Daily Play: Some Borderlands 2 solo action

Hey this Daily Play thing is actually kinda fun! I’m enjoying it so far at least. I mean, all I really do is play the games after all. This Borderlands 2 solo session was quickly followed by more Borderlands 2, so I can attest to the addictiveness of the game first-hand. Hopefully I can get somebody in the game alongside me next time as then the loot drops become just a little more hectic.

Hey have you guys heard of this game called “Border…lands”?

Hi everybody, how are you doing? I’m doing pretty good. I came across this little game yesterday called Borderlands 2, you’ve probably never heard of it. Anyway, I thought it was pretty cool, so, I thought I’d share some stuff I learned about it.

When game reviews are wrong: Wall Street Journal reviews Borderlands 2

I’ve held my own personal opinion about other people’s opinions for a long time: most of them are garbage. A combination of virtual anonymity, self-empowerment and a general notion that one is always right no matter what has led to the oft-said line: “It’s just an opinion man”. We’ll I’m here to say that sure its just an opinion, man, but what do you have to back that opinion up? Yes I do take personal criticism of my own opinions to heart, I’ve been known to change my tune in light of new information or even just a better stance than what I was once on. “Just an opinion” is just that: an opinion and nothing more, it has no real weight to it. So excuse me when I say that yes, people often do have very shallow, mis-informed and just plain wrong opinions.

Still not convinced? Well then let me introduce you to Adam Najberg. He writes for the Wall Street Journal and apparently does some of their video game reviews. Reviews, by the way, are the ultimate in journalistic empowerment. Its a chance to write about entertainment and voice what you think, without really doing much other research than just watching the movie, eating at the restaurant, or in this case playing the game. Najberg, in his review, displays a complete lack of knowledge of the gaming world or of its major genres, or of the first-person shooter’s pretty clear-cut sub-genres. In this case the distinction between Single Player Campaigns, Co-op Campaigns and Competitive Multiplayer games:

The sequel to the highly acclaimed 2009 Borderlands game goes on shelves Tuesday in Xbox 360, PS3 and PC versions for around $60. At that price point, the first-person shooter, published by 2K Games, inevitably invites comparisons with the Halos and Calls of Duty games already out and due to come in the next few weeks and months.

Why are we so crazy about Borderlands 2?

The original Borderlands was without a question a smash hit. A blockbuster. The new game in town. The Next Big Thing. But at the same time it confused the hell out of the industry. How did this FPS RPG game with cel-shaded aesthetics, thick borders, weird little tin can robots and nothing at all to do with “modern warfare” become so successful and popular? What did developer Gearbox Software do so well that it was able to rally a huge fanbase in a short amount of time around a completely new intellectual property? Did they just get lucky or is there something to be learned here?

Borderlands 2’s “girlfriend mode” is sensationalism at its worst

Yesterday Eurogamer published an interview with Borderlands 2 lead designer John Hemingway. He wanted to talk about a new class in the game, dubbed the Mechromancer (awesome name by the way). The main objective with the Mechromander was to build a class that would be noob-friendly for people like your little brother, your parents, or perhaps even your girlfriend.

Steamworks will be used by Borderlands 2

After releasing Steamworks for the absolutely huge title Skyrim not long ago, Valve is now setting their sights on Gearbox’s Borderlands 2 as the next game to prominently feature the modding distribution tool.