The launch of Borderlands 4 was met with generally positive critical reviews, yet received a mixed reception from the wider gaming community. Many players reported widespread performance issues, including various bugs and inconsistent frame rates. This led to a significant number of negative reviews on Steam and numerous complaints filling online forums.
While developer Gearbox has acknowledged these issues and stated they are under investigation, CEO Randy Pitchford took to X (formerly Twitter) to contest claims that Borderlands 4 is inherently flawed.
Pitchford published a series of posts asserting that players have unrealistic expectations regarding frame rates. He specifically called out those he termed `4K stubborn` – players insistent on running Borderlands 4 in 4K resolution on different hardware setups – and advised them to try playing at 1440p instead.
He elaborated, “I recognize many of you are intent on playing at 4K with ultra-max settings on hardware that`s two or three years old. That`s your prerogative, but Borderlands 4 and Unreal Engine 5 are quite demanding, and for me, the performance trade-off isn`t worth it. I play at 1440p with very high settings and am entirely satisfied with that compromise – the game looks incredible at 1440p. If you`re not `4K stubborn` and simply want to enjoy a great, fun experience with better performance, please consider using 1440p resolution. If you possess a powerful graphics card, 4K might be fine. However, for those with mid-range or near-minimum specifications, I strongly suggest making that adjustment.”
Pitchford also expressed his belief that players hold unrealistic performance hopes for older PC hardware, suggesting many complaints arise from attempts to run the game on systems several years past their prime. In response to a suggestion that Gearbox should “build [Borderlands 4] for the most common hardware in the first place,” Pitchford stated that “Borderlands 4 is a premium game made for premium gamers.”
He continued, “Unlike with PlayStation and Xbox, we cannot prevent a PC player with sub-optimal hardware from attempting to play the game. Consequently, some try and become angry. While some indeed have genuine issues that we need to address, others need to grasp how their high-end PCs function with this specific 2025 game and leverage available tools to strike the right balance between frame rate, resolution, and graphics features… Trying to operate a monster truck with a leaf blower`s engine will inevitably lead to disappointment.”
Alongside his evident frustration and pushback against the complaints, Pitchford provided recommendations for `optimizing` PC performance, including utilizing DLSS and fine-tuning various settings. Separately, Gearbox itself released a PC troubleshooting guide on Steam to help players resolve potential issues or bugs.
Anecdotal evidence suggests that performance problems are often inconsistent, varying even with minor hardware changes, making them generally difficult to diagnose. For instance, reputable outlets like PC Gamer and Digital Foundry have reported sluggish frame rates at native resolutions even on top-tier graphics cards. Benchmarks have, predictably, demonstrated significant performance variance across diverse hardware and software configurations.
For players just starting Borderlands 4, a continually updated list of Shift codes is available to redeem for character cosmetics and items. Additionally, a Borderlands 4 class tier list can help in choosing the most suitable character.