The success of the Borderlands franchise can’t really be denied, especially with the positive reception of the latest title in the series – Borderlands 4. In an interview with the BBC, Gearbox Entertainment boss Randy Pitchford has attributed much of this success to the franchise not really having a solid competitor. In the interview, he noted his belief that other development studios that work on looter shooters don’t really spend enough time thinking about what makes picking up new loot satisfying.
One of the biggest parts of the core gameplay in the Borderlands series – the constant decisions that players have to make about whether they have found a piece of gear that might end up being an upgrade – has been described by Pitchford as “a very compelling” one. He noted that the studio has “reduced” the decision-making process to this simple moment with this interface in the system. It’s a gratifying loop. It’s a gratifying decision. Our brains need to do it, and our brains like doing it.”
“The more we exercise that muscle, not just in the video game but literally in life – this is what separates our species from a lot of others, and how we developed language and how we developed all kinds of high levels of consciousness and cognition that allow us to analyze the world,” said Pitchford. “Most of what our prefrontal cortex is for – why that adaptation exists and what it’s used for – is that skill, or versions of it.”
As for the lack of any real competitors to the Borderlands franchise, according to Pitchford, developers are “not thinking about it on that level.” He believes that a lot of other games in the genre are being made “because of market analysis. It’s not a designer or creator’s drive that’s doing it. It’s either a business drive or a wishing to be something that you’re not kind of drive.”
If Borderlands were to get serious competitors in the market – something Pitchford actually expected after the release of the first game in the series back in 2009 – he believes that “we’d be dead, because we [couldn’t] compete with a lot of other folks, especially back then.”
It is worth noting that, while the original Borderlands when it first came out across PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 was quite popular, the franchise really started gathering a massive fan base with the release of Borderlands 2. As for the current market, there aren’t too many looter shooter competitors out there aside from one-off releases like Outriders or long-running online shooter Destiny 2. Interestingly, most games in the genre tend to go for roguelite structures, with titles like Gunfire Reborn and Risk of Rain 2.
Borderlands 4 was released on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X/S just last month. However, since its release, there have been a fair number of complaints about its performance, which in turn has prompted Gearbox to push back the release of its planned Nintendo Switch 2 version to a later date. In the meantime, the studio is also getting ready to release a major update next week. Borderlands 4 is also getting its first paid DLC, Bounty Pack 1: How Rush Saved Mercenary Day, on November 20.
