Borderlands has been too hot, too cold, and will now be just right, says Randy Pitchford: 'We can see those times we've gone too far'

Borderlands 2's Salvador fights in the ice — (Image credit: Gearbox)

Turns out, videogame development is a lot like porridge, and it can take a bit of fiddling to get things right. And if you think that doesn't make sense, you might not be Randy Pitchford, who said something similar in a Future Games interview with the Gearbox boss himself.

Borderlands 4 creator: "This is the best game for NEW players" | FGS Best of gamescom - YouTube

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That matches up to what we've heard out of the writers, too, who've stated often that Borderlands 4 is trying to shake off 3's instantly-outdated meme nonsense in lieu of character-focused humour and a more grounded story, where the jokes come from, y'know, the writing.

Despite having greatly enjoyed most Borderlands games, I can't say I'm too bummed to see those things go, and the recent character trailers have only piqued my interest. They're still just the littlest bit jank (in an endearing, Gearbox sort of way), but I certainly felt like someone was trying to make me laugh with more than just references.

Pitchford continues to say, in his usual effusive tone, that experience really is the best teacher: "The fact we're now in our fourth iteration means we've seen the extent, we've seen the boundaries, we've seen when we've pushed the pendulum too far in one direction, too far in the other direction, and we know where the bullseye is. And I think that's to the benefit of all the gamers."

As an (alleged) gamer myself, I'm genuinely happy to give Borderlands 4 a chance. I tend to root for the underdog, and when it comes to convincing players it can spin a good yarn, Borderlands is definitely starting off on the wrong foot. Here's hoping 87 bazillion lessons have been learned.

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Harvey's history with games started when he first begged his parents for a World of Warcraft subscription aged 12, though he's since been cursed with Final Fantasy 14-brain and a huge crush on G'raha Tia. He made his start as a freelancer, writing for websites like Techradar, The Escapist, Dicebreaker, The Gamer, Into the Spine—and of course, PC Gamer. He'll sink his teeth into anything that looks interesting, though he has a soft spot for RPGs, soulslikes, roguelikes, deckbuilders, MMOs, and weird indie titles. He also plays a shelf load of TTRPGs in his offline time. Don't ask him what his favourite system is, he has too many.

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