Borderlands 3 Review: Third Time’s the Charm?

• The new title features three new classes and the return of the Siren class.
• The story is a little off, but the gameplay and mechanics more than make up for it.
• With a ton of DLCs set to pop up, we can’t wait to get our hands on more Borderlands 3 action over the next few months.

One might expect that Borderlands 3 might not have the same impact the previous two titles did [offical link]. After all, the looter shooter genre has evolved significantly over the years, and Borderlands has been trumped by the likes of Destiny and Warframe. But is the king of looter shooters still worthy of the crown? Let’s find out.

Is Borderlands 3 Still The King of Looter Shooters?

Destiny, The Division, Anthem and other games have pushed the boundaries of FPS looter shooters over the years, but Borderlands has a lot going for it. While it might not have the best story or gameplay mechanics, it shines where it matters the most – fun.

Borderlands 3 is a fun game, and it does not move away from the basics that make it such a loveable franchise. There are plenty of pop culture references and the humor in the game keeps things from getting too boring. There are millions of guns to choose from, but they are not exactly unique. There is a limited number of weapon types, and you simply get various reskins with different damage numbers and elemental types on them. But it does not take away from the experience, and you keep grinding your way through bosses to get that perfect roll on legendary weapons.

The gunplay feels fantastic, and each weapon has a distinct personality. But how are its characters? You have the quintessential Siren class along with three new classes. Beastmaster Flak is undoubtedly our favorite character because of his solo play skills. Moze seems a little underpowered as of now but is definitely a lot of fun as you get to deploy a giant mech to take down the bad guys. Zane is your typical assassin-style character, and if you miss playing with Zero, the Operative class in Borderlands 3 will not disappoint. Amara is strong just like the sirens in other games, but we were underwhelmed by how little of a role she plays in the game. Lilith and Maya, the two sirens who featured in the older Borderlands titles, felt a lot more impactful while Amara was hidden from the spotlight in Borderlands 3.

To get to all of the fun you need to play the opening mission and the world is your playground. When it comes to the changes over Borderlands 1 or 2, the newest title doesn’t improve all that much. It is the same old Borderlands experience with many quality of life experience that make it a solid experience. If you want to team up with your friends and have fun shooting bad guys down, there are very few titles that can beat this experience.

What We Liked:

• Amazing Gunplay
• Fleshed out loot system
• New planet
• Retains everything that made older titles great

What We Didn’t:

• Quest design is repetitive at times
• Weak humor and plot

Our Verdict: 8/10

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