Borderlands 3

Gearbox's 2019 shooter is the best-feeling game in the series and the worst-written one. The gunplay is a clear step up: proper mantling, sliding, alternate fire modes on most weapons, and a manufacturer identity that finally extends to how a gun handles rather than just its stats. The four Vault Hunters each have three action skills rather than one, which makes build variety much wider than Borderlands 2's, and the endgame - Mayhem levels, Guardian Ranks, raid-adjacent Takedowns - has more to do at cap than any previous entry. It also leaves Pandora for the first time, across four planets with genuinely different art direction. The antagonists, a pair of streamer siblings, are the problem; they are written as annoying and succeed at it, which is a long way from Handsome Jack. Six substantial DLC campaigns followed, and the Director's Cut added a raid boss. If you are here for loot and shooting rather than dialogue, it delivers more than anything else in the franchise.