Summary
- Borderlands 2 is the pinnacle of replayability in the franchise, with a solid storyline and a fun co-op play.
- Borderlands 3, while not as well-received, still offers a better loot system and more refined gunplay than its predecessor.
- Tiny Tina's Wonderlands brings fresh gameplay to the series, allowing players to experiment with different classes.
The Borderlands franchise helped to define the whole looter shooter genre. The first game was good, but it wasn’t until Borderlands 2 that the franchise found its pace. Replayability has always been one of the selling points of these games, with die-hard fans playing the storyline through with each character class in many cases.
However, not all the games in the franchise have had a good level of replayability, especially in the base game. Great DLC has sometimes solved this problem, building on the main storyline and adding fun new side quests and goals. Even so, there is still a high level of replayability with several noteworthy games in the franchise.
5 Borderlands 3
Just More Of The Same
Borderlands 3
- Released
- September 13, 2019
- Developer(s)
- Gearbox Software
- Platform(s)
- Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Stadia, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
Many hardcore fans of the Borderlands franchise were disappointed with Borderlands 3, stating that it didn’t play as well as Borderlands 2. Many reasons were given for this, such as the weak end-game content, which mainly revolves around fast traveling to each boss and killing them over and over. The storyline in Borderlands 3 fails to hit the spot. It has been criticized for being disjointed and not as well crafted as the Borderlands 2 storyline. The addition of DLC has addressed this problem, but the base game still lacks cohesion in places.
Borderlands 3: Best Legendary Farming Locations
Borderlands 3 has a ton of legendary weapons, shields, grenade mods, artifacts, and class mods that players can farm throughout the game.
That being said, the replayability factor of Borderlands 3 is still better than some other games in the franchise. The loot system is the best of any Borderlands game to date, and the gunplay is refined, smooth, and rewarding. But it does get the bottom slot on this list for not rewarding the player well enough for taking multiple playable characters through the storyline.
4 Tiny Tina's Wonderlands
A Spinoff From The Main Series
Tiny Tina's Wonderlands
- Released
- March 25, 2022
- Developer(s)
- Gearbox Software
- Platform(s)
- PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, PC
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, FPS
Tiny Tina's Wonderlands takes the player on an adventure with the weird and wacky Tiny Tina, with her love of explosives and wild personality in full effect. Where the game really shines, though, is in the way it gives players the ability to try out different classes and combos without having to invest dozens of hours into each.
A slight criticism is the need to grind a little for loot and levels, but not to an awful extent. However, the fact that bosses can’t be farmed is a bit of a gameplay hole, which detracts from the replayability somewhat. Overall, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands is a fun addition to the franchise that mixes up the gameplay enough to make it feel a little more fresh. Many players replay the game over and over purely because it is so much fun.
3 Borderlands
Where It All Started
Borderlands
- Released
- October 20, 2009
- Developer(s)
- Gearbox Software
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC
- Genre(s)
- Action RPG, FPS
In many ways, the original Borderlands game can be thought of as a prototype for Borderlands 2. It was a great game in its own right, but it was clearly the first game in a franchise that was looking for its unique selling point. The gunplay was solid, the main story was well-crafted and coherent, and the looter-shooter mechanics were the best around at the time of release. The playable classes and their abilities were well-thought-out, although not perfect by any means.
Many fans of the Borderlands series took all six character classes through the entire game, and this is a trend that the franchise has encouraged with each new title released. While the original Borderlands wasn’t perfect, it has tons of replayability.
2 Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel
Made Good By The Claptrap DLC
Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel!
LAUNCH INTO THE BORDERLANDS UNIVERSE AND SHOOT ‘N’ LOOT YOUR WAY THROUGH A BRAND NEW ADVENTURE THAT ROCKETS YOU ONTO PANDORA’S MOON IN BORDERLANDS: THE PRE-SEQUEL!
Discover the story behind Borderlands 2 villain, Handsome Jack, and his rise to power. Taking place between the original Borderlands and Borderlands 2, the Pre-Sequel gives you a whole lotta new gameplay featuring the genre blending fusion of shooter and RPG mechanics that players have come to love.
Float through the air with each low gravity jump while taking enemies down from above using new ice and laser weapons. Catch-a-ride and explore the lunar landscape with new vehicles allowing for more levels of destructive mayhem.
Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel is regarded as one of the better games in the franchise from a replayability point of view. It sits between the original Borderlands game and Borderlands 2 on this list for a reason. It has more replayability than Borderlands 1 but is not as well fleshed out as Borderlands 2.
Pre-Sequel
The chaos of Pandora has created some truly memorable characters for fans of the Borderlands series to enjoy.
The only major criticism of this game is that the action is slower than other titles in the franchise. Additionally, there are times during the narrative of the main quest where the player has to sit and wait for an NPC to get through some long dialogue sequences, with no way to skip them. These two factors combined can become a little frustrating at times.
The Claptrap DLC was well received, with many players going through it several times because it is so much fun. Overall, replayability is quite high. Taking all six character classes through the main story is a great gaming experience, especially for fans of the franchise.
1 Borderlands 2
Arguably The Most Replayable
Borderlands 2
It would be interesting to see statistics on how many players purchased Borderlands 3, only to go back to Borderlands 2 shortly after. Many players see Borderlands 2 as the best game in the franchise to date. It took the template established by the first game, refined it, and added new features to plaster over any gameplay gaps.
6 Best Quotes From The Borderlands Movie
The Borderlands series is known for catchy quotes and the movie is no different.
The storyline was excellent and well worth playing through multiple times with each class, simply for the fun factor alone. Co-op play was also very good, with friends being able to group up for raid-style content. The addition of DLC added to the fun factor, making Borderlands 2 a game that some people couldn’t put down, investing thousands of hours into the game. Overall, the top place on this list is well deserved by Borderlands 2.
The 5 Hardest Borderlands Games, Ranked
The Borderlands series has evolved over the years providing more options and new levels of challenge. These are the hardest Borderlands games, ranked.