Tiny Tina's Wonderlands
Building a game is expensive and time consuming, and few techniques have simplified the process quite so well as the concept of modularity. Emphasizing that point at this year's GDC was Brian Fieser, associate director of sound design at Gearbox Software. With this Lego-set approach to development, he explains, the team behind the latest Borderlands game, Tiny Tina's Wonderland, were able to create a complex ecosystem of sonic variety surrounding its many weapons and systems.
As Borderlands has grown from a surprise cult hit into a beloved staple series, its resources have naturally expanded with its growth in popularity. As Fieser explains, this has allowed Gearbox to expand the audio team from its original four members, on the original Borderlands, to 21 on Borderlands 3. This has facilitated an enormous leap in complexity, one that builds on the modular weapons system of the games to create multiple ecosystems of sound.
The first two Borderlands games were limited in scope so only one set of sounds per manufacturer and gun type could be produced. With Borderlands 3, the increased resources for the game enabled them to focus on adding sounds to each individual gun part in the modular gun design system (known as Gestalt), increasing the range of sounds from only 250 in Borderlands 2, to 5,500 in Borderlands 3. This method increased sonic variety, which in turn expanded the novelty and value of the dropped loot.
As Fieser explains, Borderlands has always been, aesthetically, a mixture of both synthetic and organic elements, a western sci-fi game with touches of fantasy. For Tiny Tina's Wonderland, Gearbox designers knew they would require a visual overhaul into more of a whimsical, high-fantasy mix of those organic and
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