Borderlands 2 is the highly anticipated sequel to the original that caught people by surprise. With its open world adventuring, millions of unique weapon drops, and its strangely entertaining sense of humor Borderlands 2 capitalizes on all of these.
Earlier today Gearbox dropped me into the improved world of Pandora. I witnessed improved graphics, new characters, and crazier weapons. All of which are just a glimpse of what is to come.
When I started out I was the Gunzerker class, a slight change from the class in the first game that focuses on heavy weapons. As I started playing through they started me out with some new and unique weapons to try. I immediately noticed the addition of mini-guns, and a special skill of my class that allowed me to dual wield for a brief time.
You would think that this skill would allow me to mow through even the strongest of foes, but Gearbox also added new and even deadlier enemies. Some of the enemies I faced had specific weaknesses that went past using a certain weapon type. For example, one group of four legged monsters came out of a hazardous lake and had crystallized knees that you had to destroy in order to deal damage. This, combined with what I can only describe as giant mosquitoes, gave me more trouble than I had anticipated.
This was a welcomed change from the original title where I found myself running through enemies with no real challenge most of the time.
Another cool thing I noticed was that you were granted more freedom in the environment. While fighting a group of enemies, I managed to see a ladder in the distance that connected to a tall structure. I was surprised to find out that I could actually jump onto this ladder and climb to the top.
I definitely felt an increase of difficulty, but I feel like it is definitely for the better. In the short period that I was able to play I came across some very powerful and unique weapons that allowed me to do things like fire rockets out of an SMG. So it is only natural that although your arsenal becomes more powerful that your enemies become a much bigger threat.
The changes and improvements from the original Borderlands will offer a much harder and more fun experience. It was a blast fighting through enemies in various locations, taking down huge bosses, and laughing at the ridiculous Claptrap’s before, but now it will only get better because you will be fighting that much harder.
