So it turns out Gearbox- the developers of Borderlands, Borderlands 2 and unfortunately, Duke Nukem Forever- was offered the chance to develop a Call of Duty game, but the studio turned it down.
“That’s not for me,” said studio boss Randy Pitchford while speaking with Krawall.
“I did not know what there was to reach there,” he said. “For me, there are two scenarios in which a project makes sense for Gearbox: First, if there would have been the game without us ever. Or two, when we can contribute to an existing brand something new, a kind of unique perspective and a new approach. But that was not the case here.”
“I think about the people delivering the “Call of Duty”, which they want, you have to play by the rules of the series,” he continued. “You have to do what is expected of a “Call of Duty”. In this I see but no real challenge for us. It would strengthen our reputation as a studio no further, it would not be really motivating for our team.”
Well, isn’t that interesting. Hats off to Randy Pitchford and all of Gearbox for actually taking such a brave stand.