While the core looter-shooter titles will always be the main focus of the Borderlands series, for some players with niche tastes, Tales from the Borderlands is actually the best of the franchise. Featuring some of the franchise’s most likable characters and sharpest humor, Telltale’s series has held up well, but most never expected to see another Tales from the Borderlands.
Well, surprise! Earlier this summer Gearbox announced New Tales from the Borderlands, a fresh story-driven adventure featuring a new cast of characters. So, how do these New Tales carry on the legacy of Telltale’s original series? How do they differ? Scroll on down for all the key info you need to know about New Tales from the Borderlands…
Who’s Making New Tales from the Borderlands?
The original Tales from the Borderlands was the work of Telltale Games, but they went bankrupt in the time since its release. Granted, Telltale has been reformed under new ownership, but they haven't been involved in creating this new game.
New Tales from the Borderlands has instead been created in-house by a new Canadian team at Gearbox Studios Quebec. That said, “key alumni” from the original Telltale-developed Tales from the Borderlands are helping out with the game’s narrative.
Is this still an episodic game?
Yes and no. New Tales from the Borderlands will still be structured as a series of episodes, but unlike Telltale series of old, you’ll get all the episodes at once when you purchase the title.
Story Details
New Tales from the Borderlands will feature a new cast of “loveable nobodies,” including the idealistic yet nervous scientist Anu, feisty frozen yogurt store owner Fran, and your typical Borderlands neurotic smartass protagonist Octavio. All three live on the war-torn Promethea, and when the planet is invaded yet again by weapons maker Tediore, they hatch a plan to get their hands on a vault key that could give them access to untold treasures. But perhaps the real treasure will be the friends they make along the way? We’ll just have to wait and see.
While New Tales from the Borderlands is not a direct sequel to Telltale’s original series, it does take place in the broader Borderlands universe, and thus a variety of familiar faces from the past will show up. It’s been confirmed that original Tales from the Borderlands co-protagonist Rhys will make a cameo, although it seems that game’s other main character, Fiona, may be sittings things out.
Gameplay and Mechanics
New Tales from the Borderlands will follow in its predecessor’s footsteps and focus mainly on story and player choice. It seems the latter is being pushed harder than before, with Gearbox promising every decision, big and small, will have an effect on the overall narrative…
“Every choice you make can and will affect the events that unfold in the story, often in unexpected ways, so you'll have to play through the whole game to see what event or what choice affected what ending you see or what event was triggered during the process.”
Between story choices, gameplay will still largely be handled via quick time events, although there will also be exploratory sequences where you’re allowed to walk around on foot and some minigames, including one that lets you do battle with various Borderlands figurines. It should also be noted that the game is running on Unreal Engine 4, using the same visual style as Borderlands 3, so expect a much more technically accomplished game than Telltale’s somewhat janky original. You can check out around 20 minutes of New Tales from the Borderlands gameplay, below.
PC Requirements
Minimum
- OS: Windows 10
- Processor: Intel Core i5-4690K or AMD Ryzen 3 1300X
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 960 4GB or AMD Radeon RX 470 4GB
- DirectX: Version 12
- Storage: 30 GB available space
Recommended
- OS: Windows 10
- Processor: Intel Core i7-4770 or AMD Ryzen 5 2600
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GTX 1060 6GB or AMD Radeon RX 590 8GB
- DirectX: Version 12
- Storage: 30 GB available space
Pricing, platforms, release date
New Tales from the Borderlands is coming to pretty much everything under the sun, including PC (via both Steam and Epic Games Store), Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, and Switch on October 21 of this year. The game will set you back $40. There is also a $50 Deluxe Edition, which includes the original Tales from the Borderlands series. Pre-orders are open now.
