“We are always exploring ways to introduce Borderlands to new audiences,” said Zynga in its statement. “Zynga’s NaturalMotion studio is currently conducting a limited-time test for an untitled Borderlands mobile project, with Gearbox providing creative guidance on the franchise’s design, history, and lore. We hope that players enjoy this new Borderlands experience and look forward to their feedback.”

Speculation on a mobile version of Borderlands first started popping up thanks to an App Store listing for Borderlands Mobile. Available only on iPhone, the free-to-play shooter’s listing confirms that it is being developed by Zynga. Its description also noted that it features “devastating action gameplay that’s been fully optimized for mobile,” as well as a similar gameplay loop to the console and PC Borderlands games, where players take on missions to fight enemies in the hopes of getting brand new loot.

The lack of any fanfare in the release of Borderlands Mobile has also indicated that Zynga opted for a soft launch of the title, releasing it in limited territories on specific platforms to ensure early adopters could get plenty of time to test the game and offer feedback. Through this, the company can then make changes to the game before it is launched to a wider global audience.

This has also led to gameplay videos popping up on YouTube, showcasing just how Borderlands Mobile plays. As can be seen below in Techzamazing’s video, an introductory cutscene provides some quick context for players that might be new to the Borderlands franchise. It doesn’t take long for gameplay to begin, however, and Borderlands Mobile retains the franchise’s fast-paced FPS action.

Zynga working with Gearbox Entertainment to bring Borderlands to mobile platforms shouldn’t come as a big surprise, since the CEO of parent company Take-Two Interactive, Strauss Zelnick, had spoken about using Zynga’s expertise to bring “core” IPs to mobile platforms back in 2022.

Following an acquisition valued at $12.7 billion, Zelnick noted that Zynga would work with other studios under the Take-Two banner to bring franchises like Red Dead, GTA, Borderlands, and NBA 2K, among others, to mobile platforms. This, he noted, would help with bringing the franchises to wider audiences that don’t otherwise exist on PC and consoles.

“We believe we have the best collection of console and PC intellectual property in the interactive entertainment business and it’s basically nearly entirely un-exploited from mobile and free-to-play around the world. Zynga’s best-in-class studios can help us develop that property,” he said.

“Their best-in-class free-to-play mobile publishing operations can bring that to consumers, delight those consumers and create recurrent consumer spending along the way. The list is endless and it’s early days. We’re just thrilled to have this opportunity to be able to work together and create what we’re certain will be of extraordinary value going forward.”

“Folks, it’s truly disappointing that I have to share with you that my time with T2 – and that of my team – has come to an end. I will take the time in a week or so to make a more reflective post on my time with Zynga and T2, but for right now, I would appreciate your help in finding these awesome, talented folks new positions – especially in the current climate.”

Dicken added that the team had been “developing cutting-edge technology to support game development now for 7 years. These folks know how to match innovation and novel problem-solving approaches with strong product design chops to create systems that empower people throughout the development workflow.”

While the reason they left – or were let go – is unknown, it’s all the more strange considering Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick’s stance on AI. Despite the above jab and clarifying that it has “zero part” in Grand Theft Auto 6, he’s “been enthusiastic since the very beginning” about it.

“This company’s products have always been built with machine learning and artificial intelligence. We’ve actually always been a leader in the space, and right now we have hundreds of pilots and implementations across our company, including within our studios. And we’re already seeing instances where generative AI tools are driving costs and time efficiencies.”

Of course, he would then note that there was “no evidence” that the tools “by themselves” could create “great entertainment properties” and “it won’t be the case in the future.” Perhaps with warnings of the AI bubble potentially bursting, Take-Two is getting ahead of the curve and eliminating positions which aren’t necessary. Then again, it could be a case of its current tools being sufficient and not wanting to innovate any further.

Whatever the case may be, Grand Theft Auto 6 is handcrafted by Rockstar North to the tune of apparently $2 billion (and counting) based on UK records. The open-world title has suffered two delays thus far and is launching on November 19th. However, a new trailer, if not other details, could potentially drop this Summer as part of its launch marketing.

“We do not rest on our laurels. We don’t believe that success is guaranteed,” said Zelnick when asked about managing the future of Take-Two Interactive. “We are looking over our shoulders. We are running scared. I am fond of saying that arrogance is the enemy of continued success. We know that in the next two, three, five, ten years… there is going to be an array of big new titles, and maybe even some new formats.”

“Our three-part strategy is to be the most creative, the most innovative and the most efficient company in the business. We need to innovate to make sure we continue to be a leader. I am not sure specifically about what young people want versus any other segment of the population, but I am sure there is great opportunity if you bring somebody something fantastic and unexpected.”

Zelnick also spoke about other subjects, like one of the companies owned by Take-Two – Zynga – was looking to expand its gaming audience by focusing on growth in new markets like the Middle East and India. He stated that this was the long-term plan for the company, which isn’t about short-term ideas. Rather, “We run this business for five, ten, 15, 20 years down the road,” he said.

“My team and I took over this company 18 years ago. I am not sure at the time that I expected to be here for 18 years. How could I have? But I did expect to build the business so that it would be solid and successful and growing in 18 years hence. And I intend to do the same thing now. People moan about markets being short-term focused… markets aren’t short-term focused, human beings are short-term focused. But we are not.”

With regards to the company’s future when it comes to stagnating console sales, Zelnick also spoke about how the company likes to focus on casting as wide a net as possible by releasing its titles on all systems. He did note, however, that while some games don’t come to all platforms at the same time, they eventually end up everywhere. A notable example of this would be the Grand Theft Auto franchise.

“I am selectively confident about its future,” Zelnick said about the console business. “We aim to put out our properties on all systems where consumers are and want to be. Not necessarily with the initial release, but over time. We’re not beholden to any particular technology set. Nor should we be.”

In a recent Q&A, Zelnick had also spoken about 2K’s decision to price Borderlands 4 at $70 rather than $80.

According to IGN, Zynga provided a statement about shutting the studio down. The company put the decision down to a “strategic realignment” of its priorities and resources.

“Zynga has made the difficult decision to cease operations at its Echtra studio, ending development on future titles and reducing roles,” said Zynga in its statement. “This decision is part of a strategic realignment of the company’s resources and priorities. We will work closely with impacted employees so they are treated with the utmost respect and consideration as we navigate this difficult process.”

Zynga had acquired Echtra Games just a year after it had released Torchlight 3, with the studio being put to work on a new action RPG alongside Zynga’s NaturalMotion. No details about the action RPG had been announced aside from the fact that it would feature cross-platform multiplayer, however.

“Echtra Games is delighted to be joining the Zynga family,” said studio founder Max Schaefer when the acquisition was first announced. “We share Zynga’s vision that cross-platform play is an essential part of the future of RPGs and interactive entertainment and are eager to apply our vast experience and talents to this effort.”

Echtra Games was founded by Blizzard North veteran and Runic Games co-founder Max Schaefer. Echtra Games had previously released Torchlight 3 – a game that was originally meant to be an MMORPG that the studio was working on with alongside Perfect World.

For more details about the studio’s last release, check out our review of Torchlight 3 from back in 2020.

Before the final content update, Season 5 will be extended by another three weeks, with old events and shop bundles returning. In-game purchases will become unavailable on April 15th while a new Hunter, Tuya, goes live for all players free. Other content will also become available, with further details still pending. However, you can look forward to all stages and modes rotating continuously.

Star Wars: Hunters is available for Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android. Check out our review of the launch version, which we gave a seven out of ten. A PC version was also in the works, though it’s looking even less likely than ever due to the end-of-service announcement.

Publisher Zynga has announced that Star Wars: Hunters is also coming to PC. More specifically, it will launch for Steam in early access on January 27, a couple of months from now. Prior to that, the company will also conduct a playtest from December 13-16, and then another one the following month from January 10-13, with sign ups open for both playtests now. 

The game is confirmed to feature cross-play and cross-progression, while Zynga is also promising improved visuals, custom keybindings, and more for PC players. All Star Wars: Hunters players can also expect a new hero and map soon, in the form of Coruscant Underworld and Glikkin respectively. Check out the PC announcement trailer below.

In our review of the game, we awarded it a score of 7/10, saying, “Star Wars: Hunters is a surprisingly fun hero shooter wrapped around a somewhat aggressive live-service model. The shooting dynamics are great and the levels are filled with some nice Star Wars fanservice.” Read the full review through here.

Before diving into what makes Star Wars: Hunters shine, let’s get the live-service stuff out of the way first. Star Wars: Hunters features its own in-game currency, season passes, and an aggressive shop with exclusive cosmetics. That being said, you can enjoy this game without paying a single penny. Though, unlocking characters and gear can be somewhat of a chore for those who want multiple characters out of the gate.

"The game aggressively targets the player with arena passes and other shop items every chance it can get"

Characters are unlocked one at a time with Hunter Tokens, which are rewarded based on well you perform in the game’s matches. I’m unlocking an average of one character per 40 minutes, which isn’t the worst forced grind I’ve seen in a modern live-service game. Of course, each character can also be bought immediately at 1000 crystals each. Crystals are the game’s store currency, usually only obtainable using real money out of your wallet. Leveling up your character’s abilities and gaining XP can be done without paying anything, albeit at a slower rate than paying.

Matches are scaled to your level, so it’s not quite pay to win. Still, even though the game has a decent progression curve for those who opt out of paying money, the aggressive way the game directs you to the shop is distasteful. The game take you to the store page every other time you boot up the account, and you’ll be pressured into buying into arena pass exclusives more and more as time goes on. Every menu stares you down with live-service FOMO exclusive store items and let’s you know how little crystal currency you have as if to shame you. It’s truly an eyesore to navigate through all the menus. Couple that with the Star Wars: Hunters website not mentioning monetization whatsoever and what you have is a truly obnoxious live-service model here.

Star Wars: Hunters spoon-feeds modes to you just as it does characters. The game contains four game modes total, but you’ll only be able to do the basic 4v4 Squad Brawl until you hit the necessary levels for the others. Power Control mode unlocks at level four and is your traditional capture-the-flag mode. Dynamic Control mode tasks you with holding a moving control point zone. Finally, the Trophy Chase mode is a game of tag where the player who picks up the TRO-F33 droid the longest wins. Unfortunately, modes and maps are always randomly shuffled in Star Wars: Hunters.

"Environmental details like Luke’s Landspeeder in the Tatooine map hit that classic Star Wars tone wonderfully"

While the randomized modes and maps are a bummer, I thoroughly enjoy the maps themselves. Levels have fun gimmicks to them, like the upper and lower canopies providing strategic positioning in the Ewok Village. The Star Wars tone is wonderfully executed throughout the game, with plenty of fanservice for Prequel and original trilogy fans alike. I often found myself wanting to just look around the maps at my own pace, but that would result in my teammates dying, unfortunately, as there’s no way to practice levels without initiating a match. The environmental design boasts lots of little details befitting of their in-universe locale, making me yearn for the ability to select each map to freely explore at your leisure. Likewise, there’s some cool character lore written in costume descriptions and quest progression diaries. Quests are basically just achievement-tracking screens, but they provide some extra personality with the occasional character quotes. Star Wars: Hunters provides classic Star Wars charm with its expressive characters and well-designed maps brimming with fanservice; I just wish it gave me more ways to enjoy them.

"You can aim with precision down the scopes and adjust dead zone settings for personalized control"

By far the most impressive aspect of Star Wars: Hunters are the smooth, intuitive controls. I had worries that the shooting would lack precision due to the game’s development as a mobile title, but that worry was quickly thrown in the bin as I took my first shots in the tutorial. Aiming with the thumbstick has progressive sensitivity, allowing for careful precision shots and 180-degree quick fires. There’s a good amount of control options you can tweak to your liking, such as dead zone, aim assist, acceleration boost, and focused aim adjustability. These options are pretty standard for third-person shooters, but it’s still worth a mention for how rare it is in the free-to-play/mobile space. Aiming down the sights and taking headshots are a breeze in this game, as is taking a more tanky approach and using a spread turret as a sentinel stormtrooper. All in all, I felt more in control of my aiming in Star Wars: Hunters than I ever did in EA’s Battlefront II, which I played just a week ago.

To go along with the great gunplay, moving around and jumping feels genuinely intuitive and snappy in Star Wars: Hunters. Take the simple act of rotating your character; an action that many recent games in the character action space make laborious and clunky. By contrast, characters in Star Wars: Hunters can be spun around as swiftly and effortlessly as a spinning top. As someone with a Switch prone to drift, the controls still feel more accommodating than similar games due to the precise, snappy movement and wealth of accessibility settings.

Thankfully, expressive character animations aren’t sacrificed for the game’s quick movement and smooth gameplay interactions. Each character has unique animations that manage to look realistic while still fitting the decidedly cartoony aesthetic. The Wookie stomps around with as much weight as you’d want from the large fur balls, and the skittish Jawas scramble about with a lightness of foot identical to the films.

"Stormtrooper shields allow you to turret down foes without worry."

Each character fulfills one of three classes and has their own unique abilities and weapons. Larger characters like the Wookie and Stormtrooper are your tank, while the Jawa and field medic take on the support role; likewise, Jedi and bounty hunters perfectly fit the damage class. Each character has a basic attack, three to four unique abilities, and a finisher. Some abilities, such as the bounty hunter’s grapple, even take advantage of terrain giving them a mobility advantage. I particularly enjoy the rolling Droideka traversal of the Slingshot character. The unique musical theme and voice lines for each character help make them that much more personalized and special, though some of the emotes and costumes do require a bit of grinding and/or money to unlock.

Thankfully, the special feel of the characters isn’t all fluff. The team-based gameplay lends itself well to the different class types resulting in a good amount of variety. Star Wars: Hunters is clearly meant to be more of a pick-up-and-play kind of experience, but I can see longevity here as more characters and maps get added to the game. The lack of a dodge roll is disappointing, though. Sure, some classes can grapple out of the way and use energy shields when being targeted, but a universal dodge would spice up the toolkit and create even more strategic depth to the game. Also, the map selection is a tad scant at the moment, with under eight maps.

Star Wars: Hunters may not have the most groundbreaking systems and next-gen graphics, but the quick 4v4 matches are genuinely fun and engaging. Its combat is smoother than EA’s Battlefront II and can still be thoroughly enjoyed without paying a penny. I just lament the aggressive monetization in the menus and the scant amount of maps and lack of any kind of campaign. Star Wars: Hunters fulfills its niche in the hero shooter market as a fun and easy-to-control love letter to the popular sci-fi franchise, even if it’s a bit shallow in content at the moment.

This game was reviewed on the Switch.

WHAT IS IT?

Let’s get the basics out of the way first- what exactly is Star Wars: Hunters? In a nutshell, it’s a PvP team based arena shooter. Taking players across the Star Wars universe, the game features maps that will take you to a number of familiar Star Wars locations, including Ewok Village on the forest moon of Endor, Mos Espa Podrace and Dune Sea Outpost on Tatooine, and more. The game is set after the fall of the Galactic Empire, between the events of the Return of the Jedi and The Force Awakens.

MODES

Star Wars: Hunters will let you dive into one of four modes at launch, each bringing a Star Wars twist to familiar tropes. There’s Squad Brawl, which is essentially team deathmatch, with the first team to 20 eliminations winning the match; then there’s Dynamic Control, which tasks teams with competing to capture rotating control points, and Power Control, where teams win by holding the majority of control points on the map. Finally, there’s Trophy Chase, where teams will win by holding on to a trophy droid named TR0-F33 until a bar fills to completion. The team that gets to 100% first wins.

CHARACTER CLASSES

One of the bigger hooks of Star Wars: Hunters is, of course, the fact that it’s going to let you play as a variety of different characters in its multiplayer matches, each bringing not only their own unique attributes and abilities, but also their own wacky personalities, something that the game seems to be placing quite a bit of emphasis on. At launch, the game will have 12 characters that will be split across three classes- Tank (heavy, damage-absorbing specialists), Damage (more nimble characters focused on dealing damage), and Support (focused on healing and buffing allies).

TANK CHARACTERS

Star Wars: Hunters will have four Tank characters available upon its release. There’s the Trandoshan Charr, an expert hunter and trapper who can use his claws and his close-range scatter gun to great effect; the Wookie Grozz, a hulking former Huttballer who now wishes to take his fame to the next level by taking to the battle arena with his giant improvised clubs; the droideka and Ugnaught combo known as Slingshot, who boast plenty of firepower with their double canons, rockets, and what have you; and Sentinel, a loudmouth Stormtrooper who takes to the battlefield with a heavy machine gun and can also summon allies for temporary aid as one of his abilities.

DAMAGE CHARACTERS

Coming over to the Damage class, there will be plenty of options here, with five characters available at launch. There’s Diago, who’s an expert marksman in spite of having no sight, and comes with a slow firing but heavy damage dealing rifle; Imara Vex, a professional bounty hunter equipped with a blaster rifle, missile launcher, tracking scanner, and more; Rieve, an assassin who uses the dark side of the Force and a lightsaber and is essentially a mini-Sith Lord in all but name; J-3DI, a droid who wrongly believes himself to be Jedi, to the point of coming equipped with Jedi robes, a lightsaber, and even simulated Force abilities; and Utooni, who’re actually two characters in one- two Jawa brothers who stand one on top of another and wear a robe before taking to the battlefield with blasters, arc welders, grenades, and what have you.

SUPPORT CHARACTERS

Finally, we come to the Support class, where players will be able to play as three characters at launch. There’s Sprocket, a Mon Calamari whiz kid who uses his tech skills to command deadly droids, unleash various passive buffs, and even summon turrets; Skora, a Rodian chemistry expert who was once a Hutt cartel medic and now fights in the arena with primarily healing-focused abilities; and Zaina, a human Rebel war hero who comes equipped with a blaster pistol, is the archnemesis of the aforementioned Nemesis, and also has healing abilities

BOZ VEGA AND LX1

Star Wars: Hunters will also have some other notable characters outside of its roster of playable heroes. The two that you’ll become most familiar with are Boz Vega and LX1, who’ll serve as the hosts of the intergalactic arena fighting sports broadcast that you’ll be participating in as several different characters. As per the developers, Boz Vega is a former Hall of Famer himself, and has now become a big, loud, friendly, and excitable commentator. LX1, meanwhile, is a droid with a much more different energy. She counters Boz’s high energy with incisive stat calculations, pulling historical facts, and more.

CHARACTER RIVALRIES AND FRIENDSHIPS

Characters in Star Wars: Hunters’ roster are obviously going to bring different gameplay elements to the table, but they’re also very much being treated as unique characters from a narrative perspective as well, even though this obviously isn’t a very narrative-focused game. For instance, multiplayer characters in the roster are going to have unique relationships with each other, from long-standing rivalries to old friendships. For instance, as we mentioned previous, former Stormtrooper Sentinel and Rebel war hero Zaina are each other’s archnemeses  dating back to old battles from before the Empire fell, while Sprocket and J-3DI are steadfast friends, on account of the fact that the former built the latter. Skora and Imara Vex, meanwhile, are old allies, having previously worked together on several bounty missions, while Rieve and the aforementioned J-3DI are proper rivals, with the former being a pseudo-Sith and the latter being sort of a Jedi.

PRO WRESTLING INSPIRATIONS

Star Wars: Hunters is made around the conceit of arena combat being broadcast to the Outer Rim of the galaxy as a big, flashy sporting event, so it’s no surprise to learn that professional wrestling served as quite a big inspiration for the game’s developers. Speaking in an interview published on the official Star Wars website, art director Dominic Estephane revealed that in addition to each character’s larger-than-life personalities, the game’s presentation as a whole also takes plenty of cues from pro wrestling.

“It’s in the presentation, as well,” Estephane said. “It’s a live show broadcast. We have our version of a jumbotron. If you’re familiar with pro wrestling, where they have the big-screen jumbotrons, each Hunter has their own graphics package that you see on the screen within our roster screen in the game. Each Hunter has their own music theme, which is really, really awesome. We have what we call, internally, “Hunter’s spectacle.” That is, how would the Hunters walk out on stage and present themselves? And once they walk out, their music is playing, as well. So we think our best-in-class visuals on mobile really help deliver and showcase that progress and influence.”

COSMETIC CUSTOMIZATION

As you’d expect from any game designed as a multiplayer-only experience, Star Wars: Hunters is going to place plenty of emphasis on cosmetic customization as well. Each character will have unique costumes, weapon skins, animations, and more that players will be able to collect or purchase. How extensive the options will be and what the monetization will look like remains to be seen.

QUESTS

Star Wars: Hunters will also let players take on quests, which will essentially be comprised of multiple series of different challenges, all leading to different final rewards. Players will be able to unlock different kinds of quests by meeting varying unlock conditions. Different quest types will also include quests revolving entirely around a specific characters. A number of Hunters will get such quests, including the likes of Utooni, Sentinel, Imara Vex, Charr, and more.

RANKED MODE

As expected from a multiplayer game, Star Wars: Hunters will also feature a ranked mode. In a nutshell, Ranked Mode will take the form of seven-week seasons that will see players playing in competitive matches and climbing through tables across divisions and leagues, with one of three modes being chosen randomly for matches- Squad Brawl, Dynamic Control, or Trophy Chase. Based on their performance, players will fall in one of five leagues, starting at the bottom with Bronzium, then climbing up to Chromium, then Aurodium, then Beskar, then finally the highest league, Kyber, with each league having three divisions.

MORE RANKED MODE DETAILS

How exactly will players move up and down through Ranked Mode’s leagues and divisions? Based on a scoring system, as you might imagine. The outcome of the matches you play in as well as how you perform individually will both contribute to you receiving a score at the end of each match, which can also be negative. Each division has a score threshold that you need to reach in order to climb up to it, so if you want to climb to the very top, you’re going to have to perform well enough and win often enough to be able to attain enough points.

PLATFORMS

We started this feature off with the basics, so it makes sense to finish with something similar. Which platforms exactly is Star Wars: Hunters hitting? The PvP title will launch for Nintendo Switch, iOS, and Android. Whether or not Zynga has any plans to bring the free-to-play game to PlayStation, Xbox, or PC remains to be seen, though one would imagine that if it’s successful enough, it will eventually launch for more platforms.

SWITCH EXCLUSIVE COSMETICS, PRE-REGISTRATION BONUSES

Star Wars: Hunters will, as you may have guessed, also net you with bonuses if you pre-register ahead of its imminent release. These bonuses will come in the form of avatars, weapon skins, emotes, and more. Meanwhile, those who play the game on the Nintendo Switch at launch will also get an exclusive pair of cosmetics for free. Specifically, players will get the Shift Veteran costume and Shift Blaster wrap.

Star Wars: Hunters sees players controlling a selection of bounty hunters competing in the Arena. Each falls into one of three categories – Damage, Support and Tank – with balanced team compositions necessary for success. Stages include Ewok Village on Endor, Mos Espa Podrace on Mos Espa, the Dune Sea Outpost on Tattooine, and Death Star Crossfire, a space between an all-out battle between the Rebels and Empire.

There are four modes, from Squad Brawl, where the first team to reach 20 eliminations wins, to Power Control, where controlling the most zones for the longest is key. Stay tuned for more details on Star Wars: Hunters in the coming weeks and check out the official website.

Reported by Bloomberg, Take-Two Interactive is set to lay off 5% of its workforce, the company confirmed via a recent filing. The job cuts are part of an internal cost-cutting drive, which will also see the game cancelling an undisclosed number of games that are currently in development. In total, the company is expecting to take a hit of around $200 million, roughly $140 million of which will be due to project cancellations.

Take-Two Interactive is the parent company of a number of major publishing labels, including Rockstar Games, 2K, Private Division, and Zynga, among others. Across its many labels and studios, the company currently has several flagship upcoming titles in development, such as Grand Theft Auto 6, the next Borderlands game, Judas, and more.