We are just a month away from the launch of Borderlands 4, and Gearbox CEO/magician Randy Pitchford is engaging with the media to generate excitement about the game, highlighting the 30 billion guns it supposedly features.

However, the narrative aspect also takes center stage. Following the lukewarm response to the plot in Borderlands 3, Gearbox has vowed to take storytelling seriously this time. The new installment is set on a prison planet named Kairos, where the menacing Timekeeper exercises complete control over the inhabitants, threatening them at will.

In a conversation with Epic Games, Pitchford shared that while discussing the game’s story, the studio pondered, “What’s the zeitgeist of the environment we’re in?” They reflected on their organizational changes too, such as the studio’s transition from independence to subsidiary under the Embracer Group, and later its reacquisition by Take-Two. Pitchford articulated a personal and studio-wide shift: “What does it mean to trade some autonomy for organization?”

He further elaborated that on a spectrum of governance, from anarchy at one end to fascism at the other, it’s essential to recognize personal preferences and comfort levels with each position. Yet, while Pitchford’s ambitions here may inspire, it feels somewhat audacious for Borderlands to tackle such profound themes. We will have to wait until the game launches next month to see how these narrative elements play out.