New Tales from the Borderlands

New Tales from the Borderlands is a PC cinematic adventure built around dialogue choices, character relationships, exploration, quick-time events, and Borderlands humor rather than the series' traditional loot-shooter combat. Steam and the Epic Games Store currently list it under the same official name, with no verified rebrand or replacement edition. The standalone story follows Anu, Octavio, and Fran through five connected episodes on Promethea.

A Choice-Driven Borderlands Adventure

The main loop combines third-person exploration, conversations, environmental interaction, timed responses, and short action sequences. You move through compact locations, inspect objects, meet civilians and criminals, then choose how the three protagonists respond when situations become difficult. The presentation is cinematic, with fixed or guided camera work during many scenes rather than free camera control throughout.

Choices are the central form of progression. Dialogue decisions can alter relationships, scene reactions, character attitudes, and later narrative situations, while some timed prompts determine how action scenes unfold. The structure is more focused than an open-ended role-playing game, so players should expect a curated story with branching moments rather than a large world filled with optional quests.

Each protagonist brings a different perspective to the same crisis. Anu is an altruistic scientist whose technology-based problem solving contrasts with Octavio's ambition and streetwise improvisation. Fran contributes a more direct and confrontational personality, along with her distinctive hoverchair and frozen-yogurt business background. Switching between these viewpoints gives the story its rhythm and lets the game vary its interactions without turning into a conventional party-based RPG.

Three Heroes, One Corporate Crisis

The story takes place in the Borderlands universe during a crisis involving the corporation Tediore, a planetary invasion, and a dangerous Vault-related threat. The setting is Promethea, a metropolis shaped by corporate power, civilian survival, vault technology, and the series' familiar mixture of science fiction and absurd comedy.

The tone moves between character comedy, corporate satire, emotional conflict, and violent set pieces. Returning Borderlands concepts appear alongside new faces, including assassin bots, talking weapons, misfits, and civilians who are far removed from the usual Vault Hunter fantasy. Familiarity with the wider franchise can add context, but the game is presented as a standalone narrative adventure with its own cast and conflict.

Players who prefer narrative games where failure and success are expressed through relationships may also appreciate interactive choice-based thrillers like The Complex, although New Tales from the Borderlands uses fully animated game scenes and Borderlands-style action instead of live-action footage.

Friendship Levels, Vaultlanders, and Side Activities

New Tales from the Borderlands adds more than dialogue selection to its episodic format. Friendship Levels track the group's changing relationships, giving player decisions a visible social dimension. The system is most useful for players who enjoy shaping the chemistry of a dysfunctional team rather than optimizing combat statistics or character builds.

Vaultlanders are collectible figures hidden throughout the environments. Finding them unlocks participants for the Vaultlander minigame, a small arena-style brawler in which collectible characters fight one another. It is separate from the main narrative progression, but it gives exploration a practical reason beyond simply finding environmental details.

The game also includes cosmetic customization and collectible-focused activities. These systems support replay and completionist play, but they do not transform the title into a loot-driven Borderlands shooter. There are no traditional skill trees, weapon rarity loops, or build-crafting systems at the center of the experience.

Five Episodes and the Complete Content Model

The full game contains five episodes, and each episode is divided into smaller chapters. Chapter counts vary by episode, while the main menu allows players to move between completed or available episodes and restart previously reached chapters.

This is a complete standalone narrative rather than an unfinished episodic release waiting for future story chapters. The official support information states that no additional episodes or story DLC are planned. Players looking for a self-contained campaign can therefore treat the base purchase as the complete main adventure.

The separate Adventure Capital Pack is optional bonus content rather than a story expansion. It includes cosmetics for Anu, Octavio, and Fran, in-game currency, and an FL4K Vaultlander collectible. The pack does not add new episodes or extend the central campaign.

The PC storefronts also distinguish the game from the earlier Telltale production, the original episodic Borderlands adventure starring Rhys and Fiona. New Tales from the Borderlands has a new cast and a separate storyline, while the earlier game remains the more direct comparison for players interested in the franchise's narrative-adventure format.

Who Should Play It?

New Tales from the Borderlands suits players who want a story-first adventure with expressive characters, irreverent humor, cinematic scenes, and decisions that shape the tone of their playthrough. It is also a reasonable entry point for Borderlands fans who enjoy the setting but do not want to spend their time collecting weapons or managing a combat build.

The game is less suitable for anyone expecting Borderlands 3-style shooting, cooperative progression, extensive exploration, or deep role-playing customization. Its interaction is deliberate and scene-based. Much of the experience involves watching, reading, choosing responses, and reacting to prompts, with exploration and minigames providing variation between major narrative sequences.

Replay value comes primarily from revisiting choices, relationship outcomes, collectible hunts, Vaultlander matches, and alternate scene reactions. It is not built around procedural content or an endless endgame loop.

PC Features, Platforms, and Localization

On PC, New Tales from the Borderlands is available through Steam and the Epic Games Store. The Steam edition lists single-player, Steam Achievements, Steam Cloud, Family Sharing, and a third-party EULA. The Epic edition lists achievements and single-player support. There is no verified native multiplayer, online co-op, or split-screen mode.

Keyboard-and-mouse play is supported, and controller play is available for PC users who prefer gamepad input. The game's quick-time prompts and menu navigation are designed around direct input, so players should choose the control method that feels most comfortable for timed decisions.

Full voice and text localization are available in English and French. Text localization also covers Italian, German, Spanish, and Brazilian Portuguese. Storefront listings identify Gearbox Software as developer and 2K as publisher, with development led by the Gearbox Studio Québec team.

New Tales from the Borderlands FAQ

Is New Tales from the Borderlands a sequel to the original Tales from the Borderlands?

It is a separate follow-up in the same universe, not a continuation with Rhys and Fiona as the main playable characters. New Tales from the Borderlands introduces Anu, Octavio, and Fran and presents a new five-episode story.

Has New Tales from the Borderlands been renamed on PC?

No verified rebrand is currently listed. Steam and the Epic Games Store both use the official name New Tales from the Borderlands. It should not be confused with the original Tales from the Borderlands or with a renamed legacy edition.

Does New Tales from the Borderlands have multiplayer or co-op?

No. The PC version is a single-player adventure. Its character group is part of the story, not a multiplayer party, and there is no native online co-op or split-screen campaign.

How many episodes are in New Tales from the Borderlands?

There are five episodes, each divided into smaller chapters. The game is sold as a complete story, and official support information does not list additional story episodes as planned DLC.

What does the Adventure Capital Pack add?

The Adventure Capital Pack adds cosmetics for the three main characters, 10,000 units of in-game currency, and an FL4K Vaultlander collectible. It is optional bonus content and does not add a new campaign or episode.

Is New Tales from the Borderlands a shooter?

Not in the traditional Borderlands sense. It includes brief action scenes and timed interactions, but its core systems are dialogue choices, exploration, cinematic storytelling, relationship tracking, collectibles, and minigames rather than shooting, loot collection, or skill-tree progression.