It’s been a varied start to life for Borderlands 4. The latest instalment in the popular looter shooter series is a hit with critics, and is far and away the series’ biggest-ever launch on Steam. However, woefully inconsistent performance on PC has resulted in ‘Mixed’ overall reviews from players, and Gearbox is scrambling to address the plethora of technical issues that have led to this backlash.
One thing fans have been consistently praising about Borderlands 4 is the game’s intelligently written representative characters.
Borderlands 4 Has More Grounded Characters
A thread on Reddit by DroppedIceCream praises the strength of these characters. “Two of the main characters are a black guy (Rush) and a non-binary person (Conway), and the story hasn’t made a point of flaunting it; it’s just who they are. It’s just nice to have representation in a popular franchise and have it treated with respect,” writes the poster.
There’s particular praise for Borderlands 4’s casual portrayal of diverse characters, i.e. their sexuality and/or gender are part of who they are, but don’t necessarily define them as a character, nor is it their main personality trait.
This deft approach extends to many of the characters in Borderlands 4, who are noticeably more grounded and less neurotic than their counterparts in Borderlands 3. There’s particular praise in the comments for Vex, who subverts the stereotype of goths by being earnest and heartfelt.
Before the release of Borderlands 4, much of Gearbox’s marketing for the game focused on telling a more grounded story, with less “toilet humour” and more relatable characters. Though the studio would never admit it, you get the sense that, privately, Gearbox accepts it handled Borderlands 3’s narrative and characterisation poorly.
The original Borderlands, and especially Borderlands 2, are often praised for their respective stories and characters, so Borderlands 4 receiving the same approval is a great sign for the series.
Gearbox is currently working to optimise Borderlands 4’s PC version, irrespective of studio head Randy Pitchford’s constant downplaying of technical issues.
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