Burton Briggs was another one of the fresh faces, and while the forgetful detective appears during the main story of Guns, Love, and Tentacles, the majority of his tale unravels in side quests. A rarity for the Borderlands franchise, three different side quests connect to tell one story, and the plot is far more serious than most of the optional quests in the games. For this reason, Burton has one of the most meaningful stories in all of Borderlands 3, and the questline is such a highlight that it should inspire future side missions.
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The Strong Storytelling and Gameplay of Borderlands 3’s Cold Case Quests
In Burton’s Cold Case questline, players help the detective remember his past. While each person in Cursehaven has some kind of affliction, Burton’s problem is particularly troublesome, as he has extreme forgetfulness. Given his occupation, this makes for some laughs, though the humor is mainly confined to his appearance in the main story. Burton’s side quests in Borderlands 3 are far more tragic.
The quests see Borderlands fans piecing together Burton’s past, which leads to the discovery of his daughter Iris and her unfortunate fate. Burton’s daughter was kidnapped and possessed by one of the Bonded, the enemy faction from Guns, Love, and Tentacles. Burton eventually tracks them down to get revenge, seemingly killing the Bonded that had taken Iris from him. However, it is revealed that Burton accidentally killed his own daughter in the process.
This dark storytelling is rarely seen in the Borderlands series, and the same can be said for the bittersweet ending to the Cold Case quests. After seeing what happened to Iris, the Vault Hunters bring her ghost back to the Lodge to help give Burton closure. He gets the chance to apologize to Iris for failing to protect her, and after getting her forgiveness, the two share their love for each other. While Burton is devastated because of this moment, it feels like the Vault Hunters have actually made a difference.
Not only is the series of side quests emotional and well-written, but the decision to spread out Burton’s story over three different missions was a brilliant one. Players not only get a chance to see the mystery unfold over time, but they get to work with Burton for longer, allowing them to get attached to his character and story. Whenever Borderlands 4 debuts, well-paced, multi-quest narratives would be great to see. While there should still be plenty of funny, one-off side quests, more groups of serious quests like Cold Case would be welcome.
It is also worth pointing out the unique mechanics that came through the Cold Case questline. Players wield the Seventh Sense pistol throughout the quest, a gun that allows them to see ghosts when aimed down. This led to some unique fights against invisible enemies as well as a standout section where gamers had to traverse an invisible maze with the help of the unique pistol. Not only should Borderlands 4 feature several chains of three or more quests that aim to tell deeper stories, but these optional missions should feature special mechanics like Burton’s quests do. Like all the other great side quests in gaming, Borderlands 3’s Cold Case questline never feels optional, as its story and gameplay are just as well-crafted as they are in any main mission.
Borderlands 3 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.
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