Randy Pitchford embroiled in new scandal

The narrative unfolded when a fan of the Borderlands series took to Twitter to voice concerns about the upcoming installment. They highlighted the visual similarities to Borderlands 3 and raised alarms about a possible cut in the marketing budget. The fan also referenced the unsuccessful Borderlands 2024 movie, which received harsh criticism from audiences and critics alike, even drawing negative comments from filmmaker Uwe Boll. Rather than engaging in a constructive conversation with the community, Randy Pitchford, the head of Gearbox, initially announced his intention to block the user to shield himself from what he called "negativity". He later revised his stance, opting instead to mute notifications from the account.

The situation intensified when popular streamer Gothalion called on the developer to be more receptive to criticism and respectful of the series' long-time fans. In response, Pitchford dismissed the streamer's remarks as "toxic pessimism" and not constructive. He further stressed the extreme efforts developers put in, stating they are "literally killing themselves to entertain players".

This sparked a range of reactions within the Borderlands community. Some rallied behind Pitchford, acknowledging the intense pressure developers endure. Conversely, others criticized his approach, seeing it as an evasion of constructive dialogue and labeling his responses as overly emotional. Many also recalled that this wasn't the first instance of Pitchford making pointed comments on social media.

Borderlands 4 is set to launch on September 23, 2025, and will be available on PS5, Xbox Series, and PC.