The Borderlands franchise is rife with references, pop culture nods, and tie-ins to other games in the series. Borderlands 3, for example, starts soon after the Lilith and the Battle for Sanctuary DLC for Borderlands 2, while the praised Tales from the Borderlands takes place between the two.
After Telltale Games went out of business, for a while it was incredibly difficult to get a copy of Tales from the Borderlands. The point-and-click spinoff game was rereleased early in 2021, making the adventures of Rhys and Fiona accessible once again. The game ties into the main franchise in many ways, especially when it comes to guest characters.
10 Set Between Borderlands 2 & The Pre-Sequel
Tales from the Borderlands takes place between Borderlands 2 and Borderlands 3. The first chapters are all set just a short time after the events of the second game, whereas the last two take place right around the same timeframe as The Pre-Sequel, which was also set before the events of Borderlands 3.
Tales from the Borderlands features new characters to the series and sees the return of some old favorites, all of whom tie into the overall narratives presented in the Borderlands series. There isn't a point where the story is completely isolated, everything is connected for a reason.
9 Just Like In The Main Series, The Game Revolves Around A Vault
Tales from the Borderlands deviates from the gameplay of the main games in a lot of ways, but it doesn't change one core aspect of Borderlands: the search for vaults across the universe. The game is centered around Rhys and Fiona each exploring their side of the same story, which the player has a choice in.
The ending of the game is entirely dependent upon the choices that the player makes throughout. In the regular Borderlands games, there is a lack of such choice, making the experience of eventually opening the vault that much more personal in Tales.
8 Rhys Will Remember That
In Borderlands 3, several characters from Tales from the Borderlands come back into play. On Promethea, the player runs into Rhys, a man who once wanted to be the next Handsome Jack and is now head of the Atlas corporation.
After completing a quest line with him, Rhys asks the player whether he should keep his new mustache or shave it. The text "Rhys will remember that" pops up no matter what decision is made, an obvious reference to Tales from the Borderlands choice system.
7 Vaughn Becomes A Bandit Leader
Vaughn, in Tales from the Borderlands, is an accountant for the Hyperion corporation. After the destruction of Helios in Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, not much is known about what happened to him – then in Borderlands 3, he shows up again, now as the leader of his very own bandit clan.
Vaughn was a nervous man in Tales from the Borderlands, but in Borderlands 3 he seems to mostly have overcome this anxiety and proves a valuable asset to the Vault Hunter.
6 Athena Is Playable In The Pre-Sequel
Athena, the gladiatorial greek-goddess-inspired Vault Hunter, appears in Tales from the Borderlands after Handsome Jack's death. She now lives in Hollow Point with Janey Springs. She is a relatively minor character in Tales from the Borderlands who is captured by Mordecai and Brick.
This leads into The Pre-Sequel opening and ending scenes, and Athena makes a return as a playable Vault Hunter in her recollection to Lilith.
5 Krieg DLC Secret Handsome Jack Reference
Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck was the fourth DLC for Borderlands 3 and focused on Krieg, the playable psycho from Borderlands 2. If the player looks outside of the map boundaries within this DLC, though, there is a secret reference to a main plot point from Tales from the Borderlands.
The mask of Handsome Jack is shown with a needle pointing towards its eye. In Tales from the Borderlands, Rhys uses a similar needle on his bionics to force the holographic AI of Handsome Jack out.
4 Catch a Riiiiiiiiiiiide With Scooter
In the second episode "Atlas Mugged," Tales from the Borderlands brings back the fan-favorite character Scooter from Borderlands 2. His catchphrase is used for the title of the third episode "Catch a Ride," the iconic motto and name of his vehicle company.
Tales from the Borderlands is officially the last game that Scooter makes an appearance in. If you're a fan of the backwoods mechanic, be prepared for feels.
3 The Finale To Handsome Jack's Story
Handsome Jack is undoubtedly the most iconic character from the Borderlands franchise, and possibly one of the best villains of all time. While the Vault Hunter killed his physical body in Borderlands 2, the player must choose whether or not to rid the universe of Jack's presence forever.
Handsome Jack had his mind backed up into an AI and can be heard mocking Rhys throughout the game as a disembodied voice of consciousness.
2 Zer0 Shows Up In The First Mission in Tales...
Another favorite from Borderlands 2 is the assassin Zer0. In the first episode of Tales from the Borderlands, appropriately titled "Zer0 Sum," Zer0 shows up looking for the Gortys core and kills Bossanova in a grand race.
Zer0 is not a playable character and has minimal involvement in the story – he re-appears in the last episode – but his interactions spur the narrative onward.
1 ... And Mad Moxxi Can Be Heard Flirting With Zer0
When Zer0 kills Bossanova in the first episode, he calls Mad Moxxi to update her on his search for the Gortys core. While she doesn't make an appearance in-game, Moxxi can be heard flirting with Zer0 during this call.
She tells him that his reward for finding the core will be "long, hard, and powerful" to which Zer0 appropriately responds, "Innuendo."