Tales From The Borderlands: Episode One - Zer0 Sum Reviews
Tales from the Borderlands' first episode is a fantastic introduction to what is sure to be an amazing franchise.
Tales from the Borderlands Episode 1: Zer0 Sum sets the stage for another amazing adventure experience from Telltale Games. The title perfectly complements the shooters made by Gearbox while taking things further thanks to the special characters and the crazy adventures they go through. There are a lot of hilarious moments but also some really dramatic ones that are punctuated by the choices made by players.
Not to be taken seriously, Telltale demonstrate the ability to shift between serious and comedic titles.
Tales from the Borderlands is a beautiful new twist on the Borderlands experience with lovable leads and breathless action sequences.
Aside from the disappointing lack of puzzles and limit on exploration, Tales from the Borderlands: Zer0 Sum is excellent. Where the first episodes of other Telltale series can start off slowly, Tales maintains high energy throughout. Its consistently funny writing and duo of unreliable narrator protagonists set the stage for a great overarching story, and it feels very much like it belongs in the Borderlands franchise. If the rest of the season maintains this level of quality, Tales from the Borderlands will be up there in history with the other great recent Telltale adventures.
When Tales from the Borderlands was announced, I honestly wasn't sure what to anticipate, but with one (quite long, but well-paced) episode, Telltale have sold me on another one of their ideas. It's shares a lot of DNA with both Borderlands and the usual Telltale adventure games, and yet it's nothing like them at all. It's one of their best offerings, and a refreshing new direction for both a game series that had begun to go stale and a gameplay formula which had started to feel repetitive.
An exciting opening to a series that could end up being Telltale's best yet. There's something here for everyone.
Tales from the Borderlands: Episode 1 – Zer0 Sum is quite possibly the strongest debut episode in Telltale Games' storied history. It combines a frantic pace with some genuinely funny dialogue, and offers more than enough fresh gameplay systems to make it stand out from the rest of the studio's output. Short of not being a fan of the Borderlands franchise, this an incredibly impressive outing – and the fact that it's not riddled with bugs is just the icing on the cake.
As far as introductions go, Zer0 Sum gives us a hell of a welcome to Tales from the Borderlands. The aesthetics and writing are true to the source material, the humor is on point, the characters and voice acting are great, and the story is entertaining and engaging. Since they're turning a traditionally FPS series into a point-and-click adventure, it heavily relies on quicktime events and action sequences, but it does a good job of mixing objectives and pacing to keep it from getting stale. "Zer0 Sum" sets up a lot of exciting possibilities and daunting mysteries into motion, and I can't wait to see where it goes from here.
Tales From The Borderlands: Episode 1 - ZerO Sum is a strong debut for what looks to be another Telltale Games classic.
There's no telling just how many twists and turns will occur, but even casual Borderlands fans will find plenty to like here. This is one of the best first episodes we've seen from Telltale, and quite possibly one of the best episodes of all Telltale's work.
Previous Borderlands titles have taken us from Pandora, to the moon, and back, but the first episode of Tales from the Borderlands has already shown that there are plenty of other places in the Borderlands universe that we have yet to explore.
After playing the first episode for Tales from the Borderlands, I feel more excited and anxious for the next episode to hit than their other games. It's almost scary how well the Borderlands franchise translated into the style of game Telltale is well-known for.
By seamlessly weaving creative humor, some of which is entirely player-driven, into a narrative that constantly leaves players guessing, "Zer0 Sum" is as good of a pilot as we've seen in an episodic game. Regardless of where Rhys and Fiona's ridiculous journey take them next, hysterical one-liners, tense moments, and intense struggles are sure to follow. The biggest question here isn't whether or not Tales from the Borderlands is worth your time; it's when will Telltale's incredible run finally come to an end?
I will say that Tales from the Borderlands: Episode 1 - Zero Sum didn't immediately grab me as a must see piece of game art like The Walking Dead and The Wolf Among Us did. However, it did grab me as a well written piece of game comedy, and those might be even rarer than the dramas, horrors, and mysteries we have seen throughout gaming's history. Tales from the Borderlands: Episode 1 - Zero Sum is undeniably fun, and I can't wait to see what further episodes bring. Until them, I AM THE CAPTAIN OF THIS POOP TRAIN! I'M GOING TO FILL YOU UP WITH BEES AND PLAY YOU LIKE A HARMONICA!
Tales From The Borderlands is a chance for fans of the franchise to see Pandora in a new light.
Tales From the Borderlands: Episode One – Zer0 Sum is one heckuva debut. Somehow, the developers allow the action and story to leap off the screen, and they give a sufficient amount of time to each. The visuals are superb, the soundtrack is excellent, the cast is worth knowing, and the overall atmosphere and style is vintage Borderlands with Telltale's obvious influence and flair.
Overall, this first episode is a fantastic introduction to the genre's take on the Borderlands universe. While there are the occasional long periods of player inactivity, they do little to distract from the engaging story and characters, especially as you'll spend most of this time laughing. If this is what Telltale has to offer for episode one, then I can't wait for the rest of the series.
Tales From The Borderlands kicks off with a feel-good tour de force. Not only is Zer0 Sum a satisfying and frequently hilarious use of three hours, but it would have been strong enough to stand on its own as a masterful piece of interactive Borderlands fiction. As Zer0 might say... :D
The comedy, the story choices, the setup - it's all done well in Tales from the Borderlands: Episode One - Zer0 Sum. The next episodes can't come quick enough! Grab the season pass and enjoy waiting with baited breath for each episode to be released. The team here at Cubed3 certainly will be!