In the years since its first entry graced players’ consoles, the Borderlands series has seen a decent spread of titles. Not all were created equal though, and that’s why we’re here to rank every Borderlands game from fine to phenomenal.
5. Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel
Let it be said first and foremost that Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel is far from a bad game.
Set before the events of the second game, it sees players take the role of vault hunters who helped Handsome Jack rise to power.
This includes Wilhelm pre-his modification into a robot; Jack’s future girlfriend and “Law Bringer” Nisha; the shield-wielding Athena; and, in his first and only playable appearance in the series to date, Claptrap.
Each has an interesting array of abilities that spice up the gameplay, and when paired with the story’s more engaging set pieces, they make for an experience that can thrill die-hard Borderlands fans from start to finish.
Unfortunately, it’s also the most forgettable and inconsequential entry in the series.
Being a prequel to the second game, all of its events and twists have a foregone conclusion.
Yes, Handsome Jack’s rise to power is interesting, and it’s neat to see what his minions were like in the past, but they’re all dead by the end of the second game and have little that makes their impending deaths meaningful or tragic.
Even the characters who do survive longer into the series like Athena and Claptrap make little to no mention of their adventures in subsequent games, making the adventure seem like that much more of a distraction from the series’ overarching stories as a whole.
