Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands Review – A Spellbinding Hit

Gearbox Software’s most popular game is Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands. This experience builds on the successful Borderlands model and adds an element of humor to the looter-shooter excitements. It also delivers firepower so powerful you would think you were carrying the Infinity Gauntlet. Wonderlands is full of humor and trying to make people laugh. It has a distinct charm that makes it easy to connect with its characters and the world around them.

From the outset of play, we learn that Borderlands mainstay Tiny Tina has invited a few of her friends to play a tabletop game called Bunkers & Badasses, which is essentially Borderlands’ version of Dungeons & Dragons. Tina is the game’s Dungeon Master, and you are the party’s newest recruit – a hero of your design, right down to the deep class proficiencies and facial feature detailing.

Tina’s friends quickly establish a chemistry that is fun and playful. Each brings humor to the table and gives off the impression they have a good relationship. Ashly Burch brings Tina to life once more, playing well with Captain Valentine’s reckless adventures (Andy Samberg), robot Frette’s strict guidance (Wanda Sykes) and the deceitful and evil virtues (Will Arnett). This powerful personality can entertain you and make it a great adventure. You just never know how they’ll react. Tina, her companions, sit at the table playing board games to plan the next chapter. Your character then imagines the scenario and travels into it. At this point, control of the situation is handed to you. This is an excellent way to end chapters and prepare for the next.

Tina is the one with the greatest influence and has the ability to use her godlike powers at will to change the quest. With her imagination leading the way, she can turn an ordinary forest into a magical mushroom kingdom – a stunning visual transformation you witness as you run through the environment. You can also have your party members influence the world by proposing that their characters do something. For example, Valentine might open a drawbridge for Valentine. Or the group could figure out how to get rid of a curled cheese from the board. Many of the situations are zany and well written, making them fun to follow through.

With their humorous and engaging missions, you will find it easy to get involved. They also have great combat skills that give you the opportunity to use every tool in your arsenal. Wonderlands is a great place to find spells and avoid the Borderlands overindulgence with weapons. While the gunplay feels just like Borderlands’, it is more polished than that. The fantasy elements add an extra punch to the game. When fighting land sharks, for example, I switched between using a crossbow to fire explosives or an acid gun to chain enemies together with a gooey spray. These foes were defended by my pet Wyvern, which hurled fire at them as it moved onto the field. I also added chaos to the scene with electrical crows that flew from my fingers. If the enemy survived, they could be smashed with a huge hammer that causes an earthquake. You start the game plenty powerful and reach the point of being a ridiculous war machine at the midway point when class blending is enabled – a proposition that is downright awesome.

Loot that enemies drop can change your approach to combat and loadouts. The weapons combine fantasy elements with modern weaponry in a way that is truly unique. You can find hidden stashes in the environment and engage in side-activities, despite the devastation caused by rarer weapons. In order to unlock bigger secrets, I found it enjoyable diving into small wave-based mazes. Exploring the world can be a lot of fun thanks to its smooth platforming and well-hidden areas. There are many things to do, from story-rich side mission that grow with you, never becoming too hard, and an amazing post-game area called the Chaos Chamber which changes each time you go in. The endless quest is an excellent way to unlock Myth rank and grind down levels.

Borderlands is easily recognized in Wonderlands. The exception to the overworld has more in common than a Final Fantasy classic. You can engage in combat but the viewpoint will change from one-person to two-person. You can eliminate most of the time-consuming downtime in Borderlands. It is easy to move quickly between different areas and can take part in almost any activity within seconds. There are many secrets to the overworld. The humor is just as good.

Wonderlands has a great cooperative game that gives everyone equal playing time on the battlefield. A level 5 player will encounter a level 5 enemy, whereas that same foe reads level 20 for a level 20 player – meaning you don’t need to grind for XP or power level to play with friends. The loot distribution can be decided by players. This allows everyone to have their drops, or to share. Both crossplay and split screen are available. However, I was not able to test them out during my review.

Wonderlands is fun and upbeat from the beginning. The adventure offers an entertaining and rewarding experience filled with quirky characters and creative bosses. There’s also a sense of ownership and control over each character. Although Borderlands’ favorite characters are leading the charge this adventure feels like the beginning of something new. It is also a rare spinout of an established series and deserves the same attention. As someone who has played plenty of Dungeons & Dragons, I adored how often Wonderlands reminded me of rolling a 20-sided die with friends. It’s a love letter to on-the-spot creativity and friends enjoying each other’s company in a make-believe world.