There was nothing quite like Borderlands when it was first announced. A loot-driven first-person shooter had never been made before, and no one was sure if the game would even work at a mechanical level. On top of all that, the game was supposed to be a comedy. While such a routine may have worked for Conker's Bad Fur Day, it had failed for so many other games before it. There was absolutely no guarantee that Borderlands would have an ounce of success.

Obviously, things worked out in the franchise's favor. The original game spawned one of the biggest series in gaming today, but Gearbox Software wasn't content to sit around and pump out sequels. Borderlands may only be on its third installment, but the franchise has made huge improvements in just five years.

Loot was always at the core of Borderlands. It defined the individual characters and player's experience, and through incremental improvements, players grew more and more powerful. It was genuinely fun to run over to a defeated foe to see if he'd dropped a new gun or shield. It kept the gameplay moving forward, even if the mechanics stayed the same throughout the majority of the experience.

The only real problem with the loot was that, after hours and hours of play, the game slowed to a crawl. Borderlands and its loot system were rather restricted at first: there wasn't much of a difference between one rifle or another unless one happened to shoot fire. Some shields may have had a little extra elemental resistance, but they were all essentially the same. As player level increased, the loot system grew less and less interesting as more gear became obsolete.

Thankfully, by the end of Borderlands, players were extremely powerful; it was enough to keep the grind from losing its appeal. Each character had a specific skill (an automated turret, teleportation ... punching things) and throughout the game, new perks would change how each of the skills worked. Players were always limited to just one skill, but there were ridiculous combinations within that single ability. Add four-player co-op into the mix and Borderlands became one of the best multiplayer games of the last generation.

If there was any one thing that was truly bad about Borderlands, it was the story. It was basically non-existent: there was something about an alien treasure vault and some soldiers trying to take it, but too many wooden characters and too many long stretches of story-less missions took away any impact the narrative had. It was clearly never a major focus, and while it didn't really take away from the game, the absence of an interesting story was one of the few real criticisms Borderlands suffered.

Clearly, Gearbox listened to Borderlands' critics, because the story of Borderlands 2 was one of its strongest aspects. Lead writer Anthony Burch made a funny game into a hilarious one, and Handsome Jack stands as one of the greatest video game villains of all time. The whole game is loaded with just as many truly clever jokes as it is full of toilet humor. It blends together in such a way that moments that are supposed to carry weight actually have impact, but the game never steers into overly serious territory. It was the perfect match for Borderlands.

That's not to say the rest of the game didn't improve as well. Powers were just more fun to use in the sequel, and with more diverse skill trees within the same character, players had even more control over how they wanted to play. Reallocating skill points still cost money, but Borderlands 2 encouraged players to retrace their steps and try something new: experimenting with different builds using the same character was half the fun.

More importantly than anything, the loot system was far more diverse in Borderlands 2. The fictional weapons manufacturers from the first game were given distinct traits in the sequel: Maliwan weapons always caused elemental damage, Torgue weapons were always explosive and Vladof weapons fired faster than anything else in the game. As with the character skills, Borderlands 2 encouraged players to experiment with all of the different types of gear, and the changes meant that the end-game wouldn't be dominated by a single uber-powerful weapon.

Speaking of the end-game, Borderlands 2 featured some of the best downloadable content ever. Where the first game's DLC was essentially more of the same (save for the Halloween-themed Zombie Island), Borderlands 2 wasn't afraid to push the boundaries of its content. Gearbox added two additional characters, four content packs, a wealth of character update packs and individualized missions over the course of Borderlands 2's run. Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon's Keep alone was more than enough to justify buying the Season Pass.

Now, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel is here. For the most part, it seems that the game is just more of what made Borderlands 2 so much fun: loot, co-op and more loot. It's basically more of the same, but when the game was so much fun to begin with, it's hard to complain you get more.

The future of the franchise is a bit more foggy. Tales from the Borderlands from Telltale Games (of The Walking Dead fame) is an adventure game in the style of the studio's previous works. While what players have seen of the game is promising, the lack of a firm release date is worrisome. Originally, the game was scheduled to be released in Q4 of 2014, but without any word on Tales from the Borderlands whatsoever, it's not hard to believe that the game will be pushed back to 2015.

Borderlands 3 is even further away, if it's being planned at all. Gearbox Studios head Randy Pitchford once referred to the idea of making Borderlands 3 as "horrifying," given the success of the previous two entries. While The Pre-Sequel isn't a bad game by any means, Gearbox clearly thought of it as more of a side project than anything else. Borderlands 2 is not an easy act to follow, and it seems like Gearbox is against simply shipping another title for profits' sake.

In an industry where sequels are pumped out as quickly as possible, it's nice to see a franchise that takes its time. Borderlands wasn't always a guaranteed success, but with such an addicting formula and a passionate team working on the games, it'll be a long time before we see the end of Pandora.