The next DLC for Borderlands 3 is going to crank up the game's oddity even further by taking place inside a Borderlands 2 character’s mind. All the games in the series have brought tons of inventive DLC post-launch, including expansions that introduced zombies and fantasy elements to the loot shooter.
The previous Borderlands 3 DLC, titled Bounty of Blood: A Fistful of Redemption, released back in June to a somewhat mixed reception. While it further emphasized the key features and mechanics of Borderlands 3 as a parody RPG shooter focused on looting, the add-on wasn’t exceptionally great in terms of narrative. Poor story-telling plus repetitive gameplay lacking any serious innovations made it a skippable expansion. All in all, Bounty of Blood: A Fistful of Redemption felt more like a filler, which shouldn’t be the case for the upcoming Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck DLC.
Developer Gearbox Software revealed the Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck DLC for Borderlands 3 with a characteristically stylish announcement trailer. This particular content drop will let players travel through the mind of Krieg, one of several playable characters in Borderlands 2. The DLC marks his glorious reappearance, with the titular character playing a huge role by lending his mental chambers for a phantasmagorical Vault Hunters run. There’s a lot of weird stuff going on in the trailer, including a flying train inside Krieg’s meat castle - which makes about as much sense as it sounds like. There will be plenty of returning characters - or, to be more precise, their imaginary avatars from inside Krieg’s subconscious. On top of that, the DLC will introduce a plethora of new weapons for players to acquire as well as new environments to conquer.
Story-wise, Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck will focus on discovering the mythical Vaulthalla, which can only be accomplished by diving deep into Krieg’s mind. The upcoming adventure might actually turn out to be better than this spring’s Guns, Love, and Tentacles DLC vaguely inspired by Lovecraftian mythology. Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck will release in two weeks, on September 10th. It's the final expansion included in the current Season Pass for Borderlands 3, which is currently celebrating its first anniversary. Whether Gearbox will continue expanding the experience with new content after that remains to be seen.
It feels like Gearbox went all-in with the Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck DLC, as it clearly utilizes all of the creative capacities of the studio. The add-on looks to be a celebration of the most outrageous ideas that the devs could come up with, which is a huge relief considering that the previous DLC fell a little flat. If Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck proves to be as imaginative as it looks in the trailer, then it could become a great selling point for the game, effectively reviving interest in Borderlands 3 among players.
Borderlands 3 is available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
Source: Borderlands/YouTube