The Borderlands series, to the casual player base, is known for 3 things. Its story, gameplay, and loot. But, like most looter games, the series has a very vast and hardcore playerbase that is not invested in just those 3 things, and Gearbox has evolved its offerings in interesting ways since Borderlands 2. Borderlands 3, for instance, did not just have invincible bosses; it also had “Takedowns” that felt like strikes from Destiny. Not to mention the mayhem mode that simplified the overpowered gun chasing. Borderlands 4 is taking it up a few notches in this respect.
An Easy-to-Follow Endgame
To start with the most obvious thing you may be asking, yes, Ultimate Vault Hunter Mode is returning. It is unlocked after finishing the main campaign. There will be five difficulties you will unlock through challenges in the mode, and taking on a “new to Borderlands 4” Wildcard Mission that consists of a singular, very challenging mission. In these increased difficulties, you will, of course, acquire more cash, eridium, XP, and better loot. But enemies will have appropriately more health and deal more damage. The risk is as great as the reward, as it should be.
There will also be dedicated legendary drops for all named enemies and bosses for collectors of all legendary loot. Where this gets very interesting is in the “on demand” style of refighting bosses due to the new encore machine they have added. This will cost eridium and allow you to instantly take on a boss as many times as you want. Gone will be the days of pressing “exit game” and loading back into an arena to try and get the drop you want.
Finally, there will be weekly challenges and select bosses that get buffed for higher chances to get their coveted loot. Maurice will also be making his return with the black market machine to buy legendary gear for cash. But the endgame does not stop at just consistent activities and farming bosses for the loot they hold. There are also greater customization options coming, namely the Firmware and Specializations.
Borderlands 4’s Fresh Take on Anointments/Enchantments, and Badass/Guardian Ranks
Firmware is an interesting evolution of the anointed and enchanted systems we’ve seen in Borderlands 3 and Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands. Firmware in Borderlands 4 will have 3 tiers of buffs and can roll on 5 different pieces of gear. They can drop on your:
- Repkits (Healing Consumable).
- Ordnance (Heavy Weapon with a Cooldown).
- Class Mods.
- Shields.
- Enhancements (Trinket/Artifact).
The buffs can range from simple Ordnance damage increases to action skill cooldowns. But it can also “drop missile strikes, increase your damage, or give you life-steal” according to the official overview on the Borderlands 4 webpage.
Last but not least, Badass and Guardian Ranks are returning in the form of “Specializations”. Specializations in Borderlands 4 will offer passive buffs across every character in your account, and will eventually unlock skills that you select and equip. You will be able to equip only 4 specializations at a time, but there will be 3 “Prestige” nodes to unlock. This will no doubt offer passive and clear goals to grind for in anticipation of the harder pieces of content, like the Invincible bosses coming after launch.
What to Expect from the DLC Post-Launch
When Gearbox revealed the roadmap for Borderlands 4, they also dropped details on what the first story pack will contain, mainly the story content:
“The first Story Pack will be a bloody, cosmic-horror-inspired tale entitled “Mad Ellie and the Vault of the Damned”. As you might’ve guessed, it stars the one-and-only Ellie, Pandoran mechanic extraordinaire and daughter of Moxxi.” – Roadmap News Post
There will also be, for the first time since Borderlands 2, a new vault hunter, alongside the following:
- 2 Vault Hunter Heads usable by all Vault Hunters
- 2 Vault Hunter Heads for the new Vault Hunter
- 4 Vault Hunter Skins usable by all Vault Hunters
- 4 Weapon Skins
- 2 Vehicle Paintjobs
- 3 ECHO-4 Drone Skin & Attachments
- 1 ECHO-4 Frame
There will also be “Bounty Packs” that will include:
“New Main Missions, revealing more about the various NPCs of Kairos, as well as a new Boss to take down; our first Bounty Pack focuses on Rush, the affable leader of the Outbounders faction stationed in the Fadefields. You can also expect loot in the form of a new Legendary Gear drop, a Vault Hunter Skin usable by all Vault Hunters, an ECHO-4 Drone Skin, and a new Digirunner Vehicle. You’ll also get a Vault Card, with its unique set of 24 cosmetic items and four pieces of re-rollable gear” – Roadmap News Post
Vault Cards offer daily and weekly challenges alongside the rewards. Giving you more XP for that second or third character to get them to level 50 faster. Alongside all of the DLC and endgame content will be seasonal events, with a planned Halloween-sounding one post-launch. There will also be Pearlescent weapons coming in a post-launch update to offer a greater tier of loot to chase alongside the crazy randomized weapon part rolls for normal weapons, as detailed in their gameplay deep dive.
Gearbox has no doubt made Borderlands 4 sound appealing to not just the casual audience, but the hardcore audience that craves the tasty drops and crazy mayhem that only the Borderlands series can provide.
Borderlands 4 will be launching on September 12th for Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, and PC via Steam, with a planned launch on the Nintendo Switch 2 on October 3rd.
