Alongside the main story and side quests of Borderlands 3, Gearbox gave players some other types of content to engage with. While this content included the entertaining Crew Challenges and the difficult Mayhem Mode, replayable mission types were also available. Proving Grounds were interesting time trials, while the Circles of Slaughter returned from Borderlands 2.
While the Borderlands 3 Circles of Slaughter have proven more popular than the Proving Grounds, this is mainly due to the Slaughter Shaft being such a great source of loot. Overall, the wave-based mode is a bit repetitive, and some work could be done to approve upon it whenever Borderlands 4 releases. In particular, fans could be given the option to craft their own Circles of Slaughter, making custom arenas that they actually want to fight in.
Why Custom Circles of Slaughter Would Be a Great Borderlands 4 Addition
In Borderlands 3, players have access to three Circles of Slaughter. The aforementioned Slaughter Shaft sees them facing the COV, the Slaughterstar 3000 pits the Vault Hunters against Maliwan, and the Cistern of Slaughter sees animals attacking. However, after doing the Cistern of Slaughter and Slaughterstar 3000 once, players are unlikely to return.
The reasons that these two heavily replayable missions fail to bring players back are quite different, but both problems showcase why custom Circle of Slaughters would be a great change. In the case of Slaughterstar 3000, the multiple levels of the arena makes each round last too long, with Maliwan enemies occasionally getting stuck and players needing to track them down. As for the Cistern of Slaughter, the prevalence of Rakk simply make the rounds unfun, as trying to hit the creatures as they fly into the air greatly slows down the gameplay. On top of this, the loot drops are simply lacking compared to those in the hectic and fun Slaughter Shaft.
Giving players the opportunity to customize the arenas would instantly eliminate these problems. Players could have an animal-filled arena like the Cistern of Slaughter, but without the annoying Rakk to deal with. Likewise, someone could craft a Maliwan arena that takes 15 minutes to beat instead of 30, choosing a location that better suits the faction and its abilities. Adding a select screen at the start of the Circle of Slaughter would be a way to do this, with Borderlands fans choosing how long they want the Circe of Slaughter to last and what enemies they want to fight.
If custom Circles of Slaughter became a Borderlands 4 feature, gamers could also be given the opportunity to mix and match enemy types. Regular bandits could be mixed with Maliwan soldiers, while Guardians could be fought alongside Skags. With players never getting to face certain enemy combinations in the story or though the franchise’s side quests, a customizable Circle of Slaughter could open the door to some truly unique and unexpected battles.
While unlikely, Gearbox could even add some create and share tools to the mix, giving players the option to make their own arenas and post them online for others to download. Players could recreate memorable areas like Fyrestone or the Welcome to Pandora sign via a map editor, fighting enemies of their choosing in their carefully designed custom map. With the option to adjust the number of rounds and the amount of enemies that spawn, players could ensure that their Circles of Slaughter never overstay their welcome. A round-based gameplay loop for Borderlands has potential, so hopefully Gearbox continues to improve upon the Circles of Slaughter in its future games.
