Tiny Tina's Assault On Dragon Keep

''Borderlands 2: Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep'' is an expansion pack for the 2012 first-person shooter video game ''Borderlands 2''. It was developed by Gearbox Software, published by 2K, and released on June 25, 2013, for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC. It is set in the tabletop role-playing game "Bunkers & Badasses", which is the ''Borderlands 2'' derivation of ''Dungeons & Dragons''. The titular Tiny Tina serves as the gamemaster for the tabletop game.

Gameplay

''Assault on Dragon Keep'' is an expansion pack from the first-person shooter role-playing game, ''Borderlands 2''. It maintains the main game's science-fiction, looter shooter, and comedic elements, while incorporating elements of tabletop role-playing, including themes from Dungeons & Dragons, and, as a result, creates a concept that integrates fantasy gameplay within a first-person shooter experience. The expansion pack's difficulty is best suited for players who are at least level thirty.

''Assault on Dragon Keep'' revolves around "Bunkers & Badasses", a tabletop game derived from Dungeons & Dragons and is tailored for the ''Borderlands 2'' universe. Tiny Tina serves as the gamemaster, while the original ''Borderlands'' characters take on the roles of players. Tina herself predominantly narrates the storyline, and her whims often result in the gameplay to undergo spontaneous changing to its mechanics and storyline.

Starting at the Unassuming Docks of Potentially Little Importance, the player embarks on a trek to a village called Flamerock Refuge. As the player approaches the dock, a beautiful sight unfolds, complete with a bright blue sky, a picturesque landscape, and a rainbow floating in the air. However, after Tina realizes the appropriateness of the setting, the atmosphere suddenly darkens and the player is ambushed by skeletons. The player encounters and is quickly knocked down by the first boss, an invincible dragon. In response to the Bunkers & Badasses players' complaints, Tina revives the player and instead offers "Mister Boney Pants Guy," a small skeleton, as the first boss. The player's ultimate mission is to go to Dragon Keep and save the Queen from the Handsome Sorcerer's and his Handsome Dragon's grasp. Characters from the main game, such as Torgue, Claptrap, Moxxi, and Roland, assist the player along the route.

''Assault on Dragon Keep'' includes references to popular titles like ''Dark Souls'', ''World of Warcraft'', Star Wars, and ''Lord of the Rings''. It introduces new enemies, such as a Mimic, a creature disguised as a chest, and adds new environmental elements, like replacing ammunition crates with clay jars that can be smashed by the player. Additionally, the expansion pack features recreated assets of the game's chests and vending machines. Some chests now feature icosahedron-shaped dice on top, and the quality of the randomly generated items inside them are directly influenced by the outcomes of the dice rolls.

Synopsis

Setting

The expansion is set within a tabletop game played by the original ''Borderlands'' characters, with Tiny Tina serving as the gamemaster. This game, called Bunkers & Badasses, is the ''Borderlands'' universe’s equivalent of Dungeons & Dragons. Overall, the expansion centres on Tina’s struggle to cope with the death of Roland, the leader of the Crimson Raiders and a close friend killed during the main ''Borderlands 2'' campaign. Tina inserts Roland as a character in the game’s campaign, creating scenarios and dialogue for him. Her denial is evidenced by her continuation of bringing him into the game, despite opposition from the other players.

Development and release

''Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep'' is the fourth campaign expansion pack for ''Borderlands 2'' and was released on June 25, 2013, following the previous expansion packs: ''Captain Scarlet and her Pirates Booty'', ''Mr. Torgue’s Campaign of Carnage'' and ''Sir Hammerlock’s Big Game Hunt''and followed by Commander Lilith & the Fight for Sanctuary from 2019. This particular expansion pack, along with the previous ones, are included in the '' Game of the Year Edition''. Furthermore, ''Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep'' is also included in '' Borderlands: The Handsome Collection'', which includes both ''Borderlands 2'' and '' Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel'', along with all downloadable content for both games.

In June 2021, Gearbox announced a ''Borderlands'' spin-off game—''Tiny Tina's Wonderlands''—which would be set after the events of the expansion. On November 9, 2021, Gearbox released ''Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep'' as a standalone game for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One under the title ''Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep: A Wonderlands One-Shot Adventure''.

Reception

According to video game review aggregator site Metacritic, ''Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep'' garnered generally positive reviews across PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 versions. Overall, ''Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep'' has been hailed by critics as the best expansion pack added to the game and a vast improvement over its predecessors, particularly the previous release, ''Sir Hammerlock's Big Game Hunt'', which was viewed by some as a disappointment. It was described as being "the best saved for last" by GameCentral reviewer Roger Hargreaves.

References

{{Gearbox Software
2013 video games
Borderlands (series) games
Action role-playing video games
Gearbox Software games
Multiplayer and single-player video games
PlayStation 3 games
Video game expansion packs
Video games based on tabletop role-playing games
Video games developed in the United States
Windows games
Xbox 360 games