New Tales from the Borderlands is definitely looking as good as the original. Expect plenty of four and two-choice conversations along with oodles and oodles of quick-time events to progress the story. Fans of the original will certainly appreciate the sequel remaining true to form, while everyone else will have to wait for Borderlands 4 for something a little more involved.
Speaking to Eurogamer, lead game designer Pierre-Luc Foisy said that keeping the original's feel where it came to QTEs was part of the goal in New Tales from the Borderlands.
"[That was] one of the things we wanted to keep," said Foisy. "Because when I played Tales back in the day, it was one of the Telltale Games that was best for the action scene. So we tried to keep that but also improve upon that where we could. So for example, free-walk sequences, where you're controlling a character, sometimes felt a bit like [they] didn't fit with the story at that point, like they were kind of just a break... So we tried to make them a little bit more involved with their story, and also a bit more like action sequences... Fran is a good example of how she can make her way through obstacles or puzzles within the game in a more action-y, new way."
Fran, if you’ll recall from the character trailer released a few weeks ago, is the former Torgue cafe worker that’s now following Anu and Octavio around Promethea as they all search for a Vault. Fran herself looks like she’s more than capable of crushing a robot skull with her bare hands, but her hoverchair seems to be equipped with all manner of violent implements.
However, where Tales from the Borderlands often had a fail condition for those action sequences, New Tales from the Borderlands is "doing things a little bit differently, where inaction can lead to more story rather than failure," according to head writer Lin Joyce.
"And sometimes it might be that inaction is the right choice. So it's more that you also need to be engaging with the action in front of you. Are you going to take the action? Are you not going to take the action? It's not meant to be just like, 'I see buttons, press 'em'. So in that way, we always use action as a way to progress story. It's not action for action sake."
To get a good feel for New Tales from the Borderlands, check out this 18-minute gameplay reveal trailer. New Tales from the Borderlands arrives on October 21.