What is your opinion on guns that come only in one element? are they a good concept or a bad one?
My take on this is that they are very nice because they encourage loadout variety so you can’t just have the same gun in all elements (thats kinda boring imo).
However with elemental lock comes limitations, sometimes when you have a gun you really like and it’s
locked to fire only example:
great gun very fun to use but limited due to being fire only.
So going into Borderlands 3 do you want more or less one element guns?
Ooooooo! More banter!
I like locked guns primarily for the fact that it gives them an identity - which is seems slightly lacking in BL2 compared with BL1.
In BL1, things like the Volcano, Defiler, Hellfire were basically delivery systems of remarkable elemental damage and DoTs .
In BL2, those same guns just seem to be…well…less so. A Hellfire went from being a fire weapon that happens to be an SMG , to being an SMG that happens to shoot fire.
The decision to make the Blockhead and the Longbow fire only seems somewhat arbitrary ( maybe something Minecraft related that I don’t know about ), but having them both fire gives them both a concept : Creepers = fire.
I do appreciate being able to get a Blockhead in other elements in the form of an Omen though.
I just want Borderlands 3 to come out in my lifetime but to answer your question, I too enjoy a few single element weapons. The Slagga is a personal favourite, as is the Hornet. I don’t mind there being single element weapons, as long as there are alternatives to cover the other elements.
To add to what Jefe said, I like the uniques with one elemental option because they are unique in the truest sense of the word, not only being rare/legendary but also in their element lock. It doesn’t bother me if there are more of them, because we have many other guns that can deal with the other elements, or we can even just use Jakobs and have no element.
I agree with both points. BL1 had more identity in it’s weapons because there weren’t a billion variations of the same weapon and elemental weapons were so OP in that game, but I also don’t mind them weakening them in BL2, the Hellfire example is perfect. It’s a beast in BL1 for sure, and less so in BL2. However, it’s still damn good in BL2, in my opinion. Maybe that’s because i’m a Maliwan fanboy
Piemanlee
(Goodbye friends and not friends, it's been a fun ride)
#7
I think bl2 had a good balance of element locked weapons. Most them them made sense(blockhead and longbow, blockhead shoots Minecraft fireballs and the longbow shoots flaming Minecraft arrows). Most of them were effective, hornet, twister, hellfire. Etc…
The only bad ones i can think of are corrosive. Stinkpot, retcher, and infection
BL2 guns are far more interesting / unique for sure ( BL1 guns are otherwise pretty bland ), but not from an elemental standpoint imo. The Volcano was the preeminent fire gun in BL1 - it was like a napalm strike. Now you have to make it work for you. It’s just a railer in BL2.
The Storm is a much more interesting gun that the Orion though.
Debating BL1 vs BL2 is not completely the point, it’s a matter of :
Does locking a gun to an element give it a stronger identity? Yes.
Do we like that? Yes.
Does having a gun available in multiple elements also give it an identity? Sort of.
Do we care that much? That’s the question.
There are 11 pistols, 5 shotguns, 3 AR’s, 3 Snipers, 2 Launchers and 9 SMG’s in the game that have locked elements. Add to that the uniques that are locked in NE or explosive, and the number increases to 19 pistols, 14 shotguns, 12 AR’s, 9 Snipers, 7 Launchers and 10 SMG’s.
The total number of uniques in the game is as follows:
That’s an average of around 50% uniques with a locked element. I’d say that 50% is a pretty solid number when it comes down to identity. Many of these guns aren’t considered top gear, so they get overlooked most of the time. But the fact is… They’re there, they’re many and they sure have an identity.
Thinking of it another way, how many of us have a full set of Sand Hawks. Does this make the gun less special? Is it now simply a tool to get the job done as fast as possible? I’d say yes, but we all have a different approach - some don’t care about special or uniqueness or identity.
5 Likes
Piemanlee
(Goodbye friends and not friends, it's been a fun ride)
#19
As long as a red text item has an effect that’s all i care about. Element Locked or not. But as stated with the flame of the firehawk, a hellfire wouldn’t be as unique if it came in other elements.
but to answer your question, I too enjoy a few single element weapons. The Slagga is a personal favourite, as is the Hornet. I don’t mind there being single element weapons, as long as there are alternatives to cover the other elements.