If you don't like the stylish art direction of
Borderlands, this expansion won't change your mind. However, one thing I really appreciate about
Borderlands: The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned is how it successfully makes the transition from garbage-ridden wasteland to foul, earthy bog. It's a noticable difference from the original release. In
Borderlands, you got used to seeing dusty plains and trash... pretty much everywhere. Here, you'll see a spooky mansion (the cleverly-named Generally Hospital) and jack-o-lanterns. Jakobs Cove is a much more organic environment than pretty much everywhere else on Pandora, and you'll probably be struck by the fact that the only green things you've encountered playing
Borderlands were piles of skag vomit.
Why create new enemies when you can zombify the ones you've already got? The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned is only half guilty of this. Not only are there Zombie Psychos and Zombie Midgets, but there are new enemies as well, such as Tankensteins, Wereskags, and my personal favorite, the Suicide Zombie. These guys carry explosive barrels above their heads, but if they lose them, they can still carry out their self-destructive mission. All they have to do is pull their left arm off (like you would the pin of a hand grenade) and BOOM! Oh, and I forgot to mention: shooting a zombie in the head will Insta-Kill him and allow you the opportunity to collect the rotten brains that fall as loot. Need I say more?
The context of this new adventure doesn't call for too many changes in sound design. Rather, it simply calls for more exceptional voice acting and awesomely disgusting squelchy sounds. My personal favorite has to be the intercom system for the Jakobs Corporation, which absolutely steals the show. I won't spoil any of it. Just believe me when I say that you will laugh.
