Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands is doing a fair bit to distinguish itself from the main Borderlands games. The Multi-Class system and full character customization give players a new level of freedom, while the melee weapons and new manufacturer names see the fantasy setting being fully embraced. Despite these changes, though, the Borderlands DNA is easy to spot.

From the cel-shaded art style and focus on guns to the inclusion of characters like Brick and Tiny Tina, Borderlands fans should have no problem making the jump over to the spin-off. While features like the Overworld will take some getting used to, Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands is still deeply tied to Borderlands at the end of the day. As such, the game seems to offer a perfect blend between new and old concepts, and one more feature that should make a comeback is Borderlands’ hub areas.

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Why Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands Should Have A Hub Area

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Gearbox can be seen experimenting with hub areas through New Haven in the original Borderlands, as the location served as a small settlement with vendors and the lovable mechanic Scooter. It also featured a Golden Chest in the Game of the Year edition, giving players a bit more to do when visiting the area. However, Borderlands 2 took things to a new level.

Sanctuary, the base of the Crimson Raiders, became one of the most iconic aspects of Borderlands 2 due to its great design. Players could visit Crazy Earl’s Eridium vendor or Marcus’ shooting range. They could chat with Dr. Zed at his clinic or Scooter at his garage, and a vault gave players a way to store their items. Moxxi’s bar was an excellent addition, too, as players could tip the innuendo-loving character for exclusive guns or play slot machines to get special loot. With Michael Mamaril also appearing randomly to give out free loot, the location was terrific, and it truly became iconic once it started to fly partway through the game.

While Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel remains divisive, the game did keep the hub approach through the city of Concordia. Moxxi had a bar here, Earl had an Eridium shop, and Springs allowed players to use her Grinder to make new gear. With Nurse Nina having a clinic and a jail area included as well, Concordia had personality, even if it was not quite as memorable as Sanctuary.

Borderlands 3 introduced a new version of Sanctuary, this time taking the form of a spaceship. It had everything that Borderlands 2’s Sanctuary did, only with some welcome additions like customizable crew quarters. Rooms like Ellie’s garage and Hammerlock’s office also evolved to show players’ progress on Crew Challenges, which was a nice touch. Best of all was Borderlands Science, a full mini-game that could be accessed via Tannis’ clinic. Alongside Moxxi’s slots, players could play this to keep busy while they wait on their friends. Though the ship has been fairly criticized for being hard to navigate, the concept is great, and future Borderlands’ hub areas can look to it for inspiration.

Even Borderlands 2’s Assault on Dragon Keep DLC had a hub area, with Flamerock Refuge featuring a pub ran by Moxxi and a place to change outfits. It also became home to the gun-dispensing Butt Stallion after the story was complete, giving gamers something else to spend their hard-earned Eridium on. With Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands being a spiritual successor to this expansion, it would be nice to see a place like Flamerock Refuge feature.

Plenty of focus has been placed on Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands’ Overworld map, and for good reason. Being able to travel between areas via a cute top-down perspective is a nice touch, and random encounters should capture the Dungeons and Dragons feel. However, players should also be able to exit this Overworld map and enter a hub area whenever they want a break from their adventure. With Borderlands doing hub areas so well, it would be a shame if Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands lacked a relaxing place to gear up and hang out with friends.

Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands launches March 25, 2022 on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X.

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