From humble beginnings to running a publication as head of content, I do owe my path in games writing and criticism to the Borderlands franchise, at least the mothership titles.

Starting off with my 2008-2009 stint on GameAxis with the first game…

…to my 2012 GameSpot work and scoring an exclusive with Randy Pitchford who was probably still gettingextra funds for part 2 when this interview was conducted…

…this series has been pretty close to me. And that also includes the Pre-Sequel and Tales from The Borderlands.

Why mention all of this? Because I’m relieved to tell you that part 3 lives up to the hype and expectations.

Mostly.

It does so by sticking to its guns and relishing in its fun yet chaotic setting and design. True, its promising narrative dropped the ball and its development studio’s CEO is a hotbed for controversy.

But when all is said and done, Borderlands 3 is just a damn fine game with great shooting, awesome loot and weapon types, a lovely bunch of enemies and levels to shoot up, explore, and drive through, and still looks and sounds lovely. Plus, how can you not have fun controlling a homicidal robot who controls skaggs and rakk using SMGs that act as flamethrowers and shotguns that play a guitar riff when shot?

Long story short, the king has truly returned.