Although it was released nearly a year ago, “Borderlands” has remained a fan favorite with constant developer support through patches and three downloadable content (DLC) releases to date with a fourth release coming soon. The original advertising claims of combining the first-person shooter (FPS) and role-playing game (RPG) genres proved to be remarkably accurate, featuring level progression and equipment upgrades familiar to any RPG fan with nearly constant, often frantic action consistent with gameplay in other FPSes.

Set on Pandora, a desolate world which is not unlike the nuclear wasteland of “Fallout,” “Borderlands” places players in one of four separate character types with distinct abilities and tasks them with discovering a mysterious vault rumored to contain vast wealth. Players will drive and run across this world, completing missions and helping people to move toward the goal of opening the vault and claiming its riches. In addition, the game features a unique loot generation system which generates what feels like a nearly infinite variety of weapons and equipment.

“Borderlands” is an exceptional single-player experience, but it also includes support for up to four players to work cooperatively, making it a fantastic game for small groups, whether those groups consist of people playing together in the same room or using a live service or the Internet.

For the most part, the DLCs are equally strong with the exception of “Mad Moxxi’s Underdome Riot,” which is a series of arena combat challenges, meaning that the player is locked into a room and has to defeat wave after wave of enemies. It can be a quite grueling experience, considering that each challenge takes a significant amount of time to complete and doesn’t allow saves between waves.

Furthermore, rumors of a “Borderlands: Game Of The Year” edition are circulating; any such edition would likely include all DLCs released to date and, frankly, is a significant value purchase for gaming considering how detailed the world of Pandora is and a unique option included by the developers – multiple playthroughs.

After completing the game once, players can begin Playthrough 2, which resets the game world and populates it with enemies at higher levels, offering new and different challenges as well as improved loot drops. After completing Playthrough 2, players can then start a final Playthrough featuring the highest-level enemies in the game.

However, while “Borderlands” is a fantastic game featuring exceptional gameplay and excellent replay value, as well as on-going developer support and content expansions, it features a number of different accessibility issues which can be very problematic for disabled gamers.

Accessibility Issues / Concerns

One of the most crucial problems that the game presents is its use of red and green for a wide variety of purposes. When sighting through a weapon scope, the crosshairs are usually red. When players aren’t aiming, the targeting reticle turns from white to red when the player moves the reticle over an enemy. Waypoints indicating the location of a task or objective appear on the heads-up display (HUD) as a flashing green icon.

When enemies drop loot, health kits are indicated by a red line coming up from the ground while ammunition and common equipment are white and the least rare uncommon items are indicated by a green line and other, more rare, items feature blue, purple and orange lines, while cash appears as a yellow line. Loot containers have a green light on them before they’re opened and a red light after they’ve been opened (they also remain open, potentially preventing confusion). “Borderlands” allows players to compare weapons to determine which weapon is better using arrows pointing up and down to determine which values (damage, etc.) are higher. Unfortunately, the game again uses red and green to convey meaning; red indicates a lower value while green represents an improved value.

Likewise, the Bounty Board, a terminal providing additional missions for experience and gear, has a red-hued access panel when no missions are available; that access panel turns a shade of green when a player can turn in missions or get new ones. Barrels that can be shot to damage enemies are color-coded and include both red and green barrels; considering that enemies can shoot these barrels to damage players, this is also an obstacle. Furthermore, and possibly most problematic, items related to missions or tasks flash green to draw the player’s attention to them, presenting an additional challenge for gamers with a form of color blindness. Finally, the health bar is shown in red – while there’s also a numeric value and the color of the health bar doesn’t change, it does flash when a player’s health gets low.

Equally problematic is the amount of precision required, as well as the number of controls used. Simply put, this game will be very difficult for gamers with precision concerns or with use of only one hand. There is no target lock, meaning that players will have to actually shoot at enemies and hit them; some of the enemies are challenging enough – even when a player’s character is a higher level – that it will be very difficult to defeat them. Both triggers are used for aiming and firing, both sticks are used for moving and looking, and the number of enemies (including vehicles, which can be very difficult to hit) can feel overwhelming at times, virtually requiring players to move and shoot simultaneously.

While some games allow players to snipe enemies from a distance without triggering aggression from other nearby enemies, enemies in “Borderlands” will usually start firing on a player at the first shot. Further complicating the issue is that no one controller configuration of the several options provided seems ideally suited for a player with use of only one hand and the controller cannot be remapped. In addition, considering that players will need to move and jump to very specific locations and will need to drive and jump vehicles in ways that can be very precise, at a very fundamental level “Borderlands” is almost unplayable by people with precision concerns or with use of only one hand.

Fortunately, the subtitles in “Borderlands” make it slightly more accessible for people who need subtitles. The subtitles, while not letterboxed, are in a high-contrast sans serif font (meaning that it lacks flourishes on the letters which can make them more difficult to read) which is both legible and readable at a reasonable distance from the television screen, even on lighter backgrounds. While speakers are not usually identified, it is possible to have one subtitled message interrupt another and ambient chatter is frequently left without subtitling, mission-specific voice-overs are subtitled and the mission objectives can also be accessed at any time in the event that a subtitle left the screen too quickly. The subtitles could have been better implemented, but they should not hinder gameplay in the single-player campaign for those who need them. Cooperative play effectively requires players to use headsets to communicate and accomplish objectives, making it very difficult for players with hearing concerns.

Finally, the save system in “Borderlands” is quite helpful. The game utilizes an autosave system and also gives gamers the ability to save on demand at any time as they exit a gaming session. The autosave system engages when players pass by certain points, whether heading into arena combat or entering a new game zone, and often at points in between. However, players can also access the game menu at any time and select Exit, which saves current progress and exits the game session, even if a player is in combat. It is a useful feature which allows players to escape enemies which are too powerful, because the next gaming session will restart at the nearest New-U / Fast Travel station, which is where players are revived after dying and which also enables players to reset skill points and teleport to other zones. However, that feature also means that players don’t resume where they left off; players will likely have to backtrack a bit to get back to where they were in the previous gaming session.

While this feature is helpful in the core game, it is a significant hindrance in two of the three DLCs released to date. “The Zombie Island Of Dr. Ned” and “The Secret Army Of General Knoxx” both feature exactly one New-U / Fast Travel station in the entire area, meaning that players can get two or three zones in and save, only to find themselves right back at the beginning of the zone, requiring them to travel back to where they were. However, even in those two DLCs, it can still help a player get out of an area with enemies which are too powerful.

The accessibility challenges presented by “Borderlands” are hugely disappointing because it is an exceptionally fun and imaginative new world with a unique aesthetic, engrossing gameplay and incredible replay value, so much so that gamers should at least rent it to see if it is sufficiently accessible for them.

At A Glance

Precision: Due to fast-paced combat, aiming, vehicle-to-vehicle combat and the number of opponents players often face, as well as some amount of precision driving and motions such as jumping from ledge to ledge, players with precision concerns will likely experience significant difficulties with this game. Recommend rating of 1 out 10 for single-player campaign and cooperative play.

Deaf Gamers: Subtitles are in a high-contrast sans serif font which is both legible and readable at a reasonable distance from the television, even on lighter backgrounds. They are not letterboxed, speakers are usually not identified, and subtitles can be interrupted by other subtitles. Recommend rating of 5 out of 10 for the single-player campaign, 1 out of 10 for cooperative play.

One-handed: Due to using both sticks and triggers, frequently all at the same time, as well as the need to move and shoot simultaneously, players with use of only one hand will likely experience significant difficulties with this game. Driving will likely present problems as well. Recommend rating of 1 out of 10 for single-player campaign and cooperative play.

Subtitled: Subtitles are in a high-contrast sans serif font which is both legible and readable at a reasonable distance from the television, even on lighter backgrounds. They are not letterboxed, speakers are usually not identified, and subtitles can be interrupted by other subtitles. Recommend rating of 5 out of 10 for the single-player campaign, 1 out of 10 for cooperative play.

Color Blind: Uses red and green as well as hues of both colors for a wide variety of mission-related tasks, inventory management, waypoints, loot and mission terminals. Recommend rating of 1 out of 10 for single-player campaign and cooperative play.

Checkpoint / Save System: Uses autosaves and save on demand when a user exits a gaming session. The save system does not start a player where they saved which can allow players to escape enemies which are too powerful, but can also hinder a player’s progress in the game.