Tales from the Borderlands: Episode Four - Escape Plan Bravo

By: Robert Murphy

Borderlands initially was a game that I had no real interest in when I first saw screenshots and gameplay for the very first game, I thought it was too cartoony for a shooter but that has all drastically changed over the years and the franchise has become one of my favorite games of all time. With Tales from the Borderlands this love has been drastically enhanced due to it's focus on the character aspect and showing what it is like for normal people to try and survive in the wastelands of Pandora. This human level aspect has never been more apparent than with the release of the latest episode "Escape Plan Bravo."

Up until this point the Tales from the Borderlands series has always been driving forward at full speed with the constant action and exploits of Rhys, Fiona and their always growing larger group. Things in this most recent chapter however don't see nearly as much high stakes action as their has been but this is not a bad thing and it sets the ground work for what appears to be an incredible concluding chapter. After the events of the last episode, our team appears soundly defeated by the group of bandits that have been chasing after them but hey they put up a much better struggle to this messed up world than most. Now they're on a mission to head back to Hyperion HQ to gain the last piece of Gortys and get access to the Vault of the Traveler. This is what it has all been leading up to since the get go and now that Gortys is almost complete, she will be able to hold the Vault in one place so they can get their huge pay day. They just have to break into the most secure facility in the universe and then find away to dupe their wood be captures.

Things for Rhys and Fiona have reached a crucial tipping point in terms of their individual futures. With Handsome Jack constantly getting more accustomed to his new form, Rhys finds himself closer than ever to his goal of finally running Hyperion and being a huge big shot. It is hard not to be extremely weary of what Handsome Jack may do if you choose to go to the beat of his drum but at the same time it is insanely appealing. Jack also returns with some classic one liners but also some excellent guidance for Rhys and what it would be like if the two of them worked together to rule over Pandora. I felt the dark side calling my name the entire episode. I also particularly enjoyed when he taught you how to punch the lights out of a Psycho after they all were tired out from a flesh pizza frenzy, don't ask. But, the important question remains and that is, what will you do when you are sat on the throne?

Fiona however is on a different sort of path since the events of the last episode and her dealing with Athena. The prospects of becoming a Vault Hunter are now weighing in her mind but that could lead to some emotional struggles as Athena's relationship with her girlfriend Springs points out. Springs knows that Athena wasn't on a delivery mission and in order to get her help with your rocket powered car you either have to tell her the truth or lie to her. This is the kind of emotional trouble you expect to experience with almost all of Fiona's story this time around, her and Sasha reminds you of why they want the riches of the vault but also an unexpected turn with a Borderlands veteran leads to some deeply emotional scenes. I, of course, am referring to Scooter who plays a much bigger role than you would ever expect to see from him and the fact that he is always such a welcomed delight makes the events of this latest episode even more gut wrenching. 

The slower pacing for "Escape Plan Bravo" does have some trade offs in terms of the gravity of the situations. While this whole incredible plan is being hatched you would think that there would be some grueling issues for players to deal with this time around but there isn't much in the way of tough decisions until the final moments of the story. There were some particularly dull moments for the chapter including an optional close changing scene that brings back my issues with the money collecting for the entire series. Or whether or not you choose to lie to Springs ends up making very little difference as either way she will end up helping you so the story will continue. Overall, these points didn't hit me too hard as the slow pace left opening for some great dialogue and references to the Borderlands lore which include a tender moment with Handsome Jack about his daughter Angel and a split decision for Fiona that may lead you to shoot a familiar diamond encrusted "statue" by the name of Butt Stallion. 

Episode four of Tales from the Borderlands certainly features a slower pace than the ones we have seen so far but it is hard to notice in the wake of all the comedic gems spread throughout the episode. Between a giant shootout with finger guns by high ranking Hyperion employees, an Armageddon slow motion walk sequences and a triumphant performance by the long time favorite, Scooter, I found myself loving every moment. The dull moments of decision making are present but there was plenty of great ground work laid throughout this latest episode and I cannot wait to see how Telltale plans to send us off. 

Good:

- Hilarious amounts of one liners and Borderlands references

- Characters are running on all cylinders and their develops are getting even more interesting

- Gut wrenching emotional scene

Bad:

- Dull decision making this time around

- Some fluffed up story moments that, in the end, didn't effect the progression

Scully Rating: 8.8 out of 10

Tales from the Borderlands: Episode 3 - Catch a Ride

By: Robert Murphy

Gary, no! Leave it to a game like Borderlands to make me feel sorry for a background character whose face I didn’t even see before it was crushed underneath an Atlas robot’s chassis. We make our way back to the ever chaotic and desolate world of Pandora again as Rhys and Fiona attempt to escape the tight spot in which they found themselves in the last episode. Things do not improve any with this latest episode however as new enemies and familiar faces join the fray to complicate the already tense situation. It would seem our team’s goal of opening a vault for all of its many riches is turning into a suicide mission to say the least.

A good portion of what happens in this latest chapter is focused on separate but still connected stories for Rhys and Fiona. Fiona discovers that the assassin that was trying to kill her and her sister last episode is actually a vault hunter that was hired by Felix to protect and guide them. She looks at Athena as somewhat of a cool older sister who can do all of these amazing things and travels the world in search of riches. This makes her question what she wants for her own future, could she possibly be this amazing vault hunter one day and fight monsters with her wits and handy sidearm? At the same time Rhys has his hands full with a budding romance that I did not see coming but it was an awkwardly enjoyable aspect to the story. Rhys has always had a heart of gold underneath all of the bravado that he spouts off from time to time and it’s nice to see that aspect come out as you spend more time separate from the main group.

The overarching story however proves to be just as compelling if for no other reason than the group’s newest member Gortys. This sweet and naïve little robot turns out to be the key to finding the vault but needs more pieces to become fully functional. Within moments of awakening she grabs the leg of a dead body and excitedly scolds it to hurry up so they can begin their journey. She is essentially a child at heart and doesn’t understand the concepts of mortality or the fact that every moment spent on Pandora is a like sitting next to a ticking time bomb waiting to explode which makes all of her interactions hysterical. Her relationship with Loader Bot was also a top notch aspect for the developers to include as the always helpful robot develops a protective bond with her.

There is also a refreshing change of pace for the story as the group moves to an unknown Atlas location in search of a part for Gortys. This takes players out of the horrible sand and monster filled landscape and sends them to a new bio-dome location that is filled with crazy plant life and yes more monsters but they’re mostly cute, sort of. It is hard not to appreciate as you walk through the different parts of the luminescent landscape and find some peace in this chaotic world, if only for a moment or two. The whole scene is really a rather enjoyable one as the color pallet changes up significantly and it also plays into some of the more intimate moments I mentioned earlier with Rhys.

What is unfortunate is what comes after all the romance and character development as the action starts to pick up. Both the beginning and the ending for Catch a Ride have some chaotic moments of action as you face off with Hyperion, hired goons and even some famous vault hunters. All of the scenes fit perfectly with the style of madness that you can experience when you play any Borderlands game but it seems that Telltale’s gaming engine has some trouble handling it. Scenes were jumping all over the place as I switched between the action that was taking place and frame rates dropped significantly to the point where it was hard to understand or enjoy what was going on in the story. There are fantastic moments hidden throughout these scenes such as Fiona furthering her new found skills and some classic Borderlands comedy but it’s hard to appreciate if the game cannot handle what it is trying to show you.

Tales from the Borderlands continues to be a worthy adaptation of the Borderlands universe in Catch a Ride. The comedy and quick witted dialogue for all the character is spot on and the story manages to mix both serious decision making situations with off the collar humor as well. Things are heating up rather quickly by the end of episode three however and it has me eagerly waiting for what’s around the corner with the final revealing moment for the story leading to new unexplored territory. As a bit of closing advice, countless articles and reviews have pointed out that the story for Catch a Ride plays out drastically different depending on who you chose to trust at the end of episode two so it is something to keep in mind for a second playthrough. It will for mine.

Good:

- Further development for Rhys and Fiona

- Gortys is adorable and the perfect missing piece for the group

- Spot on hilarious jokes and moments throughout the story

Bad:

- The frame rate and sputtering issues with the action scenes  

Scully Rating: 8.9 out of 10

Tales from the Borderlands: Episode 2 - Atlas Mugged

 By: Robert Murphy

Why is something so gruesome just so damn funny? This was a question I asked myself multiple times during this episode of Tales from the Borderlands and it is something of a Borderlands specialty to begin with. Atlas Mugged brings our rag tag group of characters into the light more, what kind of characters they’re and what they’re all about. On top of this, a monkey wrench is thrown into the pile when Handsome Jack is brought back in a holographic form. You also have skags, Psychos, an ancient Atlas project and a blood thirsty assassin thrown on top of it all among the long list of things destined to try and kill you. Whether or not you can come out on top still remains to be seen.

When you last left off in the story, the group found themselves in an odd Atlas bunker with a map to an unknown treasure, whether this is a vault or a vault key or just a hidden treasure trove is not known yet but your team is anxious to find out. Not like you have much else going on now that the 10 million dollar deal you had going before has blown up in both your characters faces. This trend of bad luck tends to continue onward in this episode, it seems you can never catch a break when you’re trying to pull off a big time heist and everything seems to want to work against you. I found myself wondering just how much more bad luck can come across my characters after narrowly escaping death within the first twenty minutes of the game. Assassins started to have it in for me, my old boss from Hyperion paid me a special visit, bounty hunters came for my head and old enemies with a grudge wanted to put a bullet in my back. I just couldn’t catch a break but God was it fun.

Rhys has found himself in a bit of an odd situation in this episode; it would appear the Hyperion drive I placed in my head last episode had an imprint of a long lost friend, Handsome Jack. Even stuck in a hologram mode hasn’t changed his attitude though as he tries to rip out your vocal cords for talking too much, I really did miss this guy. Jack pops in on many of Rhys’s storyline and causes him to come off as a little crazy. How you deal with him will especially cause this to happen but no matter how you treat him, he’s still better than ever. His humor throughout the story had me laughing non-stop, whether it’s giving me the rundown on who my former Hyperion boss use to be or phasing his hand through the crotch region of my buddy Vaughn and putting on a little puppet show, it was all brilliant. Handsome Jack’s presence also makes the story so much stronger, where before in the first episode we only saw Zer0 come into play, you now have a heavy hitter among your group and it makes the story feel more apart of the Borderlands games. You feel like you could have seen Rhys or Fiona somewhere in the background of one of the previous games and that’s something unique.

As for Fiona, she and her sister (Sasha) are going through a bit of an emotional time after their long time friend and mentor betrayed them. Depending on how you went in the previous episode things could be really somber between the two. Sasha is still young so her emotions come out more in anger over what has happened and it’s up to you to decide if you want to join in on that. You can also take the risk of trying to take the high road and getting her to forgive him for betraying you both. It’s not the sort of thing you have come across in a Borderlands game before that’s for sure. Yes, you’ve dealt with death and loss in the game before but this whole situation digs into an emotional angle that you don’t deal with a lot in these games and it was a nice touch by TellTale.

This brings me to the wonderful storytelling that comes together this time around. Atlas Mugged hits so many different layers; the first episode was fun and fraught with classic Borderlands danger but now you get to see a whole other side to things. Borderlands 2 did a great job of taking the characters from the first game and bringing them to life as unique people for your character to interact with in the story and that’s what I feel is being done here as well. Last episode Zer0 had more personality in the ten to twenty minutes he was on screen compared to the entirety of the second game. Rhys, Fiona and all the characters are terrific really and with additions like Scooter in this episode, I can see the future of Tales from the Borderlands getting even better.

In conclusion, episode two of Tales from the Borderlands is an excellent continuation to the story. Every minute was filled with laughs, danger and some more emotional scenes that will lead you to some tough decisions this time around. The addition of Handsome Jack to the story was also a great step forward and led to plenty of laughs and interesting scenarios. Our main characters get more revealed about them too and become more fleshed out in terms of their story and their relationships. I’m interested to not only see where everything headed but also to see just what will happen to present day Rhys and Fiona. All I can say is, keep things coming because I’m ready for what happens next.

Good:

- Plenty of laughs and hilarious dialogue

- Handsome Jack as well as other returning characters like Scooter

- Fantastic continuation of the story

- The emotional point between Sasha and Fiona (there’s one between Rhys and Vaughn too)

Bad:

- Ain’t got nothing for you here

Scully Rating: 9.0 out of 10

Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel

By: Robert Murphy

At the end of Borderlands 2 as I watched the credits roll, I couldn't help but be a little sad that I would never see the awesome sarcastic villain Handsome Jack ever again (WOAH SPOILERS). However, things have changed now with the release of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel which takes place in between the events of the first Borderlands and the second and tells the story behind Jack's rise to power and just how he became the man we hated to love. As expected we are introduced to four new vault hunters who are hired by Jack to help him take back Helios Station and find a new vault on Pandora's moon Elpis and become super rich and famous, who wouldn't want all that? Things get crazy in typical Borderlands fashion really quick so strap yourselves in boys and girls. 

As expected, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel plays much the same way that it's predecessors have before as you fight your way through giant open worlds, shooting everything in sight because everything and everyone is typically out to get you. This includes crazy monstrous creatures from your wildest imagination brought to life, scavengers and bandits and some robots too, why not right? There is also the never ending amount of loot to be had along the way as well as they explode outwards from corpses you've slain like a confetti popper. Collecting all kinds of loot and shooting everything in sight will still bring seasoned vault hunters rushing in to play in it's fun and addictive cycle.

This is the stuff we all know though already so let's move onto some of the newer goodies the game has in store. As I mentioned before we are currently walking across the moons surface and like a childhood dream come true, you can now jump in zero gravity to your hearts content with the added fun of having a badass arsenal at your finger tips. You will of course need some oxygen in order to survive on the surface of Elpis and this is where the games new Oz kit system comes into play. Players are given this device almost immediately and will be allowed to go on living during there journey but you need to keep an eye on your oxygen while you play or else you'll run out. It's a bit of an added challenge for everyone but it is fairly easy to maintain as enemies now drop Oz to refill your tank and there are also oxygen pockets to stand in on the surface as well as oxygen machines to turn on too. The good attributes behind this new Oz kit is the ability to double jump and soar through the air and gain the tactical upper hand on grounded enemies, peppering them from above. There is also a new butt slam mechanic where you can slam down hard on your foes while singing "We're whalers on the moon" in your head.

As for our heroes in this new tale, we are introduced to three new characters and one charmingly annoying familiar one to play as this time around. Yep, Claptrap is now a playable character for those of you who were looking to unleash the furry of this little yellow trash can. His abilities are quite unique as he plays a better support character if you're playing with friends, he can give your allies power buffs to aid in battle or sometimes annoy them. Now onto the newbies, The Gladiator, Athena, is another somewhat support class, she features abilities that allow for high shield recharge and an actual shield that can be thrown just like Captain American and also absorb bullets. Our resident soldier class, Wilhelm, shacks things up a bit by no longer launching turrets but rather flying kill bots that look like tiny Galaga ships that rain fire down upon enemies. Finally, we have the resident gunslinger , Nisha, who can enter a super focused state with faster reloads and a faster fire rate that will allow you to drop enemies in the blink of an eye. What's great about all these characters is now they feel like they've come to life more than previous characters, interactions with AI in the game is more present and instead of just spouting out catch phrases they feel real and let their personalities show. 

Unfortunately, my happy train gets derailed as I was playing through the games story which can best be described as lack luster. Handsome Jack is back which I couldn't be happier about and all the other big named characters return such as Moxxi, Torque, Roland, Tiny Tina and many more. They all still bring the classic humor to life still and it is amazing how much I am still able to laugh at the dialogue of a game, even with no name characters throughout the game and their sparkling personalities. But when it comes down to the story there isn't anything to it that will wow people into playing through the missions. I didn't learn anything about Handsome Jack that I didn't already know and nothing about the Borderlands universe I know and love gets changed.

A part of me wishes that Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel offered a little bit more in the way of changing and evolving the gameplay further. New features in the game are fun and enjoyable such as the new lazer weapons and weapon creator where you can mash three weapons together in the hopes of getting a better one. These are tiny additions that polish the game even further this is for certain but nothing really has changed from the games I've seen before. That being said, this Borderlands is still a solid game for any long time fan as it features plenty of references and hilarious characters from the games expansive universe. The new Oz kits and zero gravity add even more enjoyment to the action as you send enemies tumbling over and over in zero gravity or soar through the sky dispensing hot lead on enemies too. I still enjoy popping enemies like a balloon and getting all sorts of loot to be used in my destructive and chaotic playthroughs every time and that is really what makes Borderlands a great game. 

Good:

- Still the same great shooter and looter style game that it is known for

- Oz kits and zero gravity are some of the games great new additions

- Hilarious dialogue and famous faces return once again 

Bad:

- Nothing in the way of huge changes to the Borderlands games

- The main story really wasn't as big and exciting as I was expecting it to be, glad to see Handsome Jack's back story but it should of been more

Scully Rating: 8.0 out of 10 

Borderlands 2

Pack your bags gamers we’re going back to Pandora for another adventure in “Borderlands 2”, a direct sequel to the massively popular “Borderlands”, this action role-playing open world/ first person shooter puts you right back into the action and right back to what gamers loved from the original. “Borderlands 2” builds upon the same gameplay elements that we were introduced to in the original game, this time around you’ve got new characters to choose from, the Solider, the Siren, the Assassin and the Gunzerker class are all available to you to choose from each with its own unique skills and abilities that makes your gameplay even more incredible as you set out for a new vault. These skills can be leveled up and upgraded through your individual characters skill tree to make your character even stronger through experience you earn when you kill enemies or complete main story and side missions. Alongside this, “Borderlands 2” comes stoked with skill coins which you earn by killing a certain enemy or creature a certain number of times or using a weapon a number of times, these coins can be put towards individual skills such as weapon proficiency or increase in health, etc. Did I neglect to mention the guns…..oh so many guns….guns like you wouldn’t believe, while the original “Borderlands” came stocked with its own massive supply of weaponry, “Borderlands 2” takes it to a whole new level with the huge and incredible selection of weapons you have to choose from some with various effects and abilities that can cause even more damage to your opponents. People who pick up “Borderlands 2” will also be saying hello to some old faces from the original “Borderlands” through the main story and where “Borderlands” didn’t really have a main centralized enemy that you squared off against “Borderlands 2” gives you a big bad guy to take down, Handsome Jake. And without giving to much away Handsome Jack will be that one bad guy you just hate to love.

“Borderlands 2” brings back everything that you people loved from the original and makes all the improvements that anyone may have had a problem with by playing the first “Borderlands”. With only a few quarks such as the dialogue that could not be going on when you are being overrun by enemies and the mild difficulty it may take some people to get started  “Borderlands 2” shines through regardless. With so much to see, so much to explore and so very much to shoot and destroy, “Borderlands 2” can do no wrong and is one of this year’s best to pick up and play for everyone and anyone.

Good:

-Millions of guns

-Incredibly and compelling story with lots of laughs in store

-Amazing world

-Lots to loot 

Bad:

-Minor difficulty getting started

(Game Reviewed on Xbox 360)

Scully Rating: 9.8 out of 10