Playing A Game Borderlands 3: Moxxi's Heist of the Handsome Jackpot PC

Space casino robbery is a strong pitch, and Moxxi's Heist of the Handsome Jackpot ... partially lives up to it.

It hits some high-value targets: a cool space-station aesthetic, filled with the same Hyperion loader bots that were so fun to blow up way back in Borderlands 2; a cool soundtrack, alternatingly jazzy and high-octane action-ey as it adapts to the DLC's varied environs; and hilarious character events, with cartoonishly irrevent and violent hijinks that can only be described as "Oh, Borderlands."

But it also misses some prime opportunities squarely in its target area: the misfits you assemble into a crew don't get enough screentime to really shine - in particular, they don't bounce their awkward personalities off of one other, like any successful heist crew is obligated to do - and the villain is, well, not quite villainous enough. Given that this DLC is built upon the legend of Handsome Jack, I feel like its big-bad should have done more to outgrow Jack's shadow.

I'll give them credit for trying to form plot points around people stranded in the casino after Jack died -- like, that's a powerful premise, and portions of the supporting cast deliver on it more strongly than I'd expect. But, while surprisingly-entertaining segments like "Trashlantis" show interesting ideas, few of those segments are executed thoroughly enough to make them memorable on their own.

At the end of the day, the Handsome Jackpot is a really sweet setting for more Borderlands gameplay, which is pretty good. I just wish that it was a better caper.

Better than: Borderlands 2: Captain Scarlett and Her Pirate's Booty
Not as good as: Borderlands 2: Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep
Now I really want to watch: a Cowboy Bebop and Army of the Dead fusion crime thriller.

Progress: Finished the main quests, some but not all side-quests.

Rating: Good