If you've been wondering what the team behind Borderlands has been doing lately, you're not alone. Gearbox Software's goofy, stylized shooter-RPG put it on the map, but since Borderlands 2 was released, the studio's been relatively quiet. Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel was handled by an entirely separate team (2K Australia), so...what's Gearbox been working on?
As it turns out, Gearbox has been working on another goofy, stylized shooter-RPG - but this isn't Borderlands 3. The studio's latest game, Battleborn, is taking a different approach to gameplay: namely, the game takes traditional class-based shooting and mixes it in with the structure of a MOBA (like League of Legends). Gearbox has been working on the title for some time...however, despite the long gameplay demos that made their way online, there are still a lot of questions surrounding the game.
It looks like Gearbox won't be keeping quiet for much longer: with E3 2015 just around the corner, the studio has revealed what players can expect when the full game hits store shelves later this year.
For Battleborn, it's all about the characters: while similar games launch with a handful of playable combatants, Battleborn is launching with 25 unique characters. The increased character roster definitely works in Battleborn's favor, too: up to six people can play cooperatively through the game's story mode, and up to 10 players can go head-to-head in multiplayer matches. The player count may seem small at first, but it means that teams will rarely feature more than one of any character - don't expect to be overwhelmed by a single character game after game after game.
Battleborn's multiplayer will be split into three modes at launch: Incursion, Devastation or Meltdown. Incursion sounds similar to the 'Horde 2.0' mode in Gears of War 3: players are tasked with building a base and defending it from computer-controlled enemies. Devastation is the game's standard Deathmatch, with teams of five trying to wipe the other side out; Meltdown is Battleborn's take on standard MOBA gameplay, with teams of five escorting computer-controlled minions in order to destroy an enemy's base.
There's also a big focus on leveling up and finding new loot, which Gearbox promises will cross over between single and multiplayer modes. Characters can swap out different skills, rank up to Level 10 and unlock new customization options - regardless of which mode you choose to play.
Finally, Gearbox confirmed that the game will be playable on the E3 2015 show floor - it shouldn't be long before fans can see even more of the game in action. After that, fans won't have to wait that long before they can play the game for themselves: Battleborn is set for a Winter 2015 release.
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