Borderlands

One of the big surprises from this year’s PAX East may have been unveiled early, as a new Borderlands title could be about to loot your wallet later this year. Dubbed a “pre-sequel”, the unannounced adventure is rumoured to take place between the first and second entries in Gearbox’s first-person franchise, and is supposedly in production at 2K Australia. Bizarrely, it will not deploy on the PlayStation 4, but will stick with current-gen systems instead.

GamePointsNow managed to secure the scoop, claiming that the title will take place on Pandora’s moon Elpis, and will feature four new character classes: Athena the Gladiator, Wilhelm the Enforcer, Nisha the Lawbringer, and Fragtrap – a militarised Claptrap. Some of these names may be familiar to you, as they have appeared in Borderlands titles before. In particular, Athena starred in the General Knoxx expansion, while Wilhelm was a boss in the second game.

The former will focus on melee attacks, while the latter will make use of a shoulder-mounted cannon and drones. In addition to this, there’ll be some new weapon types for you to take advantage of, including lasers and cryo armaments, which will allow you to freeze your foes. Apparently, the low gravity setting will play a part in the action as well, as you’ll be able to toss enemies into orbit with a well-timed explosion, and there’ll be jet-packs to help you to get around.

You’ll also apparently need to stock up on oxygen by collecting kits around the world, adding an extra layer to the combat. Go into battle with too little air, and you’ll find yourself tapping the restart button faster than you can say ‘Handsome Jack’. However, this mechanic will also carry an advantage, as you’ll be able to shoot out the helmets of foes to deprive them of O2 and swiftly turn the tables in battle.

Unsurprisingly, publisher 2K Games has refused to comment on the rumour, but it all sounds far too specific to be untrue. Moreover, the site sharing the speculation has accurately leaked the European PlayStation Plus lineup three months in a row now, so we tend to trust the source. As already alluded, we suspect that this will be officially announced at PAX East later this week. Are you ready for more loot-‘n’-shoot action? Gun us down in the comments section below.

[source gamepointsnow.com, via totalxbox.com, vg247.com]