Borderlands: Now With Cel-Shading!

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Dark Pulse

Dolla, Dolla. Holla, Holla.
Sep 12, 2004
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Gearbox's "Gun-Porn" shooter, Borderlands, is getting a makeover. They've decided that in order to make their game stand out a bit more, they're going to utilize cel-shading.

We do care about all our fans, no doubt, and the decision to alter the art style was assuredly not one taken or made lightly. It also wasn't made without gathering plenty of information and feedback - we've been doing extensive focus testing throughout development. Let me tell you guys a little about it:

Though there's always the chance some people could be turned off by the style, it was decided that, overall, it fits the game and creates a more visually interesting experience. Our concept art had this incredible, distinctive style and feel that fit so perfectly - the game has not become less detailed or washed out at all. Rather, it retains the detail and style that's often lost when we move from concept art to 3D. It stands out, and makes the gray-and-brown bleak landscapes, while still bleak and inhospitable, memorable and recognizable. The entire world has life to it, from the creatures to the very rocks and dirty walls. The game world is no less gritty, dirty, or harsh - all of the detail is there, and the environments have even more atmosphere. We solicited feedback from our focus testing initiative, which consists entirely of a very large pool of gamers from all walks of life, and in the end, the choice was clear for us.
 

Armagon917

TOAST
Mar 6, 2008
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The Woodlands, Texas
:tup::tdown:

well, lets give the game a chance. i think that Gearbox knows what they're doing and something during development cropped up that made cell shading look really great for the game. it would be a bad move to NOT CHANGE if your playtesters are giving feedback that this looks a whole lot better. i have not played a game from Gearbox that has been bad so i give them the benefit of the doubt here.

XIII had some potential, and i'm thinking just because cell shading hasn't been well recieved in the past on other titles doesn't mean Gearbox can't make this work. lots of faith in them.
 
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UBerserker

old EPIC GAMES
Jan 20, 2008
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I'll give a warm welcome to cell-shading. Never knew its potential before playing some of the Atlus games on the PS2.
 

KaiserWarrior

Flyin' High
Aug 5, 2008
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If that's a screenshot from the game as it is with the new shaders in place, I can dig it.

Celshading can work. Zone of the Enders 2 pulled it off marvelously. But in order to work, it has to be done in a very subtle way -- and most game devs these days wouldn't know subtle if it sneaked up and stabbed them in the back. The majority of them, when going the cel-shading route, make the amateurish mistake of vastly overplaying the shadows to they can scream "LOOK AT US WE ARE CELSHADED IS THAT NOT COOL?!".
 

TomWithTheWeather

Die Paper Robots!
May 8, 2001
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They've already released a statement saying that it's not cel-shading.

It's not pure cartoon cel-shading like Windwaker or XIII. It's more of a hand-drawn look if anything. You can see that in the scan linked above.

Having worked on this game for a bit, this new look is definitely a change for the better. Reminds me of the art direction on the latest Prince of Persia. :cool:

Who are you? I work at GBX and I don't recognize your name. IM me if you want. :)
 
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Sir_Brizz

Administrator
Staff member
Feb 3, 2000
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It's not pure cartoon cel-shading like Windwaker or XIII. It's more of a hand-drawn look if anything. You can see that in the scan linked above.
Which is great, actually. I don't know exactly what you would call it, I guess it would be something like 3D Illustration. The scan looks awesome, done in the style of Prince of Persia, I think a lot of games could be very successful this way. True cel-shading looks flat and boring, but this new style looks really good.
 

hal

Dictator
Staff member
Nov 24, 1998
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When I first saw 'cel shaded' I was thinking of that game XIII that came out a few years ago. The pic linked above is definitely not what I envisioned. It looks fantastic.

Realism is way overrated.