I've Got Bills to Pay I've Got Mouths to Feed and Still Have Time To Review This Game

I don't know what sold me on this game, the graphics on the outside of the game box, the catchy intro song, or the bazillions of guns, but whatever the case was, I am in love. This is coming from a gamer who never thought anything could be better than Bioshock and now is presented with a game that is not only better but takes the cake on being one of the best games to be released this year. The game I speak so highly of is Borderlands.

The game combination of first person shooter and role playing shooter gives each gamer the chance to create a one of a kind character. Borderlands can either be played online or as a single player run through. I choose to play single player so I could get a feel for what I was up against before diving into real game play. From what I've played, the game hold endless potential for online gaming.

The game starts off like a movie, the graphics are stunning. It really does an excellent job at showing the world how far we've come from the pixel characters of the 80s. You find yourself on an apocalyptic style bus traveling to Pandora carrying four characters, Brick the Berserker, Lilith the Siren, Mordecai the Hunter, and Roland the Solider. Each character has their own specialty that is used to enhance game play but to obtain the most of your selected character, online gaming is a must.

You are on a mission to find the Vault which in the begining could be anything, treasure, women, who knows? While on the bus, a vision of a woman appears before you informing on what you need to do to get to the Vault. Throughout the game she will make an appearance, giving hints here and there on what needs to be accomplished. Once off the bus, you find yourself in the town of Fyrestone and being greeted by a friendly Claptrap robot. He will help guide you through the town and certain parts of the game. At times Claptrap becomes a bit annoying with his, "look at me, I'm dancing, I'm dancing," but when it comes time to save him, you feel compassion for the little robot. Keep a heads up, bandits are everywhere and must be destroyed in order to get to your first real mission.

As you progress further into the game, the bazillions of guns become a reality. You are able to pick guns up from dead emenies, find them in Skag piles, and purchase them through vending machines. Every gun has a different feature and should help compliment your characters abilities.

The best part of the game is the possibility of never dying. If you have mastered the skill of running away from gunfire in other games, then playing the single player mode should be a piece of cake. You are able to purchased shields that protect your health and depending on what shield you get depends on what it can do for you. Some shields take ten to twenty seconds without any hits from emenies to regenerate and protect your health while others can take more or less time. I find myself running away or hiding from gunfire at times until my shield is back up to full bars.

If you do end up dying, it is okay. There a points throughout the game that save your progress but can become tiresome when the last save point is on the other side of the Arid Badlands and requires a hike to get back to where you died. Also, every time you come back to life, you are charged a fee so make sure you have an abundance of money on hand.

Picking up ammo and money does not seem to be a problem in Borderlands. Boxes that have green lights on the outside are located throughout the game and contain all kinds of perks. Make sure to search through everything, you never know what you might find.

Enemies vary in difficultly. Skags, the mutant looking dogs are not too hard to kill if you go for a head shot. A melee attack on these creatures usually can prove deadly and saves ammo when on certain missions. Be careful, certain Skag shoot balls of acid on you and can quickly eat up your health. Also watch for Skag wearing aromor. These ones will require a nice critical shot to the head to ensure instant death.

Bandits are everywhere in the game while some can go down quickly, others have shields which can prove to be difficult when trying to take them down. The game will provide you with a bar letting you know where their shield levels are at with their health bar. Once you get the shield level down, go for head shots otherwise you will find yourself wasting ammo trying to take down invincible bandits.

My only complaint about this game are the buttons. Until you get the hang of what button does what, it can get a bit frustrating. Each button has several different functions depending on what is happening in the game. For example, the X button has four uses: you can hit it when you need to pick things up, smash Skag piles, use it to reload, and when held down while dying, will automatically start you back at the last save point. When a lot of action is taking place at once, I find it hard to get the X button to do what I want. If you're hit and dying, the game gives you chance to get your second wind by killing an enemy but if you need to reload and are in the heat of the game, you might find yourself holding the X button down too long and starting back at the last save point instead of getting your second wind. The only problem I found.

Borderlands feels like it combined games like Diablo, Bioshock, Fallout, and World of Warcraft all into one. If any other these games fit your personality than Borderlands is worth your time. I recommend the online game play to increase your loot, character abilities, and of course, the chance to find the bazillions of guns. After playing Borderlands, I give it a 9.5.