Borderlands 2’s Ellie Bucks Video Game Female Character Trends

Developer Gearbox has revealed that they are interested in creating a female character that does not embrace any of the tropes of video game design with Ellie, the sister of Scooter and daughter of Moxxi, which is set to appear in the upcoming Borderlands 2.

Speaking to Game Informer, the developers at Gearbox stated, “The narrative goal with Ellie was to have a character who hits all of the tick marks of a good Borderlands character (funny, unexpected, looks as if they could probably kill you in thirteen different ways if you got on their bad side), while also making an independent female character who looked the exact opposite of how most females tend to be represented in games.”

They added, “We also wanted to make sure that, through her dialog and visual design, we never cast her in a light where the player is encouraged to pity, laugh at, or mock her because she doesn’t look like Jessica Rabbit.”

Gearbox has also offered some information on their previous attempts to bring the character to life, including a version with two heads, a more muscular take and one incarnation that was very short in both height and temper.

Borderlands 2 takes the player back to Pandora and allows players to choose from a number of new character classes and then take the fight against the Hyperion Corporation and its leader Handsome Jack, who is trying to turn the planet into an industrial powerhouse and is killing the natives.

The development team at Gearbox has promised to deliver more customization options when it comes to both weaponry and character skills while also adopting a more stylized version of the first title’s look.

Borderlands 2 will be launched on the PC, the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360 in September of this year.