Summary
WhileBorderlands’ looter shooter gameplay has always been the main draw of the series, as killing mobs between boss fights never gets old, the franchise has dabbled with alternate forms of gameplay in the past. Once it hit its stride, Mayhem Mode was a solid way to shake things up for high level players, and theCircles of Slaughterhave always been popular. PvP duels are a bit too simple, though they have potential, and Arms Race was an interesting attempt at a co-operative battle royale mode. However, there is one conceptBorderlandshas yet to touch on that would be truly great: a boss rush mode.
TheBorderlandsseries is full of memorable boss encounters, from Hyperion’s giant BNK3R defense system to General Knoxx. Raid bosses like Crawmerax and Teramorphus are on another level, usually requiring a highly skilled group of gamers to work together in order to take them down. If a boss rush mode were to come toBorderlands, regular and raid bosses alike could have time to shine, with high level players having another activity to enjoy once they get bored of doing campaign runs.
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How a Borderlands Boss Rush Mode Could Work
Currently,Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands’ Chaos Chamberis the closest players probably have to a boss rush mode, though it is far from a traditional version of the concept. After all, it is full of randomized objectives and fights with other mobs, and though players do get to battle multiple bosses each run, a proper boss rush will let them fight the entire roster in a single go without any interruptions. This is exactly whatBorderlands 4could provide if Gearbox had interest in the idea.
A boss rush mode could offer two tiers to enjoy, one for casualVault Huntersand another for more experienced gamers. The first tier could focus on the boss fights from side quests, the main story, and those found lurking in the game’s various maps. The second tier of this hypothetical game mode could focus entirely on raid fights, with the hardest bosses inBorderlands 4being fought back to back. Considering that one raid boss fight can drain players of resources and take them several minutes to defeat, chaining multiple together could result in the hardest challenge fans have ever had.
Each boss rush could have an RNG option where the bosses are presented to players randomly, though the default setting could have them escalate in terms of difficulty. To determine which regular and raid bosses the community considers to be the hardest, Gearbox could wait until a month after release, gathering data on player deaths and the time it takes to beat each enemy. Then, boss rush could be added as a free update, rejuvenating the game beforeBorderlands 4’s expansionsstart to release.
ABorderlandsbossrush mode could be a terrific source of loot, with gamers getting better drops the further they progress. It would also give players a way to farm a lot of rare loot at once, which would be very useful when trying to level up a newer Vault Hunter quickly. PlayStation Trophies and Xbox achievements could motivate players to enjoy the mode too, but if the lootsplosions are big enough, then boss rush could be rewarding enough on its own. So long as the loot gets better with each boss beaten - perhaps a multiplier could be incorporated - a boss rush mode can thrive.
To keep things fair, perhaps gamers could loot some ammo crates or buy fromBorderlands’ vending machinesafter every boss (or every few bosses), though conserving ammo could be treated as part of the challenge. Regardless, a game full of bosses with viable in-game rewards to incentivize a boss rush mode should have one. Fans can only hope that Gearbox recognizes its potential, as it could be a massive draw forBorderlands 4if it is well-thought-out.
