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E3 2019 Hands-on: Borderlands 3’s Biggest Obstacle is Randy Pitchford

This article is over 5 years old and may contain outdated information

Borderlands 3Ā is the video game equivalent of performing an open-layup on a child sized basketball hoop. Gearbox Softwareā€™s acclaimed looter shooter franchise remains incredibly popular despite lacking a new entry since 2014ā€™s Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel. Even prior to Borderlands 3ā€™s official unveiling at PAX East, ravenous fans were salivating for a new vault hunting dubstep-infused FPS joyride across the lawless Pandora. Now that Borderlands 3 is actually happening, Gearbox only needs to coast on its laurels in order for the title to be a success. Borderlands 3 is like money in the bank or a Footloose reference in a Guardians of the Galaxy film. The game doesnā€™t need an extravagant marketing effort; by merely existing, Borderlands 3 sells itself.

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And yet, Borderlands 3 is making headlines for all the wrong reasons. Aside from the PC version of Borderlands 3 being an Epic Game Store exclusive, Gearbox Software CEO Randy Pitchford is the source of the gameā€™s consistent PR nightmare. Whether itā€™s ongoing legal troubles, magic porn on a USB misplaced at Medieval Times, mistreatment of employees, sharing animal cruelty on social media, ranting at Game Informer about microtransactions on Twitter, or allegedly assaulting original Claptrap voice actor David Eddings at a Marriot, both Pitchfordā€™s alleged and actual behavior is hurting Borderlands 3ā€™s public perception. Gearboxā€™s inner turmoil takes focus away from the game.

This is truly unfortunate because Yahtzee Croshawā€™s hands-on impressions of Borderlands 3 at E3 2019 indicate that itā€™s a loyal and fan-pleasing continuation of the series, even though Croshaw doesnā€™t maintain a high opinion of the franchise. ā€œ[I] never really like Borderlands and [Borderlands 3] isnā€™t going to change that,ā€ Croshaw said from the E3 2019 show floor. ā€œ[Borderlands 3] proudly identifies as a shoot and loot game, and I always think having to run around checking your equipment after every fight kills the pace. [Gearbox] is adding a full suite of useless junk, cosmetic, skins, and [equipment] that offer minor improvements so you have all the more fun collecting piles of bullshit.ā€

Despite Croshawā€™s objections, Borderlands 3 appears to be the faithful FPS dungeon crawling, split screen enabled, sequel fans demanded, and for everyonesā€™ sake, letā€™s just hope Pitchford keeps a low profile from now on so we can enjoy a lovely Mad Max style vacation on the borderlands.

Borderlands 3 is coming to Xbox One, PS4, and PC on September 13.


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Riley Constantine
Contributor. Riley Constantine is Iowa's third greatest export behind Slipknot and life insurance. She loves to review movies and games while examining how they often mirror the bizarre world we live in.