There are many good things that can come from Borderlands 4'S “darker tone”, which gearbox itself has repeatedly made a great sale point in the game, and rightly. Borderlands 3Toilet humor was criticized by society at large, and although there were some players who liked this, the game undoubtedly took it because of how certain stories were delivered. This does not mean that Borderlands 4 Will not have its share of humor, but rather that it can be toned down a notch to make certain events stand out. Regardless of the target, this approach can be advantageous for newcomers and less for veterans.
This may seem against intuitive considering that many fans did not love the over-the-top humor in Borderlands 3That may be the reason why the gearbox went back with the sequel, but there is an important cause. While humor has always been a nuclear spect in the series, with things like Borderlands 1My brother is an Italian plumber who requires players to kill an enemy by jumping on their heads, Borderland Games are not strangers for dark moments. Borderlands 4 Will probably follow on this path as previous games, at least, or doubled on it, which can lead to several major deaths.
Family
Borderland 4 takes back its most hated character, and I couldn't be happier
Although it remains to be seen how much ScreenTime Borderland's 3's AVA will get in BL4, I'm just happy that Gearbox doesn't give her up.
Why Borderland's 4's dark tone can lead to the deaths of more returning characters
Borderland Games usually kill important characters in sad or horrible ways, and that has always been the case. From TK hanging in his house near Fyrestone in Borderlands 1 to Bloodwing and Roland die in Borderlands 2all the way to one of the most shocking deaths in the series with Maya in Borderlands 3. The returning characters in Borderlands 4 Already felt certain for this reason, and with the game with a darker story and tone, players may need to see more of them die than they would like.
New players may have a stronger experience with the series about Borderlands 4 Kills by Zane and Amara, because it sets the tone more firmly than just a random death in the middle of many jokes. In the opposite end of the spectrum, perhaps long -lasting fans never really enjoy the death of a recurring character, especially loved characters like Maya in Borderlands 3And to have even more moments like those who can knit a little too much. Maya's death was already sad in her own right, but it was made even more incredibly painful with Psycho Krieg and the fantastic FusterCluck DLC, which highlighted the effects of Maya's transmitted Krieg's already weak mind.
With Zane who has a dedicated section on the official Borderland 4 website, it seems likely that his role in history will be decent important and risk being killed.
Borderland 4's dark story does not have to mean that more characters are killed
A darker tone does not necessarily mean that Borderlands 4Vault Hunters will have to witness lots of deaths, and it can also be a plot device to tell stories that reason more with fans. For example, Borderlands 4S Big Bad, The Timekeeper, is already the perfect candidate for this logic because he is the leader of a dystopian society where people are not really free because of the cybernetic implants used by Cairo's ruler to control them.
Borderlands 2 also had a similar dark story bound to handsome Jack and Angel, who were mainly imprisoned by their father, and while Borderlands 3 Trying to partially solve Jack for this, it is still a dark plot wire to have. Borderlands 4 May have more of these stories more often rather than more character deaths to shock fans, but one alternative does not exclude the other. The death of Maya in Borderlands 3 Worsen probably than it could have under different circumstances of society at large because of role Ava plays in it, but it is still a turning point for the game and the series as a whole, so not killing one without two or more main characters in Borderlands 4 May backfire.
Borderlands 4
- Published
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September 12, 2025
- ESRB
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Rating in anticipation
- Engine
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Unreal Engine 5
- Multiple players
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Online Co-OP, Online Multiplayer
- Platform game
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Yes – everything