14 DAY TRIAL // 
Telltale Games has already made a stellar name for itself with popular adventure series like The Walking Dead or The Wolf Among Us. However, its two latest projects, Game of Thrones and Tales from the Borderlands have generated some different reactions.
While Game of Thrones got criticized for its poor handling of choices and outcomes, Borderlands got praised for its outlandish nature.
Now, after almost four months, the second episode in Tales from the Borderlands is finally here, in the form of Atlas Mugged. With new adventures for protagonists Rhys and Fiona, not to mention an even bigger delving into the lore of the Borderlands universe and the arrival of other vault hunters and characters from the main games, the new chapter is looking quite interesting.
Does Atlas Mugged manage to make a solid showing or should the tale be left unspoken? Let’s find out.
Story
The first episode in Tales from the Borderlands had the tough job of acting as an introduction to the new adventure but still managed to offer some great sequences, especially through the two unreliable narrators in the form of protagonists Rhys and Fiona.
The second chapter sees them continue to talk about their past adventures while being manhandled by a bandit. The story picks up right from where it left off, when Rhys and Fiona stumbled into a secret research lab ran by the Atlas Corporation. It soon becomes clear that they now hold elements that can lead to another fabled vault, but as you can imagine things don’t go according to plan.
The adventures are outlandish but they’re not that farfetched, considering what’s possible in the Borderlands universe and in its fictional world of Pandora. Both Rhys and Fiona quickly get separated and then go on through some great adventures.
There are some interesting choices along the way and some do make a difference when it comes to what will happen in the actual episode and in the following ones.
The whole plot has some really stellar moments, but of course, things get even better when franchise villain Handsome Jack pops up, albeit in hologram form. We already saw a glimpse of him in the first episode and this time around he has a much bigger rapport with Rhys and helps out in some sticky situations with clever jokes but also some good solutions.
Other characters from the past games also make an appearance, from Scooter of Catch-a-Ride fame, to Athena, a vault hunter from Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel. They all serve to move the plot forward and might play even bigger roles in the upcoming episodes.
Gameplay
In terms of gameplay, Atlas Mugged is par for the course when it comes to Telltale titles, but the action scenes are much more dynamic, involving driving out of the way of moonshots and flying creatures, but also combing through the environment and making a few choices when it comes to paths and actions.
Of course, quick-time events are also in the new chapter and mostly serve to emphasize some situations. There are also a few reflex moments where you need to act as fast as possible, and what’s quite interesting, is that you can die in quite a few different moments if you don’t act fast or don’t want to take a decision. I won’t spoil them right here, but some fans might not really appreciate their lack of options, so to say.
As always, there are plenty of interesting dialog options that are both well-written and pretty well acted, as it seems that Telltale has improved its animation system a bit. There are a few bugs when it comes to the subtitles, as they don’t always match with what’s being said by the characters.
Visuals and Sound
Tales from the Borderlands Episode 2 looks quite good as the Telltale engine manages to recreate really well the cel-shaded visuals that are now a trademark of the Borderlands franchise. Characters are also well-animated, even when it comes to their facial gestures, although some are more expressive than others.
You get to meet quite a few old characters, from Scooter, to Athena or Jaine Springs, and they all look quite good when recreated in the new experience. Some old problems like lag or erratic animations in action sequences are also a thing of the past, so Atlas Mugged is by far one of the most impressive Telltale projects so far.
The soundtrack is similarly well done, not just through voice acting, as Troy Baker (Rhys) and Laura Bailey (Fiona) do a great job, but also through the use of actual songs, as well as the actual tracks that accompany the action on the screen quite well.
The Good
- Entertaining story
- Fun dialog
- Great introduction of new and old characters
- Good use of licensed songs
- Lots of fun and intense moments
The Bad
- Some choices are forced
- Some quick-time events can get tiring
