Consult a Doctor If You Experience Joy Puke
Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel takes place somewhere after the events of Borderlands and before the events of Borderlands 2. The thing that is great about this story is that it will be exploring how Handsome Jack became the evil mastermind he was in Borderlands 2. It will center on how he escapes exile from the Hyperion company and ends up taking it over all the while evolving into a villainous mastermind and explore the complexity of his intentions. You will get the chance to play as one of his henchmen during his rise to power.
As a part of the Handsome Jack crew you will embark on your journey as one of four henchmen. The two party members featured in the demo were Wilhelm and Athena. Each playable character in this game has shown up as a villain or primary NPC in one of the pre-existing Borderlands games. Wilhelm is more of a cyber-commando type with special powers geared towards heavy artillery and increasing ally fortitude. Athena's special ability is tied to the use of her Aspis shield. The shield has numerous available upgrades but the most notable is the one that allows the shield to ricochet to nearby enemies before returning to your character.
We started our play through infiltrating a moon base on the Outlands Spur. This leads to some brand new gameplay allowing you to experience familiar Borderlands combat mechanics in a zero gravity environment. We all know how awesome it is jumping around the Borderlands landscapes as it is so being able to continuously sky rocket into the air and rain bullets down on our enemies is a Blast! Literally!
Scattered around the landscape are jump pads that will launch you into the air allowing you to cross giant gaps on the moons surface and get a jump on your enemies. Hovering above an enemy gives you the option of smashing down upon them and creating a wide area of effect, taking out several enemies at once. This seems to be the tactic of choice since it is extremely hard to sprint in the low gravity atmosphere. You also have to make sure not to run out of oxygen by utilizing oxygen stations throughout the levels. This brings a small dose of realism to the incredibly off the wall atmosphere Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel brings to the table.
Aside from the new setting and gameplay implemented in the Pre-Sequel it stays true to the sarcastic charm that has made every game in the series special. It's an interesting choice to tell a story from the villain's perspective but let's be honest, Handsome Jack is probably one of the most likeable villains in video games. Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel will be available in the U.S October 14th of this year and internationally on October 17th, for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.
