Borderlands 2 Vita Review
Developer Gearbox Software
Publisher 2K
Platform PS Vita
Release Date Out Now
Taking a full console title and squashing it to a handheld device rarely ends well, but 2K have managed to get the huge Borderlands 2 into a Vita and for the most part it remained intact. A few concessions had to be made due to the limitations of the Vita but it still delivers a very enjoyable AAA experience with hours and hours of shooting n’ looting.
The main fault with Borderlands as an FPS is that the controls simply do not match the precision of a controller. The analog sticks are much smaller and lack the full range of motion which results in a small degree of “floating” when trying to aim which for a FPS it is very noticeable. The second issue with the Vita’s controls is the lack of trigger buttons and the inevitable substituting of those buttons with the back touch panel, and it is less than perfect often requiring more than one touch to register your input.
Despite the control issues the gameplay and especially the combat is very satisfying. Borderlands boasts an impressive lineup of enemies and weapon customizations that allow you to add your own touch to the experience and of course there is tons of loot. A big feature of Borderlands is collecting loot so make sure you open every locker, box, canister and blast open frozen ice blocks to expose the collectables.
During heavy firefights the limitations of the Vita do become much more prominent, when the screen fills with enemies the frame rate has a tendency to drop. Most of the time this is just a little annoying rather than having any great impact on your in game progress.
A big plus for the Vita port is that it does supports Co-op, they didn’t quite get the 4 player co-op but have done a great job to ensure a very solid two player co-op experience. Being online had no noticeable degradation in quality. Another great feature is that your save files transfer between PS3 and PS Vita.
The full game is there is all its glory, Pandora looks amazing and is still a hive of activity. The writing has its same humor and charm and the quality voice actor’s work transferred over without issue. The story is the same, the same characters, the same Handsome Jack, and of course the loveable Claptrap is there to guide you.
Overall: When we first heard Borderlands 2 was coming to Vita we had anticipated a twist on the franchise, but what we got was as close to the real deal as you could reasonably get. The team at Gearbox have done a great job to ensure that not only the essence of the game was carried over but the meat and bones too.
If you have a Vita and crave a top AAA title then this delivers. Despite a few small performance issues and impossibly small text this is well worth picking up when you consider the full package.
SCORE 4/5
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