Borderlands Mobile came out of nowhere, and while the debut was certainly surprising, the bigger shocker is how good it seems to be. Developed by Zynga, the FPS game is unexpectedly smooth for a mobile game, with players moving and controlling the camera just as they would on a console or PC Borderlands experience. The (auto)shooting and looting are satisfying, the humor is there (even if several lines are taken directly from Borderlands 3), and the cel-shaded images are perfect. But there is clearly room for improvement.
To be clear, Borderlands Mobile is in a pretty good place even in its current form. The ability to upgrade gear basically means players can hang on to their favorite legendary weapons forever, and day one raid bosses and modes like Circles of Slaughter are a huge win as the main games have been lacking on this front. But every game has flaws, and there are a few things that would be great to see Borderlands Mobile address between when it goes offline and when it ends up back in mobile storefronts.
Borderlands Mobile's Exo-Tank character is a collection of Overwatch heroes
Based on information for Borderlands Mobile's Exo-Tank Vault Hunter, it's clear how the character works similarly to some Overwatch characters
Borderlands Mobile's monetization will hopefully not be weird
One of the biggest lingering questions about Borderlands Mobile is its potential pricing. While it can be assumed that the app itself will be free to play given its surprise testing period, there is certainly room for the full version to milk the wallets of the player base. Virtually everyone has heard of mobile games where timegates are developed to encourage currency purchases or lock key pieces of content behind paywalls, and there is room for Borderlands Mobile to do the same. Whether it actually does, however, is anyone's guess.
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Borderlands Mobile has been confirmed to have a battle pass system and paid cosmetics for its Vault Hunters, which would ideally be the limits of the microtransactions. However, there could easily be more for players to purchase once the game is complete. Keys for loot chests seem like a no-brainer, while a more problematic approach could see Vault Hunters being purchasable and only Summoners being free. This would be extremely frustrating, but is not impossible. Alternatively, perhaps early paid access with a monetization option could be a middle ground Zynga is taking. However, since monetization has room to be detrimental to this mobile game and its core mechanics are so strong, the biggest desire is to make paid content fair and completely focused on cosmetics.
Borderlands Mobile's Vault Hunters will hopefully have more personality
When playing Borderlands MobileVault Hunters will likely feel very similar to those from the original Borderlandsbecause they are blank slates lacking individual personalities. The skill trees are simple, they have no names beyond their class type, and the back and forth dialogue between Vault Hunters and NPCs has done most of the work Borderlands more fun games are nowhere to be seen. In a series that has shined in part due to its variety in playable characters, as synergies and unique pairings can make co-op sessions more fun, Borderlands Mobile can definitely do more with their leads.
The full version of Borderlands Mobile can take advantage of deeper Vault Hunters all around. Bigger, more interesting skill trees would be a win, as would character trailers that make Vault Hunters more than just generic Summoners and Assassins. Combat chatter from the characters, not just the mobs they're fighting, would go a long way to making the moment-to-moment gameplay more immersive. Finally, while it may seem simple, focusing more on proper names would go a long way. No one calls Borderlands 4's Amon of his class of Forgeknight; he's just Amon, the likeable and honorable monster hunter.
Borderlands Mobile will hopefully expand its audience
The most disappointing part of Borderlands Mobiles test was how limited the audience was, as Android users and those outside the US were out of luck and had no way to access the game. So far, all Android fans have to go off of are data mined files that suggest Zynga may be working on an Android port. Will come out and confirm it Borderlands Mobile will be on more than just Apple devices would go a long way to getting fans hyped, and there's even a case to be made for going beyond mobile. Given Borderlands 4s awkward Switch 2 situation, and no release date in sight, perhaps Borderlands Mobile can be a good addition to that platform. With controller support already offered for the phone version of the game, it wouldn't be too much of a step to port it to the Switch 2, and it could be a great alternative to BL4. With Borderlands Mobile Since it's a solid experience so far, it would be wise to open it up to the widest possible audience.
