DLC Information


Basic information
The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned
DLC for Borderlands
Developer: Gearbox Software
Publisher: 2K Games
Released: November 2009

Platforms
PlayStation 3
Xbox 360
PC

So here we are, back in business! And it seems a perfect point to carry on from where we were before. Regular readers might remember that we were very impressed by Gearbox Software’s Borderlands here at GGTL and, wouldn't you know it, now there's the developer has released a DLC expansion to the already-great original.

The break from Gamer’s Guide to Life gave me a perfect chance to catch up on those few games I hadn't quite got round to completing yet. However, it also gave me the opportunity to explore some games I had finished in a completely new fashion, namely through newly-released Borderlands DLC, 'The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned'. As you can imagine, the expansion contains those ever-popular Zombies on an island. There’s a doctor too; another obvious hint of the title. But does the downloadable content live up to the impressive 9/10 we gave Borderlands?

You arrive on the island via one of those snazzy fast travel stations familiar from the original release, and are greeted by eerie green waters and gnarled trees - surely a pleasant environment for any intrepid explorer? It’s a bit of a change from the normal Borderlands feel, and is spiced up later in the story with impressive set pieces. The visual style unique to Borderlands is maintained through this DLC release, as is the humour.

This, of course, is great for the experience of Dr. Ned. It provides a way for people to relax, even when they're on a zombie infested island, and also provides the player with a way to connect with the game and story. I've always felt it's very important for developers to find ways to break through the barrier of the screen and get into the mind of a player – it has the sort of affect on the player which means players are chatting with each other about the release, even when they're away from the game.

So it looks good and sounds good, but what about the actual story? Well, it's pretty good actually – it’s no Uncharted, but then it is a DLC release, so strong story is probably not why you'll buy it. You'll have purchased it because you want more Borderlands, and the Zombie Island provides plenty of it. Some great twists make it something you will want to finish, and not just to see the ending. It really gives you a sense of wanting to achieve completion.

In terms of addition to the Borderlands universe, Dr. Ned provides more loot for the Border-explorers on Pandora, alongside more side-missions. The most notable of these side-missions is 'Braaaaaaaaaaiiiiins' which, as you may have guessed, involves collecting juicy zombie brains. One thing that makes it a little different is that each time you complete it you get it again only with a longer title and more brains needed.

With ‘The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned’, you get a modestly nice story which provides extra travels and loot for Vault Hunters. It's well-polished and -rounded and, seeing as Borderlands hasn't been out a year yet, the perfect addition if you get a bit bored of the main story. Gearbox have done what is best for DLC releases - they've kept all the mechanics that sold the original, namely the comedy and story, and fiddled around a bit, just to make an already impressive gaming experience even better.

8/10

Jacques

Labels: Borderlands, DLC, Gearbox, Jacques Hulme, Review

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Without a doubt two of the biggest selling genres today are FPSs and RPGs. Developer Gearbox obviously saw these two huge markets, and have decided to shove them both together and add a pinch of humour. And thus, Borderlands was born.

We can all name at least a few good FPS games: Call of Duty and Gears of War both jump immediately to mind. Furthermore, we can also name some awesome RPGs: Fallout 3 and Oblivion need no introduction. But it becomes more difficult when you try to think of a game that brings the multiplayer and weapons of a good FPS, and the storyline and massive area to travel typical of an RPG into one. Borderlands is the first one I’ve met. And with ‘hybrid genres’ gaining more and more popularity (Sport and RTS gave birth to Football Manager, in much the same way that Platformers and online creativity brought LittleBigPlanet into the world), it seems we have yet another to add to the bunch.

Borderlands boasts a lot of interesting enticements in its armoury. You have the massive area to explore and a great storyline, alongside the hop-in co-op and online arenas. But perhaps Borderlands biggest claim to fame - and the one you are most likely to have heard of - is the huge number of weapons. While figures are a little hazy, some sources claim that Borderlands plays host to almost 87 billion guns in total. Now, I don’t know about you, but 87 billion has got to be enough for anyone. Obviously, there are a few little tricks to get the number that high; combinations play a big part in boosting the number - I mean, there might only be 10 different guns, but if you add an effect to those guns, it soon becomes 20 guns, and so forth. While some may see the staggering number as a cheat or a lie, I see it as the complete truth. I’ve had many conversations with friends about which weapons we’ve both found, and there’s only been a few occasions where we both picked up the same gun.

Another interesting point about the weapons is their descriptions. Take this for an example – a pistol is picked up with only fifty-six damage points. Naturally, the player wants the best and so goes to sell it but, just as he does so, he notices a small description reading ‘I hate reloading’. Hmm… a subtle hint, perhaps? Armed with this new information, the player tests it quickly by loosing off a few shots, and finds that his ammo count hasn’t dropped. A nice surprise.

However, if you do need to sell something, then there are plenty of vendors around. These machines look like vending machines, and tend to litter nearly every check point. When you use them, you’re greeted by a variety of people, my favourite being the weapons vendor. There are a number of great additions to the vendors. One is a countdown timer that sells a random item at a low price. This can be useful at the start and allows you do get some pretty sweet guns at a hammered price. Another great idea is the ability to buy back some of the items you’ve just sold. So, if you accidentally sell your awesome automatic machine gun, instead of your rusting and frankly embarrassing old pistol, you need only buy it back.

In total, there are 4 different classes to choose from. A soldier, whose special skill is a deployable turret; a heavy, who specialises in beating the crap out of anything; a Siren, who can use her charm and invisibility to defeat enemies; and a Sniper who uses a bird to rip the heads off enemies. You get the usual level system with the top one being level 60. Each time you’ve got enough XP, you get access to one skill point. This can be spent upgrading your character with such things as extra damage, elemental damage or even health upgrades. One thing you might notice if you jump online is that there a helluva lot of soldier-class players. The simple reason for this is that you get a massive turret to mow enemies down, for Pete’s sake. Add corrosive damage, and a ring around the turret which heals you, and you’re pretty much unstoppable.

Talking of online, it is extremely well supported. For example, a glitch was found with the PS3 friend list menu in-game and on the second day of release a patch was already out. It shows that Gearbox is dedicated with Borderlands, and wants their customers to get the best experience. Another example of this dedication is the confirmation of a DLC pack, despite the game being out only a month. Gearbox is a company who deals with the people, not with the sales figures.

Humour is a main highlight and guilty pleasure of the game. There are too many instances to name but one of the best has to be the description of the first boss – the aptly named ‘Nine Toes’. It’s great to see this comedy reaching games, firstly with Tim Schafer’s new outing, Brutal Legend, and now in Borderlands. It really does add something to the game, and draws the player in. Another way this is achieved is that your character actually speak - shouts such as, “That’s gonna hurt in the morning” can be heard often when questing with the soldier.

Graphically, it’s a very tasty game. Some may dislike its radical comic book, cell-shaded style, but I’m all for trying out new ideas. And this new idea has certainly been executed extremely well. Given that Gearbox have been working on this one for an awfully long time, it has certainly come out on top. The colour depth might be a little restricted, with the usual ‘war-torn browns’ making up the palette, but you do get the odd flash of colour from the cars and the green glow that draws you to some swag. Due to its unique art style, washing machines and safeboxes stand out in the dust bowls, even in the dark. This makes it much easier to navigate, although it’s never too tough as you get a nice big map to use. However, it would be nice if you could place several waypoints so you don’t end up running into an un-scalable mountain of crap.

In terms of gameplay, there is a tonne on offer. Given the fact that you need to do a bit of levelling to complete some of the main storyline, you’re probably going to take 2 weeks at least to get some enjoyment out of it. If you decide, and I recommend you do, to take up some of the side missions along the way, then you might want to take another week out to complete all of those. Trophies will obviously take you longer, perhaps 1½ - 2 playthroughs to reach the level cap.

Overall, it’s an extremely polished game. No glitches or bugs to report from my experience, which is always nice. If you’re a fan of Fallout 3 then check it out, although I’m not comparing it to Fallout as they are two entirely different types of RPG. It’s also one for FPS fans to check, as it gives plenty of shooty-ness (is that a word?) but also adds a storyline and some length, unlike most modern shooters. It’s such a good game that I’d even go so far as to call it ‘Hidden Gem of the Year’.

9/10

Jacques

Labels: Borderlands, Jacques Hulme, Review

Gearbox have released some pictures of Borderlands’ box art, and boy, does it make us guys at GGTL even more excited for Borderlands.

In case you don’t know, Borderlands is a game that has been through development hell over the last 4 or so years, shifting art style completely last year (thankfully). The game’s main claim to fame is its guns. There’s quite a few of them; somewhere over the 1 million mark (they lost count).

Anyway, at some point I’ll write a longer article about why I’m excited about Borderlands, but for now, take a look at this awesome box art!

Borderlands is currently shooting for a release date of October 20^th in North America and October 23^rd in the EU.

Are you excited about Borderlands? Do you think this box art looks cool? Tell us in the comments!

Matt

Labels: Borderlands, Box art, Gearbox, Matt, Matthew Meadows

Borderlands
-Co-op mode shown
-One player drives, the other is on the turret
-Has an EXP system
-Has lots of collectables from dead enemies
-Can dismember enemies
-Loads of different weapons; millions if I remember correctly (no joke), some have elemental damage
-Lots of stuff to do, quests, loot hoarding etc
-Weapons have a lot of oomph
-Coming to PS3, PC, 360 in 2009

Overall: Take Two didn’t really show a lot here. Most of the stuff that was shown was already known about. However, Borderlands looks really exciting.

Matt

[Thanks for the live-blogging Kotaku]

Labels: Borderlands, E3, Matthew, Matthew Meadows, Take Two