Tiny Tina's Wonderlands paints itself as a Dungeons and Dragons facsimile, but how much is it like the famous tabletop roleplaying game?

The new Borderlands game Tiny Tina's Wonderlands is the series' take on the classic tabletop RPG Dungeons & Dragons, but how much it's really like the game is in question. Unlike other entries in the Borderlands series, TTW features a fantasy-style setting. The game still retains many of the hallmarks of the main series, but the new makeover has done much to differentiate it from its predecessors.

Tiny Tina's Wonderlands is a Borderlands spin-off separated from the rest of the game series. It differs from most games in that players are playing someone who is actually playing another game. The concept might sound a bit confusing, but the game clears it up quickly. Players play Borderlands' in-universe version of D&D, abbreviated as B&B. Tiny Tina's Wonderlands is a tabletop looter-shooter, and just like Borderlands, it's full of loot, guns, and plenty of enemies to use them on, but it has its own unique charm. As the Fatemaker, players will fight to slay the Dragon Lord and complete the campaign they set out upon.

Just like D&D has a Dungeon Master, Wonderlands has a Bunker Master, which in this case is Tiny Tina. Her maniacal energy becomes apparent in the first five minutes of the game and extends throughout it. The addition of new elements that weren't in the main games makes Wonderlands feel more like D&D without taking away from the Borderlands aspects. Wonderlands is chaotic and unpredictable, and with a Bunker Master like Tiny Tina, it's even more so.

There are obvious D&D elements in Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, but also Borderlands themes, too. The name of the game the characters are playing, the intro, the miniatures, the character sheets, and the dice all combine to make it very apparent that it's supposed to be a spoof on the classic tabletop game. It also introduced character creation to the games for the first time, instead of forcing the player to choose from one of a few different Vault Hunters. They can also choose their own class, such as the Stabbomancer and the Brr-serker.

Despite all of the D&D themes, however, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands is still a Borderlands game at heart. All the fantasy it has doesn't erase the tongue-in-cheek humor and loot n' shoot action that the series is known for. Tiny Tina changing the game right in the middle of it only adds to the chaos that Borderlands players are familiar with. Tiny Tina's tales from the nerdy lands are anything but tame. Crude humor abounds, and the characters narrating some parts of the game make it even funnier. It has plenty of loot and plenty of enemies, so players who want to do nothing but beat up crabs all day can.

Tiny Tina's Wonderlands isn't exactly like D&D, but it is a lot like it. It certainly feels like Borderlands' version of the iconic RPG, embodying the humor, chaos, and unpredictably of a D&D campaign. In regular D&D, anything can technically happen. What the Dungeon Master says goes, and Wonderlands embraces that fully. It shows what D&D could be and highlights its full potential. Anything can happen, and Tiny Tina takes full advantage of that to turn a simple campaign into a chaotic mess full of explosions and unicorn princess stallions. Players don't need to know Borderlands's story to enjoy Tiny Tina's Wonderlands. It's essentially Dungeons & Dragons thrown into a blender with a boatload of guns and explosive barrels.

Next: Why Tiny Tina's Wonderlands Isn't Available On Steam

Austin Geiger is a nerd and a Game Features author at Screen Rant. He has loved to read, write, and play video games for longer than he can remember, and does each one daily. He likes Pokemon, Digimon, The Elder Scrolls, and more.