10 Video Games MUCH Better Than We Thought They'd Be

10. Tales From The Borderlands

tales from the borderlands
Telltale

A spin-off game that borrows IP from an existing game franchise is generally a small step above a movie-tie in game. Expectations for both are almost always low and they almost never even meet those let alone end up being really impressive.

Imagine our surprise then when Telltale’s Tales From The Borderlands arrived and it wasn’t just good, it was arguably their best outing yet, legitimately hilarious, and even capable of pulling your heartstrings.

Tales From The Borderlands managed to bottle the Borderlands chaos and magic without delivering something entirely predictable and strangely the Telltale gameplay formula worked like a charm. Combat didn’t completely disappear, though it was decidedly Telltale-ified, complete with a finger gun battle that will go down as one of the funnier scenes in video game history. The characters are almost all really well-rounded and sympathetic, the progression of the story is genuinely intriguing, and each chapter does a great job of weaving back and forth between humour, bombast, and earnest moments.

If you haven’t picked this one up because it’s a Telltale game or because it’s based on Borderlands, trust me and give it a go.

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Contributor
Contributor

Jess has been a journalist and content creator in the games industry for over 15 years and has been WhatCulture's resident Australian import and sorry cop since 2020, upping the quotient of swearing and apologising in WhatCulture Gaming's annual blooper videos considerably. She previously worked at GameSpot for 10 years, most notably hosting GameSpot News in addition to E3 live shows, and PAX panels. She regularly livestreams a variety of games on her 'jessmcdonell' YouTube and Twitch channels and hosts the 'Do It On The Day' podcast. She has won awards for her news and feature work in gaming as well as an accolade for her comedic writing (likely an admin error). She can be found on X at @jessmcdonell and Instagram at @jessicamcdonell sharing her current videogame fixations, industry insights, and videos of her cat, Karma.