Borderlands 4 Shouldn't Rely on The Same Trope As Past Games (2024)

Borderlands 3 is a few years old at this point, and sequel speculation is alive and well. The series is four games deep now and Borderlands 4 seems like an inevitability. Where the story goes at this point is anyone’s guess, with most of the known Sirens dead and the Crimson Raiders now led by Ava and presumably the remaining vault hunters. Regardless of what’s next for the remaining protagonists from prior games, there’s one tired story beat a potential Borderlands 4 should stay far, far away from.

The series needs to move away from leaning so heavily on the manufacturers for story beats. The original Borderlands was largely about the conflict with Atlas, while Borderlands 2 and Borderlands: ThePre-Sequel were obviously about Hyperion (with an admittedly welcome appearance of the ever-hilarious Mr. Torgue), and Borderlands 3 heavily featured Jakobs, Maliwan, and Atlas, with Hyperion coming back in the Handsome Jackpot DLC. It’s time to put these manufacturer-related conflicts to bed for a game or two.

Borderlands 4 Should Be About the Eridian War Teased in The Pre-Sequel, Not Gun Manufacturers

The Borderlands universe offers so many interesting storytelling opportunities and more planets to explore than what's been shown in previous entries. While it’s understandable that the weapons manufacturers are major players in Borderlands' universe, the games have leaned on them as antagonistic forces a bit too much. It's getting slightly predictable and, frankly, overdone. Ideally, the next installment in the franchise would shift focus from the corporations and lean more heavily into the Eridians, the Vaults, and their largely unexplored history. And the best part is Gearbox has already set itself up for just one such story.

Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel is criminally underrated, but it may have given Gearbox the best possible route for a story that’s largely independent of the manufacturers. The game mostly follows the events leading up to Borderlands 2, mainly Handsome Jack’s rise to power, but the story is actually set during the time after Jack’s death, with the meat of the narrative told in flashback form. The often overlooked game ends with an unknown Eridian known as The Watcher appearing to Lillith, Brick, and Mordecai to warn them they'll need all the Vault Hunters they can get for an upcoming war.

While some may interpret the events of Borderlands 3 as the war in question, The Watcher is conspicuously absent from the events of that game, indicating that the conflict they were talking about is still incoming. This war is the perfect opportunity for Gearbox to move away from its dependence on the corporations and focus solely on fleshing out more information on the Eridians and other aspects of the Borderlands universe.

Could Eridians Play a Larger Role in Borderlands 4?

Though Borderlands 3 gave some much-needed context and additional information, Eridians are still largely a mystery. But this ambiguity could work in the story’s favor. Though it’s widely thought that the Eridians are completely extinct, the Watcher’s existence proves that’s not the case. One wonders if there are more Eridians hidden out in space, waiting to make their way back to Pandora.

A potential Borderlands 4 could focus on contacting/fighting the remaining Eridians, who’ve taken refuge far beyond the known galaxy. An external invading threat would force all the remaining fan-favorite NPCs and past Vault Hunters to come out of the woodwork and join together in a fight bigger than any seen in previous games, fulfilling the seemingly forgotten promise of a war from Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel. And most importantly, it would be a complete breath of fresh air from the standard Borderlands plot of corporations doing shady things.

Ultimately, Borderlands 4 may still be a ways off. Borderlands 3 dropped a whopping five years ago back in 2019, giving the developers a good while to cook up something new for the story. Hopefully, the series gives the manufacturer plot lines a break for at least one entry to further expand the lore and world beyond the corporations that make the weapons.

Borderlands 3

Borderlands 3 is the fourth installment in the Borderlands series. In this looter shooter, players take missions from NPCs and seek out Vaults, similar to the rest of the series.

Franchise

Borderlands

Platform(s)

PC , Stadia , Xbox One , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , PS4 , PS5 , Switch

Released

September 13, 2019

Developer(s)

Gearbox Software

Publisher(s)

2K Games

Engine

Unreal Engine 4

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language

Genre(s)

First-Person Shooter , Action , RPG

Multiplayer

Online Multiplayer , Online Co-Op , Local Co-Op

How Long To Beat

25 Hours

Metascore

91

Platforms That Support Crossplay

PC, PS4,PS5, Xbox One &Xbox Series X|S

Split Screen Orientation

Vertical or Horizontal

Number of Players

1-4

PS Plus Availability

N/A

Local Co-Op Support

1-4 Players

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