In Claptastic Voyage, you learn that there is more inside Claptrap's rusted head than bugs, dubstep remixes, and horrible loneliness. Nestled deep in his chrome dome lies a particular MacGuffin desired by Jack above all: the H-Source, a powerful code, used to unlock Hyperion's greatest assets, such as badass weapons. Without other options, Jack digitizes his chosen vault hunters, sending them into Claptrap's mind. They do battle against vicious bugs and viruses, all the while exorcising some of Claptrap's inner demons. The story occurs after the events of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, and at last explains how the plucky robot goes from accomplished vault hunter to fending off bullymongs in the frozen wastelands of Borderlands 2. But where Claptastic Voyage excels, such as in its new enemies and awesome glitched weapons, it stumbles in mission design, leading you along one dull fetch quest after another, even though a surprising change of scenery helps alleviate the mounting boredom.
Nevertheless, the first few hours of the pack are a bit of a chore, as you travel through Claptrap's consciousness and memories hunting down needed objects. One of your earliest tasks is to scavenge for broken pieces of a bridge so you can continue. The stereotypical obstacles cause the quest to march on at a sluggish pace, and during the moments when a lack of real progress causes Jack to sigh in frustration over the intercom, I began to understand how he felt. After all, what is less exciting than a fetch quest within what is technically one large fetch quest?
The environments in which you tackle these early bits are a bit of a drag as well. Sure, there is that warm swelling of nostalgia when you first enter Claptrap's memories of Pandora's rustic Fyrestone, complete with cameos of broken holographic characters such as Dr. Zed who offer guidance. However, it is merely a brief distraction, as if to inquire, "Hey, remember this?" before ushering you onward with your dreary item hunt. I understand that this is merely a broken memory and little else. But as the quest inched onward, I longed for those old Borderlands days when Fyrestone was like an "Old Western" town in which to stock up on supplies, chat up the locals, and grab new missions (accompanied by that lovely acoustic soundtrack), instead of being just a brief distraction.
Thankfully, the game does loosen up some as you move along. As you venture deeper into Claptrap's consciousness, the broken memories of former Pandora, the structures made of neon lights and steel, and even the black hexagonal skies are brushed away. They are replaced with bright pink-orange hues, clouds, and floating islands, not unlike anything out of BioShock Infinite. Go deeper still, and you stumble into something akin to M.C. Escher, with waterfalls flowing from floor to ceiling and staircases on the walls leading to nowhere. It's a striking visual contrast with the cold interiors that first greet you. Claptastic Voyage deserves some credit in refusing to stick to one type of aesthetic, adding an appreciated splash of whimsy to the mind of our dubstep-loving robot. The main story itself revolves around running about searching for keys or other precious objects, but at least the landscape becomes fascinating enough to serve as a nice distraction from the tedium.
