"Once upon a time, four Vault Hunters changed Pandora forever. But their time has passed -- thanks to Handsome Jack, Pandora needs a new hero. I know that hero is you."
--Angel, Borderlands 2
"Did you know littering in Opportunity is punishable by death? If not, you also oughtta know complaining about Opportunity's laws is considered verbal littering."
--Handsome Jack, Borderlands 2
Borderlands 2 towers above its predecessor in almost every way, with its far greater emphasis on worldbuilding, comedy, and parodies of everything from Star Wars to Game of Thrones to Se7en to The Hunger Games to Transformers to The Lion King. The philosophical side of the series is also finally put on better display. Borderlands 2 builds on the first game's promising but often undeveloped references to issues like artificial intelligence and corporate greed, but it also expands the scope to far more immediately pressing philosophical issues like general ethics and foundational epistemology (in some cases)--all while evolving the mechanics of the gameplay to make them deeper. The Switch's Game of the Year Edition also includes an extensive set of DLC missions and locations that far outnumber those in the first game!
--Angel, Borderlands 2
"Did you know littering in Opportunity is punishable by death? If not, you also oughtta know complaining about Opportunity's laws is considered verbal littering."
--Handsome Jack, Borderlands 2
Borderlands 2 towers above its predecessor in almost every way, with its far greater emphasis on worldbuilding, comedy, and parodies of everything from Star Wars to Game of Thrones to Se7en to The Hunger Games to Transformers to The Lion King. The philosophical side of the series is also finally put on better display. Borderlands 2 builds on the first game's promising but often undeveloped references to issues like artificial intelligence and corporate greed, but it also expands the scope to far more immediately pressing philosophical issues like general ethics and foundational epistemology (in some cases)--all while evolving the mechanics of the gameplay to make them deeper. The Switch's Game of the Year Edition also includes an extensive set of DLC missions and locations that far outnumber those in the first game!
Production Values
As is usually the case with sequels to older games, there is a distinct improvement in the colors, details, and size of the world, the best of the visual effects transcending the comparatively dull aesthetic of the original game. Even more integral to the plot and worldbuilding is the enormous increase in dialogue. Not only do more NPCs speak regularly, but the character one chooses to play as also makes comments for the first time in the Borderlands series. The more thorough dialogue is what most contributes to the comedy themes that span philosophy, pop culture, and self-referential statements. The expanded scope of the dialogue is one of the primary production decisions that establishes just how far the series has come from its severely underdeveloped starting point.
Gameplay
All of the basic features of the gameplay in the original Borderlands return: co-op is an option throughout the entire game, players obtain randomized loot they can sell or equip, and subsequent playthroughs carry over all previous items while granting access to superior weapons. The first few missions are short, like those of the initial game. Other than this, the mechanics and structure of Borderlands 2 have matured. There are far more weapons, and some of the weapon subtypes (categorized by the companies that make them) have new features. Tediore firearms are thrown like grenades when reloaded, for instance.
Unlike in the preceding game, dying triggers a refill of all nearby enemies' health bars, meaning that bosses cannot be slowly defeated across multiple respawns at New-U stations. The bosses are far more diverse this time as well, whereas only a handful of bosses were blatantly distinct before. Some of the best villains are not bosses, though. The characterization of various allies and villains alike gives more depth to the quests taken on their behalf. Not all of those quests are easy, but a higher level cap, a more extensive skill tree, and a larger amount of DLC content provide plenty of opportunities to improve one's characters.
The passive weapon class upgrades of the first Borderlands are nowhere to be seen, but completing optional in-game achievements like killing certain numbers of enemies with a specific weapon class or finding Vault symbols in different locations now awards Badass Tokens after enough challenges are finished. Badass Tokens can be used to obtain special enhancements that apply to every character one plays with on the same Switch profile, though they can also be toggled on and off at will for those who prefer to play without them. Similar challenges were in the first Borderlands, but completing them did not unlock points, Tokens, or upgrades of any kind (though they did provide XP).
Unlike in the preceding game, dying triggers a refill of all nearby enemies' health bars, meaning that bosses cannot be slowly defeated across multiple respawns at New-U stations. The bosses are far more diverse this time as well, whereas only a handful of bosses were blatantly distinct before. Some of the best villains are not bosses, though. The characterization of various allies and villains alike gives more depth to the quests taken on their behalf. Not all of those quests are easy, but a higher level cap, a more extensive skill tree, and a larger amount of DLC content provide plenty of opportunities to improve one's characters.
The passive weapon class upgrades of the first Borderlands are nowhere to be seen, but completing optional in-game achievements like killing certain numbers of enemies with a specific weapon class or finding Vault symbols in different locations now awards Badass Tokens after enough challenges are finished. Badass Tokens can be used to obtain special enhancements that apply to every character one plays with on the same Switch profile, though they can also be toggled on and off at will for those who prefer to play without them. Similar challenges were in the first Borderlands, but completing them did not unlock points, Tokens, or upgrades of any kind (though they did provide XP).
Story
Some spoilers are below.
A new Vault Hunter wakes up on the planet Pandora, meeting a Claptrap unit and an artificial intelligence named Angel who guide the newcomer towards Sanctuary, a haven for those oppressed by the Hyperion Corporation. Led by the sadistic and egoistic Handsome Jack, Hyperion searches for a Vault that might be larger than the one located in the first Borderlands game at the finale of the main story. Handsome Jack seized power of Hyperion in events addressed very thoroughly in The Pre-Sequel. Sanctuary's resistance movement achieves victories, some of which backfire, but some of them provide a possible way to stop Jack from summoning an ancient, monstrous being called the Warrior.
A new Vault Hunter wakes up on the planet Pandora, meeting a Claptrap unit and an artificial intelligence named Angel who guide the newcomer towards Sanctuary, a haven for those oppressed by the Hyperion Corporation. Led by the sadistic and egoistic Handsome Jack, Hyperion searches for a Vault that might be larger than the one located in the first Borderlands game at the finale of the main story. Handsome Jack seized power of Hyperion in events addressed very thoroughly in The Pre-Sequel. Sanctuary's resistance movement achieves victories, some of which backfire, but some of them provide a possible way to stop Jack from summoning an ancient, monstrous being called the Warrior.
Intellectual Content
The host of philosophical jokes or comments touch on everything from individualistic psychology to the idiocy of people who claim to "know" a divine figure spoke to them in a dream to the possibility of an AI revolt. Some of the comments characters make about various issues are downright incomplete or asinine, such as Claptrap's claim that humor reduces down to subverting expectations (repetitive or expected things can be comedic) and a late man's assertion in a side quest that only one's mind can be known with absolute certainty (logic, the existence of the present moment, the existence of space, and the existence of some sort of physical body for one's mind can all be known, with numerous truths about each also being provable), while others are rather close to rationalistic truths. On Pandora, force and humor are the two main ways characters establish themselves, so the latter category of acknowledged truths is mentioned by seeming happenstance more than out of genuine intelligence and concern for truth. Philosophy is still an integral part of many jokes!
Conclusion
Borderlands 2 is the game that transitions the series from one holding potential to one marked by excellence. Before this sequel, the franchise was merely a mixture of promising ideas without any sort of justifying narrative or lore. With this release, Borderlands became one of the deepest and most replayable series of the past 20 years. Returning characters have more personality; the new villain has a far stronger set of motivations; the missions have more prominent and more culturally significant instances of humor. The depth of the world expands to the point that not a single aspect of the first game's lore stands above that of the second. With all of the expansive, diverse DLC campaigns and side quests, the Game of the year Edition on the Switch is the best way to play Borderlands 2 on a handheld device (the only other handheld platform it is on is the PlayStation Vita), and it would even be a great way to play the game for traditional console players who have played it before without thoroughly scouring its depths.
Content:
1. Violence: Blood and mild gore is shown when non-machine enemies are shot or killed.
2. Profanity: Words like "damn," "bitch," and "bastard" are used.
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