gamescom 2024 got off to a big start with the reveal of Borderlands 4, the next game in Gearbox’s looter shooter series, during Opening Night Live. The announcement came via a teaser trailer, below, that on face value offers little insight into what to expect when the game launches in 2025. But eagle-eyed fans have spotted a number of secrets buried within the trailer itself, and Gearbox chief Randy Pitchford has said there are even more yet to be discovered.
“There are several secrets in the teaser for Borderlands 4,” Pitchford tweeted following ONL. “Some I have not seen commented on yet. What have you found!”
Warning! Potential spoilers for Borderlands 4 follow.
Let’s start with what has been found. The most obvious secret is a snapshot of what very much looks like Borderlands villain Handsome Jack with the vault symbol covering his face. This heavily suggests Handsome Jack, the president of the Hyperion Corporation, returns for Borderlands 4.
Looks like Handsome Jack is returning for Borderlands 4. The vault symbol perfectly aligns. (Credit to @UndeadMD for the find) pic.twitter.com/j2plLNACuk
— JoltzDude139 (@Joltzdude139) August 20, 2024
But what else? There is eridian writing in the trailer. The Eridians are the ancient, presumably extinct alien race that serves as something of a mysterious force throughout the Borderlands series. Could the Eridians play a role on Borderlands 4?
But what does the eridian writing say? Redditor pskought believes this is a substitution cipher, and the translation works out as “HE IS WATCHING” and “BREAK FREE.”
This is all very cool, but what does it mean? Fans have a number of theories, including that “HE IS WATCHING” alludes to the Watcher, an alien of Eridian origin that appears in 2014’s Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel. Some fans are currently speculating that The Watcher will end up as the antagonist of Borderlands 4, or at least a shadowy figure who is revealed to have been pulling the strings all along.
Meanwhile, a mysterious orange face pops up at the end of the trailer which may be another look at Handsome Jack or someone else. Fans aren’t sure who this is, or who the robotic hand shown grabbing the face mask belongs to, but all these clues combined with Gearbox’s confirmation that Borderlands 4 is set on a brand new planet, suggest Borderlands 4 is certainly heading in something of a new direction. Perhaps a more serious tone this time around?
As Pitchford says, there are more hidden secrets players have yet to discover. Some may be little more than Easter eggs. X/Twitter user Primidian spotted what they think is an easy to miss look at Lilith crashing into Elpis, Pandora’s moon and the main setting of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel. We see Elpis in the trailer on a collision course with the new planet.
Lilith crashing into Elpis pic.twitter.com/DTF5p1XKB4
— Primidian (@Primidian) August 21, 2024
What else do we know about Borderlands 4 at this point? It’s described as “the definitive looter shooter,” and we know it’s out at some point after March 2025 but before the end of 2025 on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S. Borderlands 3 and spin-off Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands were both timed Epic Games Store exclusives. Clearly, Borderlands 4 is not.
“See if you have what it takes to go down in history as a legendary Vault Hunter as you search for secret alien treasure, blasting everything in sight,” reads the official blurb.
We also know Borderlands 4, like previous games in the series but unlike the recently released Borderlands movie, contains “intense violence or gore, suggestive themes, strong language, and general mature content.”
There’s also word of cross-platform multiplayer, which would be an unsurprising first for the Borderlands series.
Here’s more from publisher 2K:
Borderlands 4 was announced at gamescom’s Opening Night Live with a teaser trailer providing players with their first tantalizing glimpse of an all-new planet. Borderlands 4 is the fourth mainline title and seventh overall entry in the franchise. Players will once again assume the role of a legendary Vault Hunter as they search for secret alien treasure while blasting everything in sight.
“The team and I at Gearbox have a lot we’ve wanted to do with Borderlands since we first introduced the looter shooter genre to the world with our original game,” said Randy Pitchford, founder and President of the Gearbox Entertainment Company. “All of us at Gearbox have massive ambitions for Borderlands 4 and are putting everything we have into making everything we love about Borderlands better than ever before while taking the game to new levels in exciting new directions.”
The Borderlands franchise has sold-in more than 87 million copies to-date, receiving critical acclaim from reviewers and fans alike. With unforgettable characters, deep world building, and more unique guns than can be counted, the franchise has cemented itself as a must-play series.
“We’re thrilled to be able to share with our fans that 2025 will mark a massive year for 2K and Gearbox Entertainment,” said 2K Core Games Senior Vice President and General Manager Catharina Lavers Mallet. “The Borderlands series is one of 2K’s most successful franchises ever and is beloved by millions globally. We’re excited that our already close partnership and collaboration with the Gearbox team has grown even deeper, and we look forward to delivering best-in-class experiences for both longtime fans and new players alike.”
The reveal of Borderlands 4 is a long time coming, with Pitchford teasing it on a number of occasions in recent years. He told IGN in February that Gearbox was working on the “greatest thing” it has ever done. Take-Two later acquired Gearbox from Embracer Group for $460 million and confirmed a new Borderlands game was in development.
The announcement of Borderlands 4 comes hot on the heels of the high-profile flop that was the Borderlands movie, which IGN awarded 3/10 in our review.
Check out everything announced at Opening Night Live for more.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
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