Key Takeaways
1. Borderlands 4 has sold around two million copies, with over half of the sales on the Steam platform, generating about $150 million in revenue.
2. Player engagement peaked at over 304,000 on Steam but has decreased to around 230,000 due to performance issues like stuttering and crashes, leading to mixed reviews.
3. Developer communication from Randy Pitchford has been criticized for being defensive, as he emphasizes that players may not be meeting the system requirements for the game.
4. Console players, including those with high-end setups, are experiencing frame rate drops and performance problems, raising concerns about reliance on upscaling technologies.
5. Despite performance issues, Borderlands 4 improves on its predecessors with a more coherent storyline and better navigation in the game world.
The launch of Borderlands 4 has faced quite a few bumps, with the Notebookcheck review highlighting its less-than-ideal optimization. However, this hasn’t deterred players from trying out the looter shooter. According to statistics from Alinea Analytics, the game has sold around two million copies across consoles and PC.
Sales Breakdown
Alinea’s research suggests that a significant portion of these sales, more than half, occurred on the Steam platform. In its debut week, the game achieved 749,000 sales. As a result, 2K and Gearbox Software have reportedly generated about $150 million in revenue to date.
Player Engagement
Looking at the player numbers on Steam, it makes sense that the game is performing well in retail. On September 14th, it peaked at over 304,000 players, although this figure has dipped to a solid 230,000 after its initial weekend.
So far, gamers have shown a lot of patience, but issues with Borderlands 4’s performance continue to linger. Problems like stuttering and crashes are key factors contributing to its mixed rating on Steam. Similar to what happened with Monster Hunter Wilds, a lack of improvements could lead to a significant drop in player support.
Developer Communication
Randy Pitchford hasn’t given much hope to fans who are eager for fixes. While the Gearbox CEO’s frequent updates are welcomed, some players feel his social media remarks come off as too defensive. Pitchford claims that many users are overlooking the system requirements for Borderlands 4. His assertion that the game is a “premium title for premium gamers” has faced criticism as well.
Console Challenges
Console players are also finding it hard to keep their frame rates at an acceptable level. Even those with high-end setups like the Nvidia RTX 5090 or PS5 Pro experience performance drops in open-world sections, resulting in choppy graphics. Pitchford insists that technologies like DLSS or FSR are crucial, yet gamers argue that developers are relying too much on these upscaling methods.
Despite the performance issues, Borderlands 4 does tackle some of the complaints aimed at its earlier versions. Reviews indicate that its storyline is more coherent, and navigating the larger game world is less annoying than before.
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