Borderlands 4 has made an explosive entry into the gaming scene, setting new records for the franchise. The title has achieved a remarkable accomplishment with over 100K concurrent players on Steam shortly after launch, and it soared past 300K during its opening weekend. This led to an impressive milestone of 2 million units sold within the first week. Topping the US sales charts for September 2025, it has become one of the year’s top-selling games. However, despite these achievements, expectations from Take-Two Interactive weren’t fully met, according to CEO Strauss Zelnick.
Borderlands 4: Success Meets Challenges
In a recent conversation with The Game Business, Zelnick acknowledged the game’s positive critical reception but noted that sales have been “softer” than anticipated. He attributed this to the game’s initial performance issues and bugs on PC, which hindered its commercial success. Despite these challenges, Zelnick expressed optimism for the game’s future, highlighting Gearbox’s efforts to improve the situation.
Developer Response to Player Feedback
The game’s launch wasn’t without controversy, as Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford faced backlash for defending the PC version’s performance amidst player complaints. Pitchford even described the version as “pretty optimal,” leading to a wave of criticism. However, Gearbox has been actively addressing these concerns, with a recent patch bringing significant performance improvements.
