do i need to play the first game first?

[QuestFaxer87]

i bought this game because it was discounted while 1 and 2 wasn't, i'm planned to play this first but i realized that the story might be connected with the previous two games, especially after i see that the mc is the same

[Junipercat]

The MC is not the same, but I see where you're coming from.

Each game has minimum 4 playable Vault Hunters. They are only playable in a single game as it is a new set each time. They tend to be NPCs in the games that come after. (The Pre Sequel went the other way as it made NPCs in prior games Vault Hunters to showcase backstory).

There is a storyline. So it goes BL1, BL2 (leave DLC Attack on Dragon's Keep for after beating the main game, otherwise spoilers), BL The Pre Sequel (released after 2, but set in-between 1 and 2 for backstory, so is like a giant DLC for 2), BL2 DLC Fight for Sanctuary (is a tie-in to BL3), and then finishing with BL3 (well at least until BL4 comes out sometime next year).

That being said, prepare that BL3 greatly changes personality of characters, shoves key characters to the side (or "forgets" about them) to make others look better by comparison, and has (in my opinion) the most annoying antagonist of the entire series. But there is definitely improved gameplay (just legendaries drop too often and I found first playthrough to be too easy).

[QuestFaxer87]

Originally posted by Junipercat:

The MC is not the same, but I see where you're coming from.

Each game has minimum 4 playable Vault Hunters. They are only playable in a single game as it is a new set each time. They tend to be NPCs in the games that come after. (The Pre Sequel went the other way as it made NPCs in prior games Vault Hunters to showcase backstory).

There is a storyline. So it goes BL1, BL2 (leave DLC Attack on Dragon's Keep for after beating the main game, otherwise spoilers), BL The Pre Sequel (released after 2, but set in-between 1 and 2 for backstory, so is like a giant DLC for 2), BL2 DLC Fight for Sanctuary (is a tie-in to BL3), and then finishing with BL3 (well at least until BL4 comes out sometime next year).

That being said, prepare that BL3 greatly changes personality of characters, shoves key characters to the side (or "forgets" about them) to make others look better by comparison, and has (in my opinion) the most annoying antagonist of the entire series. But there is definitely improved gameplay (just legendaries drop too often and I found first playthrough to be too easy).

ooh, i jump into conclusion that the guy on that weird mask that always appeared on the game cover as the mc. welp, i already refunded the game at the time you replied, but i guess it's a sign that i should've played the previous instalment first

[Tahl]

Simple answer is, no.
1 was fun but I straight up forget almost everything about it before playing 2. 2 is solid on its own and 3 is barely worth paying attention to for the story. Side content is better but also self contained.
Exception being the psycho DLC which is a 'what happened too' story for a DLC character from 2.

Its one of the series that has enough degrees of separation that playing them out of order only enhances the experience. Like playing 2 after 3 would have a lot of 'oh, thats why!' moments. One game isnt required to understand the others and the core plot is contained per game.

[Junipercat]

Originally posted by QuestFaxer87:

ooh, i jump into conclusion that the guy on that weird mask that always appeared on the game cover as the mc. welp, i already refunded the game at the time you replied, but i guess it's a sign that i should've played the previous instalment first

The guy in the mask is a generic Bandit (NPC enemy). Just showcasing flavor of the game.

Game series is fun, but if story matters than the order is important. There is the Pandora's Box which is has essentially everything, so getting that on discount can be huge.

To recap:

BL1: Started the series. A bit more dry and serious.

BL2: Game came together in gameplay and story.
(Tiny Tina's Attack on Dragon's Keep AFTER beating the main story)

BL The Pre Sequel (TPS): Fun ride, but incomplete end game (consensus is cut content). Released after BL2 and best viewed as giant DLC for it.

BL2 Commander Lililth & the fight for Sanctuary: DLC made to lead into BL3

BL3: Improved Gameplay so is fun mechanically. Fans of the lore criticize it greatly per key changes and choices (not going into here, plenty of threads). Drop rate of legendaries too high and I found the very first playthrough too easy.

BL4: Currently scheduled to launch sometime in 2025. Only a teaser trailer to speculate on for now.