Six years and massive amounts of hype apparently couldn’t translate to the kind of success that Take-Two Interactive had in mind for Borderlands 4. Released on September 12th, you’ll notice the lack of any sales numbers in the company’s latest fiscal quarter report. Instead, its Metacritic score of 82 is noted (which is also only the second-highest in the series).
According to Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick, while speaking to The Game Business, the figures were “a little softer” than the company would have liked. “The critical acclaim was superb, and we’re really happy with the release,” he assured.
However, it seems troubles with the PC release didn’t escape the publisher’s notice. “Equally, as you know, there were some challenges with the Steam release. [Developer] Gearbox has been addressing those challenges and will continue to do so. So, in terms of units sold out of the gate, the numbers were a little softer than we would have liked. In the fullness of time, we think it’s going to do great.”
Considering that Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford said the series would break “100 million units with this launch, easy,” it may be somewhat disheartening to still see it remain at 99 million sales (especially with a budget more than double of Borderlands 3). The looter shooter reportedly sold two million units in its first week, but performance issues quickly dominated the conversation, including Pitchford telling unhappy PC players to seek refunds.
Nevertheless, it’s only the start of the new Borderlands journey with the first big content drop, Rush Saves Mercenary Day, going live on November 20th. The first story DLC pack, Mad Ellie and the Vault of the Damned, will release in Q1 2026 and adds a new Vault Hunter, C4SH.
It’s interesting to see how even with high expectations, sales can sometimes fall short. The gaming industry can be quite unpredictable! Looking forward to seeing how the developers respond to this feedback.
industry is definitely unpredictable. It might also be worth considering how player feedback and changing preferences could impact sales, especially with so many new titles competing for attention.
You make a great point about unpredictability in the industry! It’s interesting to note that despite the hype, some franchises struggle to capture their audience’s evolving expectations. This could reflect a shift in player preferences, especially with the rise of new gaming genres and experiences.