Available on

Xbox Live

Platform

Xbox 360

Genre

Shooter

Publisher

2K Games

Developer

Gearbox Software

ESRB

M (Mature)

Released

February 23, 2010

- New areas to explore, new quests to finish
- Increased level cap and skills

- Huge level requirement excludes everyone but post-game players
- Lack of fast travel

Review: Borderlands (360)

Review: Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (360)

Review: MAG (PS3)

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Borderlands: The Secret Armory of General Knoxx

Score: 7.5 / 10

Last year’s Borderlands, a unique hybrid of FPS action mixed in with RPG experience and level building, became a sleeper hit in a market utterly bloated with both genres. For gun-toting gurus and loot-collecting lovers, the world of Pandora wasn’t a jungle filled with furries and dragons, but a charred wasteland loaded with murderous midgets and interstellar gangsters.

Two DLC packs have been released so far, expanding the world even further with undead-crawling islands and bloody arenas, but with The Secret Armory of General Knoxx, Gearbox is poised to deliver the biggest expansion yet. Featuring a slew of

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new quests, Achievements, a higher level cap and a mouth-watering reward for weapon collectors, this package is a no-brainer for hardcore fans, but for the skeptics out there, read on.

Upon installing the DLC, players have the option to teleport to “T-Bone Junction” a new location that can be accessed at

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any point in the game. Upon beaming into the (seemingly) abandoned city, you find yourself knee-deep in the middle of a conflict between Ex-Crimson Lance Athena and the heavily armed (but highly unmotivated) General Knoxx. Other returning characters include possible inbred Scooter and “Harley Quinn with implants” Mad Moxxi, along with several other delinquents in need of a headshot or two (or twenty, depending on your level).

Indeed, it won’t take long before coming face to face with Knoxx’s armored regime, and ill-prepared players won’t last long against the first wave of katana-wielding women and target-seeking drones. This is because the latest DLC is actually intended for high level players with maxed out skills and weapons, which results in either the biggest positive or negative about the package, depending on who purchases it; on the one hand, pro players looking for something new to kill after completing the main campaign will delight in the new challenges and rewards ahead, while the more casual crowd may feel isolated from experiencing the new areas without some frantic level-grinding or help from some powerful friends.

Just as with the regular game, multiplayer is tantamount in having the most fun with Borderlands. As long as your buddies won’t berate you over your “less than l33t” stats, tackling the missions of Knoxx with a group is far more entertaining (and action-packed) than going solo. In fact, skilled soloists may find themselves begging their Xbox Live buddies for help when facing the titular boss himself, who provides one heck of a challenge. It won’t take much coercing, as the spoils of victory include access to Knoxx’s private cache of weapons, featuring exclusive equipment not found anywhere else that also sell for a mint.

The steep level curve remains the biggest hurdle for Borderlands players, as being even three levels below an enemy will result in mismatched battles that usually won’t end in your favor. For players still under 30 and have yet to complete the main mission, it would be best to hold off on the DLC. For professional looters that are part of a dedicated community, this add-on rewards your diligence with a plethora of new missions, weapons, and levels, offering hours of extra content for the price of DLC that typically lasts 30 minutes in other games.

- Jorge Fernandez

(April 5, 2010)