Borderland 2‘s upcoming release on the Playstation Vita has been strange to say the least. The Vita version was long rumored, with ifs and buts being thrown around for quite some time. Chatter within video game communities was pretty prominent, with most topics regarding whether or not the Vita could handle such a big game. Oddly, though, since the official announcement of Borderlands 2 for Vita, things have became a little hushed.

The whole concept of Borderlands 2 on the Vita seems a little odd, given the original console/PC version released two years ago. It’s never once felt like a Vita version of Borderlands 2 was something people looked forward to playing, as in an experience, instead they looked at it as a statement. The Vita is widely seen as a struggling system, with most of its top games being rather niche titles or Japanese franchises not known by the more causal video game fan. Questions of the Vita’s power have long been hovering around Sony’s nifty little hand-held, and perhaps this is why Borderlands 2 was seen as such a big deal for the Vita.

Borderlands 2‘s sheer size made it a great title to show off the Vita’s power to the masses. Whenever the topic has come up, it’s never a question of how good the game is or if a person is looking forward to it–it’s nearly always a question of how the game will look and run. That isn’t to say Borderlands is a bad game, far from it, but the concept of playing the game has seemingly taken a back seat to people’s curiosity of how the game will run.

As a system, the Vita is still impressive. Its nifty features have always impressed, even during the system’s rough few months. The myth that there is nothing to play on the system is a little far from the truth. The like of Gravity Rush, Sly Cooper: Thieves in Time, Soul Sacrifice, Killzone: Mercenary, Dragon’s Crown, and Persona 4 Golden provide a decent library of games, with more games worthy of note. The power of the Vita is on show in any of the aforementioned games. Gravity Rush is nothing short of beautiful and combines all of the Vita’s features together to enhance the experience. Killzone proves the Vita can pull off first-person shooters while looking good and running smoothly

While Borderlands 2 has been cut back to fit on the Vita (shadows and rag doll physics have both been removed with various other small features here and there), the reaction from early customers is positive. Reports of game-breaking bugs have been floating around, with a number of people reporting crashes, but these issues are able to be patched. The idea that Borderlands 2 has successfully been released on the Vita could be the proof that many people were looking for when it comes to the capabilities of the Vita. Is a system seller? The chances are probably not.