Borderlands 4 Aims for Franchise's Best Endgame Yet, Says Gearbox

Gearbox Software has high ambitions for Borderlands 4, particularly when it comes to delivering a powerful, engaging endgame experience that surpasses all prior entries in the looter-shooter series. In a recent Game Informer interview, Creative Director Graeme Timmins offered fresh insights into how the team is prioritizing long-term playability and community expectations right from the outset.

Timmins, who previously worked on Borderlands 3's endgame systems, noted the importance of thoughtful, scalable design decisions that can sustain content longevity as the game evolves over time. Referring to the studio’s lessons from previous titles, including Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands, he emphasized that the team has built Borderlands 4 with future expansions and level cap increases in mind.

“I care about [the endgame] a lot personally, as my role on Borderlands 3 was curating what became the endgame for that,” Timmins said. “I know what's important to our community, and that's built already into the game.”

According to Timmins, the Action Skill tree is being designed to anticipate future level cap increases, something Gearbox has frequently introduced in past entries. He highlighted that in Borderlands 3, the eventual 72 skill points diluted build diversity since players often ended up unlocking the same skills. This time, the studio is aiming to avoid that pitfall by ensuring build variety remains meaningful throughout the lifecycle of the game.

“You lose build diversity as you add more skill points because everyone's homogeneous, because they all have the same skills ultimately unlocked,” he explained. “We've thought about Borderlands 4's endgame from the jump… and I think we're taking a lot of the lessons from both Tiny Tina's Wonderlands and Borderlands to make sure that we execute the best version of the endgame yet.”

The implication is clear: Gearbox is treating Borderlands 4 not just as a blockbuster campaign-driven title, but as a long-tail game designed to keep players invested well after completing the main story. While specific endgame features haven’t been revealed just yet, Timmins teased that Gearbox has “some great plans” they intend to unveil soon.

Fans won’t have to wait long to see what those plans entail. Borderlands 4 recently had its release date moved up—launching on September 12, 2025, rather than the initially planned September 23. The change sparked widespread excitement among the community eager to dive into the next chapter of the iconic franchise.

Are you excited to see how Borderlands 4 reinvents its endgame? What are your must-haves for long-term replayability? Drop your thoughts below!