If you apply this same philosophy to exploration, Borderlands 2 will keep you busy for a very, very long time. This doesn't pose any barrier to progression, but with dialogue this good, you don't want to miss a word. The only drawback to the sheer volume of communication is that sometimes conversations are cut off by other incoming messages before you can hear them through.

The breadth of personalities invigorates your adventure and makes Pandora a lively, engrossing place, the kind of place it fell short of being in the first game. The huge amount of high-quality voice acting required to bring this world to life is fueled by excellent writing, which provides some genuinely nasty tirades and surprisingly tender moments amid the avalanche of laugh-out-loud funny lines. Random townsfolk also have a few things to say, no longer content with mute or monosyllabic responses, and even the bandits you fight have a broader range of context-sensitive taunts. There are some delightful new additions too, such as the arrogant antagonist, Handsome Jack, and the teenage demolitionist, Tiny Tina. The four playable characters from the first game are back as well, and they each play a robust role in the story (and have way more spoken lines than ever before). Many familiar faces return, including the delusional robot, Claptrap the hayseed mechanic, Scooter and the bawdy vixen, Moxxi. But it isn't so lonely anymore, thanks to an expanded cast of diverse and entertaining characters. What once was a lonely frontier planet populated primarily by savage men and feral beasts is, well, still a planet populated primarily by savage men and feral beasts. Perhaps the most notable difference is that Pandora now feels like a vibrant, living place. Now Playing: Video Review - Borderlands 2

By clicking 'enter', you agree to GameSpot's

Borderlands 2 main story missions