Sirens of the Planet Kairos. Review of the looter shooter Borderlands 4

Honestly, I don't care how toxic a manager Randy Pitchford is or what crusades he's waging against disgruntled players on Twitter. I just love Borderlands games, so I'm happy to play them, ignoring all the hype surrounding the next release. And I have to say, despite some minor niggles (yes, for me, these are minor niggles), Borderlands 4 is completely satisfying. And, most likely, like the previous parts, I'll play it several times.

Disclaimer

I'm a fan of the Borderlands series. I've played all the games with all the DLC, and all the spin-offs, both good ones like Tiny Tina's Wonderlands and Tales from the Borderlands and bad ones like this one New Tales from the Borderlands. I've played through all the games twice or three times, with different characters, watched all the expansions, and I think that from a story perspective Borderlands is actually a very well-written and at times dramatic game. So yes, I've been waiting for Borderlands 4 and yes, I'm biased.

A little about the plot, or what is Kairos?

I know that many people think that the plot in the Borderlands series sucks, or is completely absent. I know that many people find it uncomfortable or boring to listen to character conversations or logs during combat. It is precisely because the plot is important to me that I usually play games that have an optional cooperative component - alone, so that I can calmly read notes, listen to recordings, look for interesting narrative elements in the environment. During a cooperative game, when others are running towards the mission marker, firing from all the barrels at everything that moves, of course, there is no time for this.

So I have to assure you, the plot in the Borderlands series is there, it is thorough, connects all parts and spin-offs and is actually very good. There are also examples of typical English humor, with maximum, to the point of losing realism, hyperbolization of real events, characteristics or people; there are crude toilet jokes, again, typically English. But there are also paraphrases and homages to classical literary and dramatic works, the same Homer or Shakespeare.

And there are really powerful, tragic and very important stories, such as Tiny Tina's rejection of Roland's death in Borderlands 2: Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep. Or the story of the romantic and tragic relationship between Psycho Craig and Maya, which, or rather, Craig's feelings after Maya's death, are told in Borderlands 3: Psycho Krieg and the Fantastic Fustercluck. And there are actually a lot of such stories here, these are just the most notable examples. And yes, the moments when one of the main and even secondary characters gives his life for others, it is also very touching...

Recently, in an article about the Addams Family, the author expressed the opinion that the Addams are one of the most mentally healthy families. Because although they are very strange, they sincerely believe in each other and always try to stick together. The same is true of the Crimson Raiders, and in the new part, the Crimson Resistance is a healthy family in which everyone, in their own way, supports each other and tries to stick together.

But let's get back to Borderlands 4. The game takes place on a new planet, Kairos, about which we have not heard anything yet. And for good reason, because it has been closed to visitors for 1000 years. More precisely, you can fly to it, but you can't escape... Kairos is a social experiment planet on which a dictator named the Timekeeper, or the Chronometer, if you prefer, is trying to build a Utopia in which he can directly control every citizen. Total surveillance, total control. The Timekeeper is immortal thanks to technologies from the Vault, but his Utopia cracked after a shattered moon suddenly appeared in Kairos' orbit... And yes, this is Pandora's moon - Elpis, which Lilith teleported to at the cost of her own life in the finale of Borderlands 3.

The heroes of Borderlands 4 end up on Kairos after a shipwreck six years after Elpis's teleportation. They find themselves imprisoned by the Time Keeper, but thanks to the intervention of the Crimson Resistance, they manage to escape. Of course, the Vault Hunters won't tolerate any petty tyrant, so the main task of the Crimson Resistance is to unite all those dissatisfied with the Keeper's power and overthrow him from the throne.

Of course, on this path you will meet many familiar characters from previous parts. How did they end up on Kairos? There is a fairly logical explanation for this. Who exactly? You'll see.

I can't say that the plot of Borderlands 4 impressed me more than the plots of some of the additions to Borderlands 2 and Borderlands 3 (for some reason, Gearbox really does better in DLC), but it's an interesting story with a few unexpected twists, well tied into the overall story of the series.

As for the new characters being introduced to the game... they may not be as charismatic as some of the older heroes, but the leader of the cybernetically augmented Highlanders, Daring Calder, and the leader of the aristocrats, Levane, are quite interesting NPCs. Among the enemies, Kallis is worth mentioning, she is actually crazy, and her entire series of missions on Elpis refers to Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel.

But enough about the plot, what's with the guns?

A quintillion quintillion, or what's with the weapons?

As I said, many people are skipping the plot of Borderlands 4 for the main course - a looter shooter with its mountains of loot and a quintillion barrels with random characteristics. Well, there are even more weapons, manufacturers, suffixes and prefixes, until your eyes run wide.

In addition to the familiar Jakobs, Maliwan, Tediore, Torgue, and Vladof weapons from previous games, Borderlands 4 also features products from new companies. The Daedalus weapon can use different types of ammunition. The Ripper weapon takes some time to go into full automatic mode. And the Order weapon can be loaded to fire up to five bullets at once. For example, I don't like the Torgue weapon from the first games, I didn't like the Order weapon either, and I really miss the endless COV weapon magazines from Borderlands 3, although Ripper is trying to replace it in some ways.

Heavy weapons, such as grenade launchers and rocket launchers, have been removed from the main list, now such samples can be placed in a slot instead of grenades. Some of these "guns" are very effective, and can clear an entire arena of enemies. In addition, weapon modification with components from other manufacturers has appeared, as well as a separate slot for mods that affect parts of specific companies.

As for the shooting, it was and remains as cool as it was. Despite the sometimes truly crazy barrel design, the animations of preparing for battle and reloading are as always very pleasant. The weapons of each manufacturer feel different and are better suited for specific purposes - something against armor, something against shields, something against crowds, something for ranged combat. Shooting is still fun, as is finding or testing new weapons.

Additionally, Borderlands 4 has improved character mobility. The double jump, energy whip to grab onto loops, the ability to climb some walls, and the ability to plan significantly change the dynamics of combat, especially in open terrain and during boss fights. The constant change of position and movement is really cool.

Open world, or welcome to Assassin's Creed

Borderlands 4's feature is its open world. Now you can travel around the entire Kairos map, loading screens only appear in boss fortresses, Vaults (there are a few of them here and they still need to be found in a kind of "hot and cold" game), and during the journey to Elpis.

Open world is always cool, but... I got the impression that Borderlands 4 has become a bit like the last parts of Assassin's Creed. Dozens of icons on the map - secondary missions, additional activities, collectibles, etc. You don't know where to rush, whether to run through the plot (about 30-40 hours), or to systematically clear the map. In some additional missions and activities you can get bonus parts for vehicles, more powerful engines, cosmetic items, etc.

And in Borderlands 4, dynamic events such as world bosses or attacks by the Order's ship have appeared. In the event of a world boss, part of the world is under an energy bubble, which you need to enter and destroy the enemy, which is quite thick by the way. There are also mines and vaults - dungeons with groups of monsters and a boss at the end, a kind of mini Vaults. Another activity is the remains of old machines, where you need to climb a huge "tower" (hello, Assassin's Creed!) and pick up a useful element. And also safes, Order missile silos, codes, tokens, graffiti, bounty hunting... there really is too much of everything.

At first it's even scary, then you get used to it and choose what you like more. Whether you like this, which is actually almost standard today, open world design – decide for yourself. I like it more than I don't.

Optimization, or rather its lack, or why it doesn't bother me

As of now, the rating of Borderlands 4 on Steam is 63/100, and it has grown significantly since its release. The main complaint is very poor optimization. Players blame Gearbox Software and the authors of the game engine – Epic Games – for this. Borderlands 4 is not the first game whose launch was ruined by the Unreal Engine, and here Randy Pitchford, in his characteristic manner, began to prove to players on Twitter that they do not understand anything. "Borderlands 4 is a premium game made for premium gamers" is certainly not the best way to communicate with the audience.

But the fact is, Borderlands 4 is really terribly optimized. It has good, albeit stylized graphics, but to enjoy it you need to have at least a GeForce RTX 4070, and even then, play exclusively with DLSS and Frame Generation enabled. The game feels bad on old hardware and on consoles. Some classes, for example, Harlow, who generates gravitational field effects around herself, are almost impossible to play. Consoles need to be rebooted from time to time, and the shader cache size on PC needs to be increased. Horror!

On my system, which was finally brought back to its senses, the game produces 75+ fps at 2560×1440 resolution with all settings set to Ultra. But only with DLSS Quality and Frame Generation On. There are no artifacts, the game runs smoothly, without any stuttering. I caught a few freezes on the first day after release, but the first patch removed them. I haven't seen a single crash in 40+ hours of play. It's even surprising. That's why I say that this flaw is just a non-critical detail for me personally.

But I see complaints and understand that Borderlands 4 will die on old hardware. If I turn off DLSS and Frame Generation, I immediately get a terrible, ungrabbing 15-20 fps. Yes, you can "play around" with the settings here, but Mr. Sweeney and Pitchford, maybe it's worth optimizing your own code a little? Because it seems that soon players will run away from games with the Unreal Engine logo like fire.

But what really bothers me a bit are the very strange interface glitches, where scrolling gets stuck from time to time, vehicles' engines don't switch, and echo recordings don't play. I never understood the logic behind these glitches.

In the end, to play or not to play?

The Borderlands series is one of the most popular video game franchises in history. Sales, excluding Borderlands 4, have reached 94 million copies, which is more than, say, the Gran Turismo, Battlefield, Halo, Civilization or The Witcher series. Borderlands 4 is the best start for the series on Steam. In the first weekend after release, the number of online players reached 304 thousand, compared to 93 thousand for Borderlands 3, or 124 thousand for Borderlands 2.

If you, like me, are a Borderlands fan and have a fairly powerful system, then the question of whether to buy or not probably doesn't arise. And even the lack of normal regional prices (dear 2K - this is actually a very unwise move) and the hefty price tag won't stop you.

In Ukraine, by the way, it has one of the highest prices in the world, although in Colombia, Peru, Mexico and Poland it is even higher, there seems to be no logic here at all. The only thing that reassures me is that the game is not sold at all in Russia.

If you're not as sick as I am, but are interested in the series, then you should wait for patches and sales. It seems that the first discounts should be available by New Year.

If you didn't like the previous Borderlands games, you can safely skip ahead, because Borderlands 4 is the same Borderlands 3, only bigger and better and without optimization for now.

I'll go do additional activities, clear the map, and study the end-game, which is quite a lot. And after the expansions are released, I'll play through the game with a different character, and then maybe another one, because the shooting here is really cool.

PS The release of the first expansion – Mad Ellie and the Vault of the Damned – is scheduled for Q1 2026. Judging by the title, one of the DLC characters will be Ellie – the daughter of Mad Moxie.