In the most PlayStation State of Play move imaginable, Borderlands 4 just stormed in and dumped 20 minutes of chaotic, loot-stuffed, cell-shaded carnage directly into our eyeballs. Slated for release on September 12th, the latest entry in the vault-hunting saga seems to be going full crazy on itself — dialing up the action, upgrading the arsenal, and tripling down on the kind of explosive nonsense that makes your screen look like a fireworks factory threw up. You want absurd guns? You got ’em. Wild action skills? Check. Enemies that make your therapist worry? All there.
Kicking things off is Graeme Timmins, Creative Director at Gearbox Software, and Anthony Nicholson, Senior Project Producer, who both walked us through the mayhem like proud parents of a hyperactive war child. The demo dove into missions, showcased some killer new weapons, teased both new and returning characters, and even showed off a few action skills that look like they were pulled straight from an over-caffeinated fever dream. If you’ve ever wanted a shooter that cranks every dial past 11 and then rips the dial off completely, Borderlands 4 is here to break your inventory and possibly your will to play responsibly.
Sweet merciful chaos, this looks like Gearbox is seriously trying to outdo themselves. The Deep Dive kicked things off by showcasing a new but quick gameplay trailer of the four new Vault Hunters absolutely wrecking face with flashy new class skills, flashy new guns, and yes — a freaking alien tiger made of pure elemental Siren energy. One of the Vault Hunters, the Assassin named Rafa, even seems to have a sleek new redesign, or at least a new skin, and if it’s the latter, please let us equip it now. The devs claim this is the best Borderlands game yet, and based on what we’ve seen — they might actually be right. Greater loot? Check. Bigger enemies? Check. Full platform crossplay at launch? You bet your split-screening butt.
Meet the 4 Vault Hunters:
- VEX | The Siren
- Vex had a rough upbringing that was made more complicated by receiving her Siren powers. Her cynical and sarcastic demeanor comes from having to fend for herself and scrape for everything she’s got. But underneath her salty exterior, Vex is an empath who knows better than anyone how much life can suck. Ever the pessimist, Vex still believes in helping others. And if helping others means dealing damage to oppressive jerks, Vex will always be first in line.
- RAFA | The Exo-Soldier
- Rafa was born and raised in microgravity, which severely altered his bone density and musculature, making it impossible for him to survive elsewhere. Desperate to explore, he signed up to Tediore’s military force. In exchange for a tour of duty, his body was altered for a new kind of exo-suit. But when it became clear Tediore never intended to end his service, Rafa went AWOL. Now he’s on the run and plans to enjoy whatever time he has left before his Tediore Deadframe ends him for good.
- HARLOWE | The Gravitar
- Harlowe is a former Maliwan combat scientist, driven by the need to understand how things work. While this initially made her an outcast amongst her Traunt relatives, Harlowe has used her intellect to bring new tech and gadgetry to the battlefield as a Vault Hunter. Harlowe’s brilliance is apparent in everything she does, but so is her enthusiasm and love for life. Harlowe brings everything to the fight, including her sunny disposition. Always ready to give a beat down, her spirit can’t be beat.
- AMON | The Forgeknight
- Amon was raised in a Vault monster-worshipping cult—until the Vault was opened and the creature turned on everyone he loved. As the only survivor, he dedicates his life to finding and killing as many of these beasts as he can. Amon, a warrior-poet, is introspective and unflinching to his duty, but despite his hardened appearance, he has a warm attitude, often regaling comrades in arms with stories and advice earned throughout his travels.
You can read more about other new and returning characters here.
Gameplay Stuff
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New planet alert: Say hello to Kairos — a new world ruled by synthetic soldiers and divided into four seamless zones (that means no loading screens, folks).
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Return of the favorites: Zane, Moxxi, Claptrap, and Amara are back, along with some other fan-favorite faces.
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Movement overhaul: Glide, dash, double jump, climb, and grapple your way through this upgraded mobility playground.
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Silo gameplay & Echo-4: Silo challenges are scattered across the world, and you’ll use your trusty Echo-4 companion drone to hack them and track down Vault Fragments to unlock full-on Vault dungeon challenges.
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Vehicles 2.0: Every Vault Hunter gets a fully customizable personal ride — yes, even the weapons and handling can be tweaked.
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New loot system:
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8 gun manufacturers: Including 3 newcomers — Order, Ripper, and Daedalus. The classic 5 are also still here consisting of Jakobs, Maliwan, Vladof, Tediore, and Torgue.
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Gear Enhancements: Turn basic gear into elite-tier monsters by modifying parts and synergies using a new ‘Enhancement’ feature.
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Less Legendary spam: No more trash-legendaries every 15 minutes. They now drop rarely, and when they do, it’s an event.
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Player-first co-op features: Individual loot (no more loot thieving), set your own campaign difficulty exclusive to your experience even when playing with others, couch co-op with splitscreen, and fast-travel to teammates mid-mission if you get separated.
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Replay your favorite fights: Bosses and full missions can be replayed at will for farming. No more save-quitting to menu like it’s 2009.
Also, Gearbox is planning a hands-on gameplay event this June, but even now, one thing is crystal clear: Borderlands 4 isn’t just another looter-shooter — it’s shaping up to be a total f*cking game-changer.
Borderlands 4 launches on September 12th, 2025. You can wishlist it everywhere now and be sure to check out the PlayStation Blog for more details.
