The newest addition to the borderlands univervse is finally out in the form of Tiny Tina's Wonderlands. But what exactly is it? Is it a worthy member of the borderlands family? Does claptrap say something stupid and ruin things at some point? The answer to all of these is yes, but let's talk about it a little more.
The game is really similar to the previous entries in the way you would expect. The OG looter-shooter style of gameplay. More than enough enemies to use up the insane amounts of ammo you're carrying around. Enough guns to build a small country out of, and plenty of the trademark side splitting humor. There's a lot of well written side quests, a very compelling main story line, and a lot of fan favorite characters make a return.
It does have a few important differences from the rest of the seires in a few key ways. The first being the setting. Instead of carving a path of violence through the dangerous planet of Pandora, the game takes place entierly in the game of Bunkers and Badasses, the in-universe equilivent of Dungeons and Dragons. Bunkers and Badasses has been mentioned several times throughout the series, mostly notably in Borderlands 2 with the DLC Tiny Tina's Assualt on Dragon's keep. Another big change is the lack of grenades. Instead of grenades you have spells, which occupy basically the same function, but manage to make themselves unique enough to be worth a mention.
The game has an all star voice cast. Names such Andy Sambug, Wanda Sykes, Will Arentt, and Arin Hanson steal the show throughout with their well written dialouge and characters. Of course the classic characters that make their way are the same top teir of humor and characterization you would expect. Such as Mr Tourge blowing up the entire ocean, or Brick taking the role as "The Fairy Punch Father", and Tiny Tina herself as the Bunker Master.
Its a much more fleshed out game world than you would expect. There's a lot of care put into the side quests and character interactions. Even the guns are given a fantasy twist to fit in with the theme, with most of them looking like mechinized crossbows instead of traditional guns. The story, world, and game map all also carry the chaos and improv feel you'd get out of an dnd session, with some quests and characters changing on the fly because of the comments of the players.
All in all, its an amazing game. Perfect for people who are fans of Borderlands and D&D (which I'm willing to bet is a pretty big cross section), and for fans of the looter shooter genre. Its not a great first exposre to the series however, as most of the characterzation and jokes are refrencing previous events. But if you're a fan of Borderlands, this game is a must play
.