I avoided part of the Borderlands series for almost 3 years, but now I regret it

Borderlands 4 is expected to finally be released in 2025. Until then, you can still have fun with the other titles in the shooter series. After almost 3 years, MeinMMO editor Nikolas Hernes finally wanted to catch up on a part that he actually avoided. And it was worth it.

First of all, I have to say, I love the Borderlands series. I started with part 2, immediately caught up with the first one and also bought Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel and Borderlands 3 when it was released. I have accumulated over 1000 hours in the entire series and I still throw part 2 or 3 every few months happy to.

But things were different with Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands. When the game was released in 2022, I had no interest in the fantasy spin-off of the loot shooter. While I love the DLC the idea is based on, I always thought it was just a long-form version of it.

Borderlands 4 was finally announced in 2024. As a result, I wanted to take the chance and catch up on the last part of the series, which I haven’t played yet. And what can I say: I was actually wrong.

Gameplay is fun as usual

What kind of game is Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands? At its core, it’s a classic Borderlands shooter. Instead of a dirty sci-fi world, there are classic fantasy themes. Apart from that, you shoot with normal weapons, which sometimes look like a crossbow. Instead of grenades there are spells.

Just shooting and looting is, as usual, a lot of fun. You have the same movement and weapon handling as in Borderlands 3. Unfortunately, I didn’t like some types of projectiles at all, but that’s probably a matter of taste.

I surprisingly enjoyed the skill tree. There is no longer a fixed character. You choose one class, then later a second one and combine the skills. I particularly like builds with a lot of elemental damage.

My initial problem was more with the setting. I’m not the biggest fantasy fan, and the beginning of Wonderlands put me off at first. It just seemed like the Tiny Tina DLC from Borderlands 2 again. The first side quests also seemed like off-the-shelf items.

But once I finished the initial missions, I was in for a surprise. We really enjoyed the other areas and quests, especially the optional ones.

A giant beanstalk and the Witcher were my highlights

In a larger side quest you are supposed to throw a bean man into a city. This causes the city to change and a giant beanstalk to emerge. I really enjoyed exploring this area. Especially because they always have a larger side quest ready, which are sweetened by short, other quests.

One of my favorite quests was a parody of the Witcher, who in the game is presented as an unfriendly guy whose personality is defined primarily by the fact that he can do anything and is a big womanizer.

But the main quest is also likeable. The new characters Valentin and Frette, who play a DnD campaign with Tina, are charming and you enjoy listening to their comments. I also liked smaller gags from the DnD cosmos. For example, in one quest, Tina has to come up with something completely new because the players don’t go the way she planned. A fate that many Dungeon Masters probably know.

In addition, I was surprised that there is also a lot of visual variety, at least if you want to get something out of the Borderlands style.

But there is also criticism

I really like Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands now. I also want to watch the endgame. But there are also some points of criticism that could bother you while playing.

Probably the biggest point of criticism is the DLCs. Borderlands is known for offering you extensive DLC campaigns as additional content. That doesn’t exist here. The DLCs are new themed dungeons, items and challenges that you can complete. Playing through once takes a maximum of 30 minutes. There are no new stories.

This is wasted potential, because the big DnD model offers many, often smaller, campaigns that present you with new scenarios.

Despite all of its flaws, I really enjoyed Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands. It’s entertaining and has many of the strengths that I love about the Borderlands series. I would have liked to see it released and dive into secrets and new builds with the community. For me, the game doesn’t come close to Borderlands 3 and certainly not Borderlands 2, but it doesn’t have to.

Despite many criticisms, Wonderlands is a good game that can sweeten the wait for Borderlands 4, especially as a snack. Especially in co-op with friends. MeinMMO author Max Handwerk has created a list of all Borderlands games in the ranking for you: 6 Borderlands games in the ranking