Often viewed as the red-headed stepchild of the series, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel doesn’t get mentioned that often when discussing the franchise. But this game, in many ways, paved the path for many mechanics in the latest release of the series.

The lack of gravity introduced jumps and the lack of oxygen made use of new gear. The terrain and lack of gravity also contributed to the creation of new vehicles. A shift away from exponential damage scaling made gear obsolescence much less of a glaring issue in Pre-Sequel than it was in Borderlands 2. There’s no doubt that 2K Australia, despite missing the mark on a few core elements of the Borderlands formula, got a shocking amount right on their first attempt.

New damage types, low gravity sections, and the infamous “butt-slamming” this game presented would plant the seeds for design decisions seen in Borderlands 3. If you’re a fan of the Borderlands universe, this game also ties nicely into the Tales From The Borderlands series. It isn’t perfect, but The Pre-Sequel doesn’t get enough credit for what it did right.