so classic, and it doesn't even compare as a game. I would say calling Borderlands "as close to the Diablo of the FPS generation as we have now" is more spot on. I think this quote is a bit premature, but this is coming from a biased die hard Phantasy Star/Diablo fanatic, who feels Borderlands is nothing like those games.
He was annoying until he got wounded. The damaged Claptraps make me feel really sad.
Also, the "rude" Claptrap is fucking awesome.
I just didn't feel it really kicked in until I got some better loot and the character customization opened up.
Boringlands is a totally forgettable game that nobody will ever think about in a month. Especially during this years holiday season.
When the inevitable sequel comes out expect more of the same digested boring shit with new colors.
I love the game, but to be fair, what character customization? Three colors, choosing what "element" you want your bird to be, and one of three simple specs (extra special damage, extra gun damage, extra stats) weren't detailed at all.
The only character I feel is even close to unique is the Soldier's healing spec. I've came across many players that are the exact same type of Hunter as myself.
I never said it was deep customization. But it is fun. Turning the Bloodwing into a fearsome exploding bastard that leeches health is terrific. It might not be an endless cavalcade of micromanagement, but the perks you get open the gameplay up and make things more fun.
Yea that's true. I guess I'm just looking at it in comparison to other RPGs (and I don't feel like people should be comparing it to say, Diablo), and feel like Borderlands is fairly bare bones compared to those, but for a shooter, it's great.
There was no direct 1-for-1 comparison to Diabolo. They said it was the closest thing to Diabolo that an FPS could be. Its not beyond my grasp to see where the two overlap, but I don't feel the need to bring up everything that doesn't.
Hell, you don't even have to have ever played Diabolo to know what people are talking about when they talk about Diabolo. Play Borderlands, play Phantasy Star Zero, Monster Hunter or Torchlight and it just starts to become clear that, hey, these things have stuff in common!
I agree with what you said re: Borderlands 2. Borderlands is good, I love it - probably going to be one of my favorite games this year. But there were some things that i wish I could have seen done differently, things that are almost the norm in other games. You touched on one - enemy variety. This was one of the few disappointing parts of Borderlands for me. Fighting skags and bandits and spiderants until your eyes fall out. Maybe some more emphasis and variety in the vehicle department.
I hope they continue the franchise and make Borderlands 2 even better than the original.
And personally, I would agree. Borderlands has proved itself to be easily one of the best games of 2009, and definitely one I will play for a while. As long as you got a couple of friends, I feel like the game never gets boring.
Also driving sucks in this game. Even with it's flaws though the game is easily one of my favorite games I've played in a long time. Now fix the damn weapon stats not showing up correctly and I'll love Gearbox even more.
In 2009!!
also, on the topic of borderlands, the ending plays out too much like a metroid boss fight and i came away from it feeling seriously gypped. but lets say 200 years passes which is "not within your lifetime" what exactly is preventing those stupid cloner things from popping out a fresh you? (loop hole that bothered me)