Gearbox Software and 2K Games recently released Coiled Captors. This is the first DLC in a series of four post-launch content drops for Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands Season Pass.
Coiled Captors isn’t like previous Gearbox/Borderlands DLCs. Once I got to Dreamveil Overlook, the DLC Hub town, I loved the theme. It looks mysterious and that amusement park in the background looks interesting. I wouldn’t mind going there to fight some clowns. However, Coiled Captors isn’t a story-driven adventure from Tiny Tina’s Mind.
What is Coiled Captors
I think you can best describe the DLC as a mini-featured Chaos Chamber Run. You have a fixed preset of dungeons that you fight through and solve some puzzles before you encounter the final boss. Throughout the DLC you can earn ‘Souls’, this is a unique currency that you can only earn in the DLC and spend on a wheel of fortune.
Once you completed the run all the content will also be available in the Chaos Chamber. While this lets you mix up the content in the Chaos Chamber it also kinda negates going back to the DLC. Which is weird because Dreamveil Overlook is equipped with all the necessary tools to manage your character and gear.
Puzzles
Each dungeon has an objective for you. This could be solving a puzzle or pulling a lever. A puzzle requires you to line up statues by shooting them and get 3 of the same symbols in a row. This is an interesting mechanic on your initial run, however, after subsequent runs, it’s not doing it for me because it doesn’t require any skill. You can just randomly shoot at the statue, go shoot some enemies, shoot the statue a bit more, go shoot some more enemies, and before you know it the “puzzle” is solved as the correct symbols lock in place. Therefore, these puzzles feel more like a thing to get you to a certain point on the map.
Side Objectives
Coiled Captors is meant to be highly replayable, however, it felt lackluster to me. The only thing that changed is the side objective, however, there are only 2 options. Find 2 Soul Chests or Shoot the Barrels. While the locations of these objectives mix up, they don’t feel entertaining nor rewarding. There is 1 chest that is really hidden as it requires you to find a hidden lever. The other chests are just randomly placed somewhere on the map. I don’t bother with the barrels as the reward isn’t there for me because Side Objectives unlock a crystal die at the end portal but I never really got quality loot from them. The Soul Chests are easy to find and at least give you Souls that you can use on the Wheel of Fortune.
Boss Fight
Chums is the final boss of Coiled Captors. The cool thing is that this boss evolves on repeated playthroughs. The less cool thing is that you have to wait for GBX to unlock it for you. Chums various stages are time-locked. Each week after the DLCs release, GBX will upgrade Chums, so after a month, you can finally confront its final form.
Chums feels like a pushover. He goes down more easily than Lechance. So therefore I haven’t found the boss fight really interesting.
