Review: New Tales from the Borderlands Welcomes a New Cast of Characters

There truly ain’t no rest for the wicked. The Borderlands franchise certainly knows how to make an impression, beginning life as an edgy space shooter (with some RPG elements). Across three titles, Borderlands has offered gamers more guns than an NRA convention. But these days the franchise is trying to branch out with a movie on the way and into the realm of edgy fantasy with Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands.

The franchise may be known for its zany cast of characters (who can forget Claptrap or Handsome Jack), but it never rested on its storytelling laurels. At least, until Tales from the Borderlands popped up in 2014 and made gamers fall in love with its cast of weirdos. Fans have been pleading for a sequel ever since, which looked increasingly unlikely since Telltale Games fell (only to rise a short time later). All that being said, New Tales from the Borderlands certainly fulfills a similar itch but may disappoint those expecting a true sequel

New Tales from the Borderlands Big Takeaways

• New Tales from the Borderlands features a new cast of characters to follow.
• The game includes enjoyable choices and encounters but lacks some of the magic of the original.
• Graphics and the gameplay for the most part (minus occasional glitches) hold up.
• Final score: 7/10

Exploring the Borderlands

Instead, New Tales from the Borderlands has billed itself as a spiritual sequel to the original. This time around, Gearbox Software has handled the development of the game itself. Similar to the jump from Borderlands to Borderlands 2, one shouldn’t expect to follow the same cast as the original. Only Rhys makes an appearance in what some may either view as a bit part or nod to the original.

So who will you be following instead? The game tasks you with following three new characters along for an adventure and deciding their fates. There’s Anu, a scientist who often clashes with her more materialistic brother Octavio. Finally, Fran, who I kid you not works as a frogurt employee, rounds out the trio. Each have their own conflicting places in life and points of view and watching as the three clashes give the game much of its charm.

One of the best parts of the game is how it continues to flesh out the world that Borderlands inhabits. While the mainline games may deal with Vault Hunters blasting their way through a band of psychos, this story shines a light on some of the universe’s other inhabitants. Don’t get us wrong, there are plenty of tense moments along the way, but it’s a nice change of pace.

Unfortunately, the game sometimes feels a bit like someone played through the original Tales from the Borderlands and decided to make a flattering imitation. It can still be fun and definitely will scratch the itch that fans have been wanting, but don’t expect any major leaps in the way that the game is played. It feels very much like more of the same, which can be both good and bad depending on your point of view.

Overall, New Tales from the Borderlands kept me invested and interested in Fran, Anu, and Octavio to want to know what happens to them and to want a sequel (the cycle starts again). Unfortunately, the end of the game (without going into spoilers) leave a bit to be desired. That being said, New Tales from the Borderlands feels like a worthy installment in the growing Borderlands franchise. Who knows where this world might take us next.

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