With its vast array of weaponry, quirky sense of humor, and exceptional co-op gameplay, Borderlands became a critical and commercial hit when it released last fall. As is the case with most successful new IPs, it would only make sense to expect a sequel at some point down the road. While nothing has been officially announced, we figure there's no harm in a little speculation. Here's a few things we'd like to see in our next trip to Pandora.

Character Development

In the few moments that Borderlands actually utilized characters, Gearbox proved that they have no problem crafting humorous personalities. The legless T.K. and Dr. Ned/Dr. Zed had some genuinely funny moments, and Claptrap packed a lot of personality into his tiny metal frame. These little glimpses into the characters gave the game some personality, and a sequel could benefit from more characters and more lines of dialogue.


Some Semblance Of Story

So what do you remember about Borderlands "plot"? Most likely the same as everyone else...there was a vault or something you were supposed to get to, and some weird lady popped up on a video from time to time to say something cryptic. If the Zombie Island DLC is any indication, Gearbox definitely has the potential to put out a hilarious story. Granted, the Zombie Island plot was a brief little excursion, but if they could keep a script running for the entirety of a game it would help the experience out dramatically.



More Vehicles

Roaming around Pandora's wastelands and blasting enemies was like something straight out of Road Warrior, but your vehicular options were limited at best. You could select your color and one of two weapons, but that's as far as customization went. Imagine a mission where you drive a giant, armed oil tanker or even a motorcycle with a turreted sidecar. If we're sticking with the Road Warrior theme, even gyrocopters aren't out of the question.


Duels That Mean Something

Duels were a fun addition to the original Borderlands, but they didn't really affect the gameplay in any significant way. Sure, you could have a gentleman's agreement to give up a weapon if you lost, but there was no official way of setting up wagers. It would be great to be presented with a simple interface for putting money and weapons in a pool that would go to the winner of the contest.


Skills That Level As You Use Them

Oblivion and Crackdown had a great system for leveling up your attributes - you improve certain skills the more you use them. Borderlands could benefit from a similar approach when it comes to each character's special ability. Imagine leveling up Mordecai's hawk as you utilize him in battle, or increasing the duration of Brick's berserker attack. The system in place in the first game was very set in stone, and a more flexible approach would be an improvement on the skill point system.



Destructible Environments

Despite being set in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, the world of Pandora managed to stay interesting on the visual side of things. Small shantytowns, wide-open plains, and industrial areas combined to keep the environments from getting too stale. Unfortunately, all of the buildings and objects were somewhat static and almost never destructible. With the arsenal of super-destructive rocket launchers and explosives that Borderlands gives you at every turn, it would be great to be able to level an entire area a la Red Faction: Guerrilla.


A More Seamless World

Pandora was sprawling and varied, but the experience was often interrupted by load screens. Borderlands could greatly benefit from following the lead of open-world titles like GTA IV, Infamous, and Red Faction: Guerrilla that presented large worlds with no load times between areas.


More Guns

Because if there's one thing the first game lacked, it's guns.