Is Borderlands 3 Open World?
No, Borderlands 3 isn’t really an open-world game, however, it does give you the impression that you are in this massive open-world that you can explore. Like every other game in the series, Borderlands 3 has a lot of large areas that are connected to each other. The various areas all have natural boundaries giving you the idea that the world is bigger. At specific points in the map you will find a gateway to the next area. Therefore it’s more like open-world-esque game.
Open up the World
Borderlands 3 starts with a closed-off section. Like every other game, it first guides you through a tutorial section. Here the game brings you up to speed on the story and the game mechanics. This is basically done to not overwhelm you with everything at once. However, when you defeated the first boss the areas are starting to get bigger and you can start picking up some side-quests. There is a lot to do in the prologue section of the game but if you stay on the main story quest you can clear it within 2 hours. However, you can also be a completionist like me and spend 3 days on Pandora before going to the next planet. Because once you reach your spaceship Borderlands 3 really opens up. As you continue through the story more and more areas will unlock. Now you got these massive areas where you and your friends can play and have fun. You don’t have to stay close to each other, you can be on opposite sides of the map and do your own thing.
Is Borderlands 3 Free Roam?
Once you made it past the tutorial you are free to explore the areas that you unlocked. You can fast travel to any location at any time that you want. So if you want to go back to that one specific boss to farm his legendary item, you can.
Should You Explore Areas You’ve Already Been to?
Yes, there is a lot to explore in Borderlands 3. New side-quests will unlock as you progress through the game. Even when you completed every side-quest during your playthrough, once you completed the main story, there will be end-game content. Because now you can access the proving grounds, these are challenging arenas that reward you based on your performance. Then there is always the hidden logs that you can seek out and discover the mysteries of the universe.
How many maps are there in Borderlands 3?
The base game, not counting DLC and takedowns, has 223 Named Locations and you can get achievements for finding them all.
- Master Of All You Survey – Discover all 223 named locations.
- A Hundred Names For Sand – Discover all 78 named locations on Pandora.
- City Slicker – Discover all 43 named locations on Promethea.
- Swamped – Discover all 63 named locations on Eden-6.
- Exoarchaeolo – Discover all 27 named locations on Nekrotafeyo.
Planets
Borderlands 3 has multiple planets that you can travel but you will also be able to travel to various space stations.