Borderlands 3

 Xbox One
User Score
6.0

Mixed or average reviews- based on 520 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 275 out of 520
  2. Mixed: 50 out of 520
  3. Negative: 195 out of 520
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Gormph
    Oct 24, 2019
    3
    Let me start off by saying i'm a big fan of borderlands. I played the second installment first with all the DLC and I love it so much that I still buy a copy with all the DLC for anything I own that will run it, having said that however I found the pre-sequel kind of boring and Borderlands 3 complete trash!

    To start off with every item is a world spawn, like almost everything so in    Let me start off by saying i'm a big fan of borderlands. I played the second installment first with all the DLC and I love it so much that I still buy a copy with all the DLC for anything I own that will run it, having said that however I found the pre-sequel kind of boring and Borderlands 3 complete trash!

    To start off with every item is a world spawn, like almost everything so in order to get some good gear that works with your build you have to put in ridiculous hours and HOPE that you get something close to what you need. This wouldn't be so bad except that the game gets a new hot fix (in what feels like everyday) to Nerf something because gearbox doesn't like it that way and bam all your work means nothing, have fun starting over with a new build. Now working up a new build wouldn't be THAT bad except now you have to come up with a new list of gear for it and start farming allllll oooooovvveeer……then to make this even better they keep reducing the spawn rates on equipment so you have to farm even more. fk you gearbox. Then to top it all off you have this tiny ass storage that doesn't let you collect **** for gear at all which you would need to it anyway but you need EVEN more since your going to be changing your build again next week and you don't know what gear you're going to need.

    This game seems to have many pointless things as well, for one cars. On your first playthrough you can get some cool stuff for your cars if you try hard, make them awesome and then basically try to never use them again because in all other game modes they are made of gas soaked paper. The iron bear mech is about as bad, no matter what you do its weaker then every character on foot, doesn't last very long, and has no cool effects or abilities.it is ment seemingly to be like a tank and fails at it. I haven't seen a real build using it anywhere and Flak’s pets are almost as bad serving as little more than minor buff sticks, still better than the mech though at least they are doing something.

    The writing in this game is ...well bad, the villains aren't even really hatable they are just a little annoying but like less then claptrap so idk, idc about them, they just didn't matter to me and the plot was bout them so the plot didn't matter to me. Ava is pointless and could have been replaced with Tiny a much better character who is awesome and doesn't suck unlike Ava but then who would get all the friends killed off with bad choices?

    The game runs like **** disconnecting all the time, randomly turning off xbox, and glitching out non stop, hey instead of removing all the fun stuff from the game, how about making it RUN!!?? Before i forget let me **** about the anointed. They are cool in theory and all but dont work in the game. You start fighting them in groups and that's not even the worst part, what sucks is when you get stuck with groups of them using attacks that make them immune to damage while they blanket the field with large area, high damage attacks which they simply spam, I don't think i need to explain why this is bad i just needed to mention it.

    Tldr; disappointed, developers don't care about fans, or the series, or at least that's what this game reflects to me. Don't buy this game, if you did try to get your money back, Gearbox **** the bed on this one and i'm sad for borderlands. If they fix it good but it's kinda to late we have our first impression. don't bother checking it out until it's cheaper than takeout.

    P.S. where the fk is Torge and not enough Tiny!!    … Expand
  2. Gerald19
    Sep 21, 2019
    1
    Poorly paced and thin story. What are they doing with all that 2K money? That fat Randy should just get fired and replace him with a diversity hire. That would be justice.
  3. Dangermouse591
    Sep 14, 2019
    3
    This is so disappointing. We bought an Xbox one just to play Borderlands 3 in couch co-op move. They've removed the vertical split screen option, and in horizontal split mode the UI text is so small as to be unreadable. Added to that, there's so much lag when the other player uses a menu that the game is near unplayable. Such a let down after the greatness that was Borderlands 2.
  4. SQ22
    Sep 14, 2019
    0
    Game is unplayable without vertical split screen. How was this overlooked? Huge disappointment!
  5. Thankedbloom
    Sep 16, 2019
    4
    Summary: All appearance no substance, cringey, vapid dialogue and story, way too easy, and laggy on release. As a huge borderlands fan who replayed borderlands 2, borderlands, and the pre sequel, this game has been a bit of a disappointment. I think Gearbox confused better graphics and flashy lights as being the barometer for a better game. The story is by far the worst and is very cringeySummary: All appearance no substance, cringey, vapid dialogue and story, way too easy, and laggy on release. As a huge borderlands fan who replayed borderlands 2, borderlands, and the pre sequel, this game has been a bit of a disappointment. I think Gearbox confused better graphics and flashy lights as being the barometer for a better game. The story is by far the worst and is very cringey and most of the jokes sound like something written by a 12 year old. The game play for some reason feels worse than the previous games. It feels like even more of a repetitive grind, with guns that look different but essentially all function the same and do about the same amount of damage. All you have to do with any of the guns is point and shoot. Enemies miss most of their shots if you simply move around a little and you and the enemy are both bullet sponges. I played as Zane and I found his abilities pretty lackluster, putting down an impenetrable shield you can basically stand in one place and shoot. In any case, the enemies hardly ever lowered my shield and I only ever went down and died because of accidents. This game is way too easy, they really need to add a hard mode for more veteran players right off the bat, whats the point of collecting all these cool guns if the game isn't even challenging? it hardly even matters what guns I use. Whoever wrote the story line seriously need to be fired. I tried playing local co op and it was almost unbearable when the game would almost come to a halt when one of us tried switching out weapons. Also the new claptrap sounds like the old one lost his robotic soul.… Expand
  6. davepettyweb
    Sep 20, 2019
    2
    My wife and I fell in love with the Borderlands franchise as the last AAA couch co-op game. We've spent hundreds of hours blasting through BL1/2/PS. Needles to say: we were ecstatic that not only was it coming back but it was keeping split screen.

    So far BL3 is an AWESOME update to the franchise - keeping what made it great and improving in other areas. LOVE all the new weapons and    My wife and I fell in love with the Borderlands franchise as the last AAA couch co-op game. We've spent hundreds of hours blasting through BL1/2/PS. Needles to say: we were ecstatic that not only was it coming back but it was keeping split screen.

    So far BL3 is an AWESOME update to the franchise - keeping what made it great and improving in other areas. LOVE all the new weapons and customizations and the world's massive (all of them).

    However, split screen being the only mode we'd play this game in, is completely broken - almost to the point of being unplayable. Our love of the franchise has pushed us to try and work past the flaws (lack of vertical split screen, unreadable menus, announcements taking entirety of top players viewing area and all the fact that it chugs like a windows 95 pc trying to run crysis).

    But it feels like more of a chore than a game; it's flaws are quickly outweighing the great updates and I'm regretting buying the Super Deluxe.    … Expand
  7. Scorpion_Breath
    Sep 14, 2019
    4
    Game is, pretty much, unplayable in local co-op. The horizontal split-screen makes it ridiculously hard to see enemies or your map and the text is so small you can't read any tutorials, gun stats etc. The fact Gearbox didn't include vertical split in the first place and are remaining silent on patching it in is very worrying.
  8. Jspotter89
    Sep 16, 2019
    4
    Disclaimer up front. This is an early review, and I have only sunk about 7 hours into the game.

    That aside, this game is, at the time of writing, a technical DISASTER. If you are on the fence about this game, or if you are someone who would like to play in local co-op via split screen, DO NOT buy this game until they have fixed the atrocious condition of it at present. Specifically,    Disclaimer up front. This is an early review, and I have only sunk about 7 hours into the game.

    That aside, this game is, at the time of writing, a technical DISASTER. If you are on the fence about this game, or if you are someone who would like to play in local co-op via split screen, DO NOT buy this game until they have fixed the atrocious condition of it at present.

    Specifically, co-op split screen play is, for some godforsaken reason, limited to horizontal alignment. What this means, on most modern widescreen televisions, is that the game is nigh unplayable. Enemies are extremely hard to see unless you are right on top of them. Forget about reading any of the game text or subtitles. They knew about this.

    On top of the alignment troubles, the game is just plain laggy in co-op. Whenever a player opens their ECHO device, the other player's screen will stutter and lag, in some cases for more than a second or two. That might seem manageable, but in a firefight it makes the game extremely frustrating. They knew about this issue and released anyways.

    There are also a number of significant bugs on top of the co-op ones. The worst one I've encountered is that, when trying to sell items in a vending machine, the display will show the wrong item and stats than what you have selected. On several occasions I have sold items I intended to keep as a result. Thankfully they kept the "Buy Back" tab, but this is still annoying as all get out, considering how often you sell items in this game.

    As for story, gameplay, and voice acting, everything is thoroughly "meh." There's a lot of sameness to all of it, from enemy types, mission design, etc. It seems hard to believe this took 6 years to develop, and then arrive in the condition it is. It would also help if one of the first characters you interact with to start the campaign wasn't voiced by Chris ****ing Hardwick. Maybe don't lead in with him, huh?

    The latter stuff is manageable. Like most, I like the Borderlands formula and wasn't looking for them to reinvent the wheel. But the technical condition of this game is atrocious. Vertical splitscreen is an absolute must. Gearbox will not get another dollar from me until they add it.    … Expand
  9. SIPPIO
    Sep 20, 2019
    0
    Shame!
    This game is the same thing as Borderlands 2.
    The graphics are soo similar. This is identical to what EA did with Madden20 & NHL20. Both EA sports games used the 100% IDENTICAL UI layout from NHL19/Madden19.. That is soooo lazy... In the past they atlelast changed the layout of the UI so the presentation looked new.. Not this year... I was amazed when I played NHL20..    Shame!
    This game is the same thing as Borderlands 2.
    The graphics are soo similar.
    This is identical to what EA did with Madden20 & NHL20.
    Both EA sports games used the 100% IDENTICAL UI layout from NHL19/Madden19..
    That is soooo lazy... In the past they atlelast changed the layout of the UI so the presentation looked new.. Not this year... I was amazed when I played NHL20..
    ****after 1 played 2 sessions of Borderlands on Xbox I realized that I hate the characters.
    * I played the beastmaster & Doppleganger guy..
    both are MEH,,
    I picked these two because the other two just looked awful.
    Butch Awful.. Why does a girl have to look like a dude to be Badass???
    They Don't= see Lilith!
    **The one is a ripoiff of Gaige & the other is the lamest SIren idea ive heard ever.
    Where's the creativity???
    **Somehtig is wrong with AAA & Hollywood lately..
    There's no excuse for STARWARS Sequel to be sooo bad..
    And Bordrlands 3 had the right idea of exploring that galaxy but the reason for doing so is too cheesy...
    ~~Siren powers should be unique & uber exciting..
    I thought Maya was bland & just like the Prequels of SW I now kick myself for thinking that was bad...

    ~Ellie??? Ok sure,,but Why is she alive surrounded by bandits who wat to kill her?
    And she's not exactly 'capable'..
    ***The worst travesty aside from Graphics has to be CLAPTRAP!!!
    Why not have a new Claptrap with a brand new annoying voice>??
    Are they thinking people wont be mad/creeped out by a generic almost sounding Claptrap??
    How hard is it to come up with a weird Voice Actor to use a weird ebonic of voice gimmick..
    THIS GAME WAS RUSHED!
    Gearbox didn't start it until years after the final B2 DLC..
    WHY?? Battleborn?? seriously?
    im disappointed because B3 was supposed to be special and it's not..
    in fact it's not even worth playing & I played it for free(Gamefly rental)
    I bought NHL Hockey instead. that sucked too..
    Whatevs,,,im going to my backlog instead of wasting more time on this crap....    … Expand
  10. HungryShoggoth
    Sep 15, 2019
    3
    I was really looking forward to this game, unfortunately in it's current state it's nearly unplayable, and in split-screen it's completely unplayable. Maybe after a few patches it will be worth another look, but as of right now the copious glitches and abysmal framerates just make for a frustrating experience rather than a fun one
  11. teufelhundenjd
    Sep 16, 2019
    0
    Absolute trash, unplayable. Constant stuttering, forced horizontal split screen, text so small that I have to sit with my nose against my 70" TV. Do the devs not have friends to test the couch co-op with? You could not have played that and said "this is fine to ship." Zero, because my wife refuses to turn it on again unless it is patched.
  12. SCOLL
    Sep 18, 2019
    0
    Couch co op is a joke. Also played 18 hours and cloud save destroyed my save file im not happy.
  13. mob0103
    Sep 18, 2019
    2
    Very buggy. Laggy. No appeal to return and play. Soooo disappointing for a long time fan of the franchise. Seriously thinking about returning for a refund. Bloody awful.
  14. Gamemonster
    Sep 17, 2019
    3
    Technically this game is a huge letdown. Can't hold 60fps even in 1080p mode on X1X. Maybe we've been spoiled by 4K60 Gears 5. I'll much rather play Handsome collection.
  15. tymis
    Sep 15, 2019
    0
    Bought two copies of this game so my wife and I could play together on different TVs, just like every other game in the series. Turns out local LAN is NOT POSSIBLE, only split screen, which is unplayable. The only way to play together is to get two copies of XBox Live, and then the lag and disconnects are unbearable. Disappointment after disappointment.
  16. Sirreginaldpepp
    Sep 13, 2019
    1
    I have spent hundreds of hours playing the previous Borderlands game and bought a new xbox one just for this game. To say I am disappointed is an understatement. I always play couch co op with my wife and this game is unplayable right now. The lack of a vertical split screen was frustrating but I was willing to try and get used to it. But neither of us can read anything on the screen.I have spent hundreds of hours playing the previous Borderlands game and bought a new xbox one just for this game. To say I am disappointed is an understatement. I always play couch co op with my wife and this game is unplayable right now. The lack of a vertical split screen was frustrating but I was willing to try and get used to it. But neither of us can read anything on the screen. I have to play literally 12 inches from the tv to read anything on the screen. Giving us each headaches. On top of that gun stats get cut off and scoped weapons take up the entire view in front of you. Then there are the bugs. The game froze up twice already within 20 minutes of playing each time. Also no loot, not a single piece, has dropped from any of the enemies for my character the entire time I played while my wife's character got normal drops. So while we had prepared for a fun night it was a frustrating several hours before I no longer wanted to deal with the issues. I won't even bother trying to play again until these issues are fixed and vertical split screen is back. It's that bad.… Expand
  17. Johnnye3
    Sep 14, 2019
    0
    The way coop is set up is garbage, expected way more from gearbox and 2K seeing as all the other games they brought us have been so great. Played all borderlands since they game out.. I can’t even play this one until they bring back vertical split screen
  18. Willwist24
    Sep 14, 2019
    3
    Game is buggy as **** Needs to be updated ASAP. Lag issues and frame rate drops galore. Fix your **** Gearbox!
  19. Johnnye2
    Sep 13, 2019
    0
    Can not even play the game, the coop is so bad without vertical split screen, my wife and I can not look at the tv for longer than 10min without biting eyes and a migraine
  20. dtp11
    Sep 13, 2019
    0
    I'm one of those die-hard fans, who has a tendency to get really defensive when people criticize anything about Borderlands, but that ended last night when I powered it on only to discover there is NO VERTICAL SPLIT-SCREEN option. To add insult to injury, I can't read anything on the screen unless I am a foot from the screen, I can barely see what's going on no matter what I do with theI'm one of those die-hard fans, who has a tendency to get really defensive when people criticize anything about Borderlands, but that ended last night when I powered it on only to discover there is NO VERTICAL SPLIT-SCREEN option. To add insult to injury, I can't read anything on the screen unless I am a foot from the screen, I can barely see what's going on no matter what I do with the FOV and brightness settings, there is an unacceptable amount of input lag when aiming, and when someone goes into the menu, the lag/framerate drop makes it so the other person can't even play. And to add injury to injury, my wife was getting motion sickness so she had to stop playing - literally unplayable. Not to mention the many other bugs/glitches in the game.

    Imagine waiting 7 years for something, taking a week and a half vacation from work, waiting in line with smelly nerds for an hour at EB Games (GameStop), spending $135.60 CAD (after tax, Super Deluxe), getting a babysitter for your kids, then not even being able to play the game! This is a MONUMENTAL DISAPPOINTMENT. Returning the game and going back to work on Monday. Thanks a lot, Gearbox.    … Expand
  21. cymptom
    Sep 14, 2019
    1
    Shockingly awful performance and visual quality. Pretty riddled with bugs as well. For a game that seems mostly geared towards fans of the series who just wanted more Borderlands, I can't believe they wouldn't just delay another 6 months to iron out some of this technical disaster.
  22. Twall1909
    Sep 13, 2019
    0
    My friend made me buy this game and We've had nothing but frame drop issues, extreme lag, and the game is just not that good, honestly feels way too much like an expansion to borderlands 2 than its own game
  23. skinnycup
    Sep 24, 2019
    0
    No vertical split screen makes local co-op totally unplayable. Can't believe how bad Gearbox screwed this up. They should be ashamed to have released it like this.
  24. LowExpectations
    Sep 14, 2019
    1
    Not good on every level.
    This game has so many problems. The corporation has so many problems. The publisher is even worse. Don't buy this game.
  25. petrovich_zfx
    Sep 15, 2019
    3
    This game has very cool looking characters. Everything else is outdated to say the least. Mediocre graphic, same gameplay that was 7 years ago, very bad jokes. But it is a question of taste. What makes me mad is the technical condition this game was released. It is just unaceptible. 5000 signs is not enought to describe all of the gliches and technical flaws this game has
  26. flabio54
    Sep 20, 2019
    0
    Do not buy this game if you have any wish to play splitscreen. It becomes unbearable when either player is in the menu, stutters, crashes, enemy teleportation, etc. Please please please, take it from me, be patient and wait for Gearbox to finish DEVELOPING the damn game. Because they couldn't do that pre release apparently. No announced fixes or timeline either. But they had the time toDo not buy this game if you have any wish to play splitscreen. It becomes unbearable when either player is in the menu, stutters, crashes, enemy teleportation, etc. Please please please, take it from me, be patient and wait for Gearbox to finish DEVELOPING the damn game. Because they couldn't do that pre release apparently. No announced fixes or timeline either. But they had the time to nerf Legendary drop rates?

    Shows where the priorities lie, and it isn't on the player experience.    … Expand
  27. SerraElyse
    Sep 20, 2019
    3
    Was a 6.5 out of 10 for me Prior to the latest Hotfix- Issues with lack of the Player Character in Cutscenes Lots of Stability issues in Co-op but was still a fun game. The Newest "Hotfix" released lowering overall ability to get loot and fixing no issues really shot the enjoyment out an airlock. Lowering Loot Drops in a game like this is the WORST move and sets a horrible outlook into theWas a 6.5 out of 10 for me Prior to the latest Hotfix- Issues with lack of the Player Character in Cutscenes Lots of Stability issues in Co-op but was still a fun game. The Newest "Hotfix" released lowering overall ability to get loot and fixing no issues really shot the enjoyment out an airlock. Lowering Loot Drops in a game like this is the WORST move and sets a horrible outlook into the future especially since the Loot Table is So Massive and most of it is not tied to a single loot table. So 3/10 for me unless the go back and Return or Raises the loot value to what they were or beyond.… Expand
  28. Mrhydejc
    Sep 20, 2019
    0
    Le jeu en lui même semble bon mais difficilement jouable en coop local. L'option priorité résolution a des performances déplorables. L'option priorité performance est moche et souffre quand même de lag. Le split screen est forcément horizontal et n'est vraiment pas pratique. Les textes sont illisibles. Dès qu'un joueur ouvre le menu, le jeu devient injouable. Après une heure de jeu, un desLe jeu en lui même semble bon mais difficilement jouable en coop local. L'option priorité résolution a des performances déplorables. L'option priorité performance est moche et souffre quand même de lag. Le split screen est forcément horizontal et n'est vraiment pas pratique. Les textes sont illisibles. Dès qu'un joueur ouvre le menu, le jeu devient injouable. Après une heure de jeu, un des persos était bloqué entre deux caisses. Le rendu graphique nous a fait mal à la tête. Bref très mauvaise expérience. J'ai adoré les précédents malgré les bugs mais là c'est trop.… Expand
  29. matanan
    Sep 23, 2019
    0
    The bugs I met in this game are more than all of the bugs in other games I ever played.
    1. Boss was killed but the mission cant be finished. （include Slaughter 3000）
    2.The item icon is totally mismatched. 3.DX12 is just a joke and leads to CRASH.(I don't know whether it has been fixed.) 4.Boss will be missing until I close and restart the game. 5.Cloud saving doesn't work for at least    The bugs I met in this game are more than all of the bugs in other games I ever played.
    1. Boss was killed but the mission cant be finished. （include Slaughter 3000）
    2.The item icon is totally mismatched.
    3.DX12 is just a joke and leads to CRASH.(I don't know whether it has been fixed.)
    4.Boss will be missing until I close and restart the game.
    5.Cloud saving doesn't work for at least three times.
    6.Connnecting failes with high probability.

    900 million guns or 900 millison bugs?    … Expand
  30. ShadPTR
    Oct 11, 2019
    0
    Greedy publisher releases a game that freezes more than my fridge and completely powers down the xbox when joining other people's games pretty consistently. Not to mention shtty performance that has not been patched. It is almost a month since release. Horrible. They lost me as a customer.
prev
Page:

Awards & Rankings

28
#28 Best Xbox One Game of 2019
9
#9 Most Discussed Xbox One Game of 2019
33
#33 Most Shared Xbox One Game of 2019

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
82

Generally favorable reviews - based on 25 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 21 out of 25
  2. Mixed: 4 out of 25
  3. Negative: 0 out of 25
  1. Official Xbox Magazine UK
    Oct 13, 2019
    80
    Borderlands 3 may not be clever, but it is very big – and above all else, the source of a vast well of over-the-top shooting fun and mayhem. Be thankful that Gearbox refused to reinvent the franchise just for the sake of it. [Issue#183, p.73]
  2. Easy Allies
    Oct 10, 2019
    85
    Rather than trying to latch on to current trends, Borderlands 3 stands confident in the fact that there’s still no other game that does exactly what this series does so well. The sheer creativity and inventiveness presented in its arsenal is hard to match, and while the humor may not be for everyone, it keeps the gameplay in perspective as we’re all just here to have a good time. It isn’t as big of a leap forward as Borderlands 2, but it’s well-refined and there’s a lot to experiment with to keep you coming back for more.
    Read full review
  3. TheXboxHub
    Oct 9, 2019
    90
    It delivers on its promise and then some, and if you’re someone who enjoys playing video games alone or with friends, and likes having fun whilst doing so, in that respect, Borderlands 3 is perfect.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »