Borderlands 2: Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep
Developer(s)	Gearbox Software
Publisher(s)	2K
Release	June 25, 2013
Genre(s)	Action role-playing, First-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single-player, multiplayer

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.^[1][2][3] 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 set in a fantasy tabletop role-playing game, while keeping the first-person shooter aspect of the main game.

Assault on Dragon Keep is an expansion pack from the first-person shooter role-playing game, Borderlands 2.^[4] It maintains the main game's science-fiction, looter shooter, and comedic elements,^[5][6] while incorporating elements of tabletop role-playing,^[7] including themes from Dungeons & Dragons, and, as a result, creates a concept that integrates fantasy gameplay within a first-person shooter experience.^[6] The expansion pack's difficulty is best suited for players who are at least level thirty.^[8]

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.^[9] Tina herself predominantly narrates the storyline,^[10] and her whims often result in the gameplay to undergo spontaneous changing to its mechanics and storyline.^[11]

Starting at the Unassuming Docks of Potentially Little Importance, the player embarks on a trek to a village called Flamerock Refuge.^[12] As the player approaches the dock, a beautiful sight unfolds, complete with a bright blue sky,^[13] a picturesque landscape, and a rainbow floating in the air.^[12] However, after Tina realizes the appropriateness of the setting,^[13] the atmosphere suddenly darkens and the player is ambushed by skeletons.^[12] 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.^[11] 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.^[13] Characters from the main game, such as Torgue, Claptrap, Moxxi, and Roland, assist the player along the route.^[8]

Assault on Dragon Keep includes references to popular titles like Dark Souls, World of Warcraft, Star Wars, and Lord of the Rings.^[11] It introduces new enemies,^[14] such as a Mimic, a creature disguised as a chest,^[11] and adds new environmental elements, like replacing ammunition crates with clay jars that can be smashed by the player.^[14] Additionally, the expansion pack features recreated assets of the game's chests and vending machines.^[10] 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.^[11]

Synopsis

Development and release

Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep is the fourth and final campaign expansion pack for Borderlands 2 and was released on June 25, 2013,^[16] following the previous expansion packs: Captain Scarlet and her Pirates Booty, Mr. Torgue’s Campaign of Carnage and Sir Hammerlock’s Big Game Hunt.^[17] This particular expansion pack, along with the previous ones, are included in the Game of the Year Edition.^[18] 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.^[19]

In June 2021, Gearbox announced a Borderlands spin-off game—Tiny Tina's Wonderlands—which would be set after the events of the expansion.^[20] 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.^[21]

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.^[22][25][23] Overall, Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep has been hailed by critics as the best expansion back 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.^{[26][8][27][28]} It was described as being "the best saved for last" by GameCentral reviewer Roger Hargreaves.^[1]

References