Borderlands: visual virtuosity

The latest in a series of great trailers, this one makes me go a big wet rubbery one:

People always talk about the stylization of Team Fortress 2 as though it's the only game that looks that way on purpose. It's not, but it is the only game that carried its concept art all the way through to the finished product, and still caught on with such a large audience. There are a number of other reasons TF2 ensnared so many gamers - including the rock-paper-scissors balance to the gameplay and the pitch-perfect humor that permeates throughout - but it remains the only "mainstream" shooter that so enthusiastically gives the finger to visual realism.

If TF2 started a trend, Borderlands looks to be the next step in the evolution of gaming artistry. We can only hope that the game plays as well as it looks.