For years, the Borderlands franchise was mostly focused on one planet. Players would spend much of their time fighting through Pandora in search of the latest vault. With Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, the series started to expand from that and introduce fans to whole new locales. Borderlands 3 then took it even further by introducing so many more planets, and now, Borderlands 4 is set to leave Pandora behind in favor of something brand-new. While it remains to be seen if that pays off, if it does, then Gearbox may want to consider taking it to the next level with the next chapter.
Nothing is known about what the future of the Borderlands will look like outside the fourth game, but since it is Gearbox’s flagship franchise, there are likely plenty more titles on the horizon. If said titles continue to explore the greater galaxy, then the studio might want to consider looking at No Man’s Sky for inspiration. With a few tweaks and changes, that formula may be able to do wonders within the wild world of Borderlands.
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It looks like Borderlands will be growing up with its fourth mainline entry, which is good, but Gearbox shouldn’t take things too far.
Borderlands May Be Able to do Wonders With No Man’s Sky’s Main Concept
Borderlands’ Galaxy Could Be Filled With Exciting New Planets
Borderlands 3 took the franchise into the stars for a planet-hopping adventure, the likes of which the franchise really had not seen up until that point. However, those planets were very fragmented and felt much more like video game levels rather than the expansive lands that Pandora had offered in the past. Couple that with the lackluster story, and that title proved controversial with the fanbase. Borderlands 4 seems to be going back to basics but on an entirely new planet; while that is exciting, hopefully this is not the last time fans get to see the galaxy.
If Gearbox does want to further explore Borderlands‘ universe, then it should consider adapting the No Man’s Sky formula. Specifically, there could be countless randomly generated planets with massive open worlds waiting to be discovered. As players search for the mysterious vaults, they could land on these planets and discover all of their individual secrets. Players could even be given the power to name them, which would let them make their mark on the Borderlands franchise. This could not only help make each player’s experience unique, but could also give the game endless replayability.
Borderlands’ Creatures Are Just Waiting to be Shaken Up
On top of that, these randomly generated planets could also be filled with some of the strangest and most unique Borderlands villains players have faced before. It could take the franchise’s most iconic enemies and combine them into something brand-new. Psychos could mix with Skags, Bruisers could combine with Guardians, Spiderants and Rakks could blur together, and even Crab Worms could take on entirely new forms. Since the galaxy would be randomly generated, there is no telling what kind of enemies players would run into during their journey.
Additionally, this massive galaxy would let Gearbox further expand Borderlands‘ lore with brand-new factions, a host of new enemy types, and all sorts of wild bosses. The studio could truly run wild with the lore, making for one of the biggest Borderlands adventures to date. Of course, a game like this would only be as good as the story being told. But, if the studio could nail down a randomly generated galaxy with a stellar story, then Borderlands fans would be in for a treat.
As of now, it seems like the Borderlands franchise is not planning on completely reinventing itself just yet. The series is still slowly stepping away from Pandora, so following in No Man’s Sky‘s footsteps might be a bit too extreme right now. However, if Gearbox is ever looking to shake things up immensely, then that may be the best route forward.
See if you have what it takes to go down in history as a legendary Vault Hunter as you search for secret alien treasure, blasting everything in sight.
Looter Shooter
Action
Adventure
RPG
- Franchise
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Borderlands
- Released
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2025-00-00
