Latest news with #Gearbox
Yahoo
03-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Borderlands 4 boss confirms "there will be a download, even for physical copies" on Switch 2, which will "mostly" run at 30 FPS "with some dips"
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Gearbox boss Randy Pitchford revealed today that Borderlands 4 is coming to Nintendo Switch 2 on October 3, and in the wake of that news, he's also confirmed a few other details of interest. Responding to fan inquiries from his weird little video announcing Borderlands 4's Switch 2 release date, Pitchford seemingly confirmed the physical version will be on a game-key card instead of an actual cartridge. "It's a big game," he said. "There will be a download, even for physical copies." Big publishers including Square Enix and Capcom have opted for game-key cards instead of traditional game cartridges in some Switch 2 releases, and it sounds like Gearbox is hopping on the controversial trend away from old-school physical media. Pitchford previously said Borderlands 4 was targeting 60 FPS on Switch 2, but it seems now that we're closer to release that's become less feasible. "It was important to us to not cut anything and to support cross play with other platforms," he said in a reply to another fan. "So, no. It'll be mostly around 30 fps, with some dips in some intense moments heavy combats or if hosting a multiplayer game in handheld mode, etc." Finally, Pitchford touched on another fairly controversial topic: Borderlands 3's performance on Switch 2, which has been widely criticized from day one. "Borderlands 3 was not made for Switch 2," Pitchford said. "I want us to get on that and see what we can do. We need some help and we need some time. Borderlands 4 is everything right now." I suppose, considering the apparent confirmation of Borderlands 4 Switch 2 game-key cards and the new 30 FPS expectation, the fact that Pitchford seemingly committed to improving Borderlands 3 performance on Switch 2 is something of a silver lining. Though, it's also pretty understandable that Borderlands 4 is the studio's priority at the moment. Randy Pitchford tells Borderlands 4 fans to "quit clutching your pearls" after teasing they may "never see any" of the game's collectible bobbleheads while simultaneously revealing a full map of them
Yahoo
03-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Randy Pitchford said Borderlands 4 on Switch 2 would require a download, but it's worse than that – it's a game-key card
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Everyone seems to hate Switch 2's game-key cards except for the publishers who keep producing them, and the latest game on the train is Borderlands 4. Gearbox boss Randy Pitchford previously noted that physical copies of the looter shooter would require an additional download on Nintendo's platform, but now that pre-orders are live, we have full confirmation that it's coming via a game-key card. Box art for Borderlands 4 on Switch 2 is emblazoned with the dreaded white bar warning of a game-key card inside the package, meaning that you're getting less of a "physical game" and more of a "plastic license key." Which, I guess in legal terms, is what a physical game is anyway, but it feels a lot worse when you're not even getting a local archive of the game's full launch version. Once you plug the game-key card into your Switch 2, you'll need to grab a 40 GB to actually get the game on your system. "It's a big game," Pitchford said last week in his warning about the download, though 40 GB is a lot smaller than the 100 GB suggested by the game's PC system requirements. So if you had any hope that the backlash against game-key cards would convince third-party publishers to put their titles on real cartridges, well, it hasn't happened yet. Today's Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase offered a lot of post-show disappointment for collectors when it became clear that everything from Octopath Traveler 0 to Persona 3 reload would be coming on game-key cards. Nintendo has apparently been surveying players for their thoughts on game-key cards, and I'm sure the feedback has been thorough. Will it be enough to push third-party publishers back into full physical cartridges? That's tough to say, especially with rumors persisting of just how expensive it is to put out a full cart these days. But with publishers like CD Projekt warning others "do not underestimate the physical edition," we may yet see a turnaround. Asked about concerns Switch 2 game-key cards could turn off players and third-party publishers, Nintendo president says the controversial cards were introduced since file sizes have gone up.
Yahoo
02-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Gearbox's Randy Pitchford celebrates Borderlands 4 going gold by explaining what that means: "The moment we're done is about as monumental as anything we experience in our lives"
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Borderlands 4 has officially gone gold, Gearbox has announced, and just in case you don't know exactly what that means, let studio head Randy Pitchford put his reading glasses on, lean back in his creaky wooden rocking chair, and tell you the origin story behind the phrase. Alternatively, if you're short on time, I can just tell you real quick: it means the game's done, theoretically anyway. These days, developers continue working on games up to and through release, fixing bugs and working on future content releases. But, essentially, it means Gearbox has a master copy of the game that's, again theoretically, ready for launch. Back in the days of the disc, though, things were different. "For videogame development, where a lot of emotion and creativity from a group of hardcore devs working together on a team, the moment we're done is about as monumental as anything we experience in our lives," Pitchford said, prefacing a tweet thread with some insights into the process of securing that coveted gold certification clearing the way for launch. "So, when is the exact *moment* that a video game is 'done'?" As Pitchford explained, back when games were still only released on physical discs and sold in stores, but recent enough that information largely traveled via the internet instead of magazines and retail endcaps, devs would send those physical discs often by mail to press, tech companies, and most importantly, first-party hardware companies like PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo for certification. "When we were ready, we'd submit a build of the game as a candidate to be the 'final' version," Pitchford said. "The 1st party would receive the game and make master discs that they would run through their tests and, hopefully, approve it for licensing and manufacturing. "When the first parties approved the build, they would create a new master copy of that software to be sent to the physical media manufacturer to be replicated onto the discs that would be packaged and sold to customers," Pitchford said. "Those master discs were literally gold colored." So there you have it. In case you hadn't already heard the origin story a thousand times, the phrase "gone gold" is from back in the day when there were actual gold-colored discs. Thanks, Randy. "Today, the process doesn't involve burning builds onto gold colored discs the way it once did," he added. "But, we still use the term 'gone gold' to describe the *moment* the game is finished. Today 'Gone Gold' means that the video game has been approved for launch on all platforms." Borderlands 4 boss confirms "there will be a download, even for physical copies" on Switch 2, which will "mostly" run at 30 FPS "with some dips"
Yahoo
02-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Randy Pitchford says Borderlands 4 is intended to "bring new people in" to the series, and I can only hope it's better at that than the Borderlands movie and its $110 million loss
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Borderlands 4 is fast approaching, and Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford says "it's a perfect entry point" for anyone who's never played a game from the series before. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Pitchford says that the devs are aiming for Borderlands 4 to "take care of the people that have been with us but also bring new people in." By the time the new looter shooter releases, it'll have been almost six years to the day since Borderlands 3's launch, so it makes sense that Gearbox would want to cater for the players that never caught up with the series all those years ago. There's past evidence to support this idea, too. "We saw, for example, between Borderlands 2 and 3, that about a third of the people that played Borderlands 3 were new to the franchise," explains Pitchford. "So, we wanted to make sure that we made the game accessible to people that have never played a Borderlands game before, but also make it familiar." It's also worth keeping in mind the success – or rather, lack thereof – of last year's Borderlands movie adaptation. With a reported $115 million production budget and an extra $30 million on marketing and distribution (thanks, Variety), the worldwide box office revenue of around $33 million (via Box Office Mojo) meant it didn't even come close to breaking even, let alone making a profit. With an estimated loss of around $112 million, it's safe to say that the movie didn't exactly give the franchise a massive boost of new fans Gearbox might have been hoping for, so now it's on Borderlands 4 to do some heavy lifting. In the Rolling Stone interview, Pitchford reiterates that "if this is your first Borderlands, it's a perfect entry point," so it definitely sounds like Gearbox is keen to welcome new players with the latest entry. Given its release across PC, Xbox Series X|S, PS5, and even Switch 2, Borderlands 4 definitely seems well positioned to do that, but for now only time will tell how successful it is. Gearbox's Randy Pitchford celebrates Borderlands 4 going gold by explaining what that means: "The moment we're done is about as monumental as anything we experience in our lives."
Yahoo
02-08-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Borderlands 4 has the "biggest world" Gearbox has ever made, and it's as seamless as it can be thanks to the power of "technical bulls***" that allows for "less borders, more lands"
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. It sounds like Borderlands 4 truly may end up being "better" than Borderlands 3, as Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford previously said – or at the least, a whole lot bigger. Speaking in a new interview with Rolling Stone, Pitchford explains how developers wanted to "free ourselves" of any constraints and make the world of Borderlands 4 as seamless as possible – and how modern technology allows for them to do just that and more in the looter shooter. "The key for us is really tapping into what the hardware technology enables in terms of moving data around," he describes. "We're able to move massive chunks at very high speed from these new storage pieces that we have on these consoles and on PCs into memory that is accessible by the CPU," continues Pitchford. "That's all technical bullshit, I'm trying to be as simple as possible describing it, but what it comes down to is seamlessness. So now, as artists, we don't have to engineer these spots where we have to make it narrow and get to a choke point." Now, devs can make the world in Borderlands 4 "wide and open and free." Global creative executive officer Andrew Reiner details how this new freedom adds to the "awesome story campaign" and its non-linear fashion: "There's a point in the game where you have the choice of going to three different story locations and picking at it the way you want, and you'll go to new regions that are just massive. This is the biggest world we've created." Pitchford chimes in with the devs' philosophy while producing the new Borderlands game: "Let's not limit the player." Instead, Gearbox hopes to do the opposite – and that's why their mantra, which Pitchford says creative director Graeme Timmins came up with, makes so much sense – to have "less borders, more lands." It's a clever play on the Borderlands title, so here's hoping it rings true come the fourth game's release on September 12. Thankfully, there's not long left to wait now until players get their hands on the new Borderlands installment – September is only a couple of months away, after all. Randy Pitchford says Borderlands 4 is intended to "bring new people in" to the series, and I can only hope it's better at that than the Borderlands movie and its $110 million loss
