I just finished Borderlands 3, and all the (currently available) DLC's.
I'm a long time fan of the Borderlands series. As such, it's hard to decide if I would recommend this game.
Don't get me wrong, it was fun to play! The gameplay is pretty great. Combat and movement feels satisfying. The vehicle system is a major improvement over previous installments. And of course, the loot system is awesome as well, although you kinda slip into a certain archetype of weapons that you prefer, and thus keep grinding for... But that's not to say that it still feels good to see that massive mountain of loot pop up whenever you kill a boss.
The reason I hesitate is that it tries too hard to be a Borderlands game. Sure, the gameplay, combat, loot, etc... all feel very Borderlands-y, but the story and dialogue feels forced. It goes for some "silly quirky lolsorandom" humor, but it falls flat on its face with most of the jokes.
For example: in Borderlands 2, there is a sidequest where you have to
shoot a guy in the face. This kind of shit is memorable, even though it's just a minor side gag. BL3 doesn't have any of these moments. It just... goes along, and tries to get some laughs out of you by using some "funny" dialogue, but it's not as effective.
On top of that, is the fact that the bad guy(s) don't come close to Handsome Jack. Jack had a certain charisma that made you hate him, but still love it whenever he tried to talk to you. The Calypso twins in BL3 are just aggravating, and don't get me started on their plot armor. There are cutscenes where they just literally pop in, ruin everyone's day, without anyone doing something, and then fuck off again. Then what was the point of having a super-badass team of kick-ass fighters, if they just stand there and don't even raise their guns?
However, all is not lost. The DLC's (or 2 of them, IMO) feel more like the Borderlands I knew. They fuck with the quest targets, and with the story. The plots are not exactly heavy, but they're still better than the main story. Probably because the bad guys are way more interesting/likable. So, it has a better story, but still has the excellent gameplay.
I have the feeling that if Borderlands 3 were a seperate game, and not the latest installment in the series, it would be a lot more interesting. Its humor is... not that great, but it would work a lot better if you don't expect anything like the former Borderlands style of humor/writing. That said, I wouldn't recommend this game as your entry into the Borderlands series... Its story and characters kinda depend on your knowledge/experiences of the previous games.
Hence why I don't know if I should recommend it or not. If you're new to Borderlands, and don't have the experiences of the BL1, 2, and TPS, this game is fun, but likely very confusing. If you're a veteran, you'll find the game lacking in some sense. You can still enjoy it, but you'll always think "well, the previous one was better..."
But then you might just as well install Unofficial Patch... And some texture packs... And maybe a mesh replacer... And maybe some extra armor parts... oh, and an overhaul for the casino's... Goddammit, you're 200 mods deep.
