Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands recently announced that its fourth Mirror of Mystery would be accompanied by a new class, called the Blightcaller. Not much has been confirmed about this class yet, except that it is a Shaman-like class that uses spirits and summons storms to hit foes with poison and elemental damage. In short, it’s pretty much what someone would expect from a Blighter-styled Druid in Dungeons and Dragons.
However, this announcement may surprise some fans of the franchise. After all, the last entry to add a new class as DLC was Borderlands 2, which introduced Gaige the Mechromancer and Krieg the Psycho. These two characters were so popular that they even spearheaded their own Borderlands 3 DLC, but the threequel never added any new DLC characters. However, the explanation as to why Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands is getting a new class, but Borderlands 3 never did, makes some sense.
Why Borderlands 3 Didn’t Get Any DLC Classes
When Borderlands 3 developer Gearbox confirmed there would be no DLC classes, fans were understandably upset. Again, Gaige and Krieg are incredibly popular, but their popularity is tied to their existence and character role in the franchise, not their actual class. The first three Borderlands games don’t really separate character from class, but Gearbox data shows that these two Borderlands 2 classes were not popular—even though the characters were.
As explained at the time, the playthrough rate of these new BL2 class additions wasn’t really where it should be. It makes sense too. Instead of starting a brand new game with a brand new character and class, players preferred to stick to their already-established main from Borderlands 2’s launch classes. Some may try out the new classes, some may even do a full playthrough, but a large concentration in the endgame was the main classes, not the DLC classes.
While those who did enjoy playing Krieg or Gaige were upset and it may have still been a hard call for Gearbox, it was perhaps the right one. Borderlands 3 DLC had its highs and lows and was releasing amid the pandemic, so adding more work for less payoff doesn’t quite make sense. However, Borderlands 3 did make the most out of many established franchise characters, even if fans didn’t agree with the fates of Maya or Lilith. Adding more characters wouldn’t really change that.
Why Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands DLC Classes Make More Sense
This poses the question though: if DLC classes were not worth it for Borderlands 3, then why do add them in Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands? The answer is pretty obvious. Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands is a spin-off, and in it, players make their own character, choose their own class, and can even multiclass. These mechanics make a DLC class less strenuous and more likely to pay off. By cutting out the character, the class is more likely a little easier to make for Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands than it would be for Borderlands 3.
In terms of focusing on endgame builds in Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands, these new classes don’t force players to run through the entire game again. If players want a Blightcaller as their main Tiny Tina's Wonderlands class, that’s certainly possible. But Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands players can change their multi-class, letting players experiment with new Blightcaller builds without having to run the whole game to get there. If they don’t like the new build, they can also revert back. Sure, there’s a potential loss in popularity without a character, but there are no real drawbacks of introducing a new class here.
By making classes simpler in Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands, their additions supplement the build-seeking endgame engagement far more than introducing a brand new character and class. With this in mind, it wouldn’t be surprising to see Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands add more classes down the line, but whenever Borderlands 4 releases, it’s doubtful fans will see this happen there.
Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.