Summary
TheBorderlandsfranchise is a game series oozing zany fun and absolutely insane, chaotic combat, amassing a generously sized fanbase that has afforded the title enough success to call for sequels, spin-offs, and prequels.
EachBorderlandsgame feels different enough to be fun while keeping the vibe fans have come to know and love, bringing in fresh new faces to love or old faces to celebrate the return of. While not everyBorderlandsgame can reach the top, each of them is deserving of the praise gamers heap on them years after they were released.
Updated on April 9th, 2024, by Mara Cowley:Borderlands is a long-running franchise that still seems to be going strong, with a numbered main series and countless spin-off titles expanding on the world and lore of Pandora. In this fast-paced looter-shooter game, players take on the role of vault hunters searching for the greatest treasure yet. Despite this simple premise, the series is still going strong, with fans expecting a new sequel to be announced hopefully before 2024 is out. Fans could easily pass the time until Borderlands 4 by revisiting previous games, or even discovering the nextbest Borderlands gamein their eyes, which is precisely what this list is here to help with. As such, it has been updated to include a previously omitted game, and highlight what makes each entry so great.
12Pinball FX - Borderlands: Vault Hunter Pinball
A Peculiar Crossover Fans Of Both Games Will Love
Borderlands is a series boasting a wealth ofspin-off titles verging on breaking into new territory, butVault Hunter Pinballcompletely smashes through, taking the Vault Hunters to the world of pinball within thePinball FXmultiverse, which has gathered other notable licenses alongside this one.
Fun animations, familiar characters, andexciting pinball gameplay, this crossover game won’t be for everyone, but for those who enjoy both games, this is the perfect entry in the series for them. Priced at only a little over $5, it’s practically a steal, and might just be worth everyBorderlandsfan buying, so they can claim they have every game in the series.
11Borderlands 2: Commander Lilith And The Fight For Sanctuary
Brings Hours More Content, And Raises Character Level Cap
This DLC for the smashing success ofBorderlands 2,Commander Lilith and the Fight for Sanctuaryadds new missions, locations, and loot for fans of the game to strap in and enjoy. Sanctuary is under attack, the Vault Map has been stolen, and Pandora has been poisoned by a noxious gas. It is up to the player to try and remedy all of this, taking on the roles of Lilith and the Crimson Raiders to defend the planet.
All of this sounds fine in theory, but this DLC made many fans feel cheated by the fact that character level 80 was locked behind a paid DLC. This otherwise would have been a well-received DLC, as its fun and familiar gameplay is praised, as are the new levels and fights.
10Borderlands Legends
Borderlands Legendsis a spin-off title most players wouldn’t expect, as it brings characters and gameplayfans know and love to the mobile phone platform. Its release coincided with that of the much anticipatedBorderlands 2, which overshadowed the release of this mobile game tie-in.
While the gameplay was heralded as fun by many of its players, there was a glaring lack of content which meant that the game could grow stale pretty fast. Nevertheless, it served as a good drop-in drop-out style game that could definitely help players while away some hours doing something fun without requiring much thought or concentration on the players' end.
Borderlands’foray into the world ofepisodic gamescame in the form ofTales from the Borderlands, the fame and popularity of the first quickly resulting in a demand for more.New Tales from the Borderlandswas the answer, bringing a new tale as three plucky people, Anu, Octavio, and Fran, attempt to change the world.
It lacked a lot of the charm and genuine humor of the originalTFTB, resulting in a lot of cringe dialogue and characters that some players could not get invested with. But, this episodic game still holds a narrative that players can influence. HardcoreBorderlandsfans should still give it a try, to experience some more previously untold tales.
Borderlands 2 VR
The iconic shooter-looter gets in your face! Virtually immerse yourself in the untamed world of Borderlands. Step into the boots of a treasure-seeking Vault Hunter armed with 87 bazillion guns on a quest to line your pockets with loot. Blast bandits with real-world aiming, punch psychos in the mouth, race across the desert in stolen bandit vehicles and free Pandora from Handsome Jack’s clutches!PUT ON YOUR VIRTUAL BOOTSBecome one of four playable classes: Siren, Commando, Gunzerker and Assassin, each with unique skillsets and combat styles!GET VIRTUALLY LOADEDShoot-and-loot with bazillions of procedurally-generated guns, each with their own capabilities and modifiers. Plus, lust after procedurally-generated shields, grenades, relics, class mods and more for maximum power and mayhem!VIRTUALLY SLOW TIMEUse the new Slow-Mo ability to set up your next attack! Plus, with Teleport, glide across Pandora as gracefully as Claptrap, if he had grace.
Borderlands 2alone is a fantastic entry in the series, bringing back the familiar feel and gameplay with a whole host of new characters and adventures to dive into on the world of Pandora. And like most games that gain enough notoriety and fans, a VR version was soon put into development and released for PlayStation and PC VR headsets.
However, the VR version ofBorderlands 2was not heaped with the praise the base game was. Some players pointed out a lot of flaws with the VR controls, and the removal ofco-op playwas seen as heresy to hardcoreBorderlandsfans. But, players who enjoyed the second game and are curious to experience it in a VR setting will still find fun to be had here.
Take Control Of A Series Favorite Character
Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!
LAUNCH INTO THE BORDERLANDS UNIVERSE AND SHOOT ‘N’ LOOT YOUR WAY THROUGH A BRAND NEW ADVENTURE THAT ROCKETS YOU ONTO PANDORA’S MOON IN BORDERLANDS: THE PRE-SEQUEL!Discover the story behind Borderlands 2 villain, Handsome Jack, and his rise to power. Taking place between the original Borderlands and Borderlands 2, the Pre-Sequel gives you a whole lotta new gameplay featuring the genre blending fusion of shooter and RPG mechanics that players have come to love.Float through the air with each low gravity jump while taking enemies down from above using new ice and laser weapons. Catch-a-ride and explore the lunar landscape with new vehicles allowing for more levels of destructive mayhem.
The head-scratchingly namedPre-Sequel!is aBorderlandsgame set between the first and second game,telling a new tale featuring old charactersthat were non-playable before, and bosses that fans might recognize from games they have already played.
The game follows the story of Helios employee Jack (yes, that Jack) as he fights to free Helios from the clutches of an enemy faction called the Lost Legion, and also gain access to the Vault on Elpis, Pandora’s moon before anyone else does.Borderlands: The Pre-Sequelis unique in terms of characters and level design, but the plot and core gameplay mechanics remain the same as previous titles. But if it’s not broken, why fix it?
Tiny Tina has become a much-loved character in theBorderlandsfranchise, bringing some truly fun and unique adventures in her spinoff games that revolve around a fantasy-themed TTRPG a laDungeons and Dragons.
In typicalBorderlandsfashion, the game features first-person shooting gameplay mechanics, but there are some divergences from the main series, such as the players controlling characters that differ from the vault hunters they might expect, with fully realized personalities and unique voice lines. Players can mix and match the characters' abilities and powers, and level them up using hero points. As far asBorderlandsgames go,Tiny Tina’s Wonderlandsis a truly unique game that will offer something refreshingly different without being too different from the series they know and love.
The much anticipatedBorderlands 3was released in 2019, bringing a fantastic new story set in the world of Pandora, bringing in a squad of new playable characters as well as bringing back faces from previous titles such as sirens Lilith and Maya fromBorderlandsandBorderlands 2respectively. In this game, players must protect the vaults from the dangerous twins Troy and Tyreen, who are hoping to possess whatever lies in the Great Vault.
Fans of the previousBorderlandsgames will find very little to dislike, as it brings in much-loved gameplay mechanics from previous entries and fan-favorite characters. Though the twins can’t match the stage presence of the megalomaniac Handsome Jack they are still threatening enough the players feel the strain of the threat they possess, andBorderlands 3remains a game deserving of much praise, especially following on from the success of its predecessor.
4Borderlands 2: Tiny Tina’s Assault On Dragon Keep
The Inspiration For The Full AAA Spinoff Title
CombiningBorderlandswith a rip-offD&Dgame is something that definitely is a unique idea, and serves as a basis for this standalone DLC campaign,Tiny Tina’s Assault on Dragon Keep. Though an expansion for the second game, its uniqueness definitely means that it is a game in its own right.
Tiny Tina takes on the role of Games Master, narrating the adventure as theBorderlandscharacters players are familiar with play through her game. It continues the looting shooting gameplay but also brings in some platforming and puzzles, which some Borderlands fans might be unaccustomed to, and see as an unwelcome interruption to the expected gameplay.
The Game That Kicked Off The Whole Series
Borderlands
Discover the co-op shooter-looter that started it all, crammed with content and enhancements! Equip bazillions of guns as one of four trigger-happy mercenaries, each with unique RPG skills. Take on the lawless desolate planet Pandora in pursuit of powerful alien technology: The Vault. With new weapons, visual upgrades, all 4 add-on packs and more, enjoy the highly acclaimed FPS/RPG solo or in 4-player split screen co-op!Bazillions of Guns: Rocket-launching shotguns, enemy-torching revolvers, SMGs that fire lightning rounds, and tons more.Radical Art Style: Traditional rendering techniques combined with hand-drawn textures give Borderlands its iconic style.Intense Vehicular Combat: Behind the wheel, engage in frenetic vehicle-to-vehicle combat.Co-op Frenzy: Whether online or together on the couch, tear through the opposition as a crew of up to 4.VISUALLY STUNNING: With improved character models, environments, weapons, and textures, Borderlands paired with a 4K display never looked so good.NEW WEAPONS: There are already too many to count so we added more.NEW CHARACTER HEADS: Be as beautiful as mom says you are.NEW GOLD CHESTS AND KEYS: More loot!
The game that started it all: the very firstBorderlands. Released in 2009, it was a trulyone-of-a-kind cyberpunk gamethatlaid the groundwork for the games that would follow, from the playable four main characters, each a unique class with their own abilities, and the stories of Vault Hunters scouring Pandora and other planets in hopes of hunting down one of the illusive vaults.
In the distant future, mega-corporations vie for control of planets to mine them of their resources, with Atlas in the lead after they uncovered a Vault filled with alien technology that put them ahead in the tech race. Now everyone is searching for these Vaults, including the four playable characters Lilith, Brick, Mordecai, and Roland.
