Armed with a new release date and renewed interest in the looter shooter, Gearbox Software further pushed the upcoming Borderlands 4 into the spotlight with a dedicated PlayStation State of Play showcase. With about 20 minutes of new gameplay footage and details to share, it paints an exciting future for Vault Hunters looking forward to stepping foot on Kairos.

If you have not had the time to watch the entire State of Play, fret not. We are here to be your guide to all things announced by Borderlands 4 and catch you up straightaway.

New Vault Hunters

The game will be introducing four new Vault Hunters to the mix, and we got a closer look at two of them. Vex the Siren is a powerful Siren who can empower herself or manifest deadly shades to fight alongside her, while Rafa the Exo-Soldier shines as a former Tediore trooper who wears an experimental exo-suit capable of digistructing an arsenal of weapons.

Each Vault Hunter class in Borderlands 4 offers a unique playstyle that empowers you to choose from three signature abilities that serve as your Action Skills. Gearbox is delivering its most advanced skill tree system yet, letting players enhance Action Skills with special augments and capstone abilities. You can choose from three branching paths of passive abilities that enable an incredibly wide variety of distinctly powerful builds.

Each Vault Hunter also has a unique Trait that shapes their playstyle. Vex’s Trait makes her Action Skills attune to the element of the weapon she currently has equipped, incentivising an arsenal of elemental weapons to shock, burn, or freeze enemies based on the situation.

Kairos and Exploration

Set on the new planet of Kairos, this is a planet primed for an uprising. For thousands of years, the Timekeeper has kept the planet hidden, controlling its inhabitants with cybernetic implants called Bolts and an army of synthetic soldiers known as The Order.

Players will travel across the planet where they’ll encounter new and returning characters, creatures and inhabitants to battle, and unique factions spread across four distinct regions that seek freedom from the tyranny of the Timekeeper. The friends discovered along the way will be recruited by players to their cause, while enemies will experience firsthand the arsenal of weapons and abilities wielded by the Vault Hunters.

To aid exploration, players are able to utilise a hover ability to rain death from above, or use a grappling hook to move around swiftly and more vertically. And if you are worried about long distances, you can summon a Digirunner vehicle whenever you please. Gearbox has shared that there are tons of things to find, including Silos, which are areas where decommissioned Order tech resides. Claiming them will reveal the rough location of a Vault Key Fragment.

Get enough of those, and you will unlock a Vault, which is a dangerous dungeon where you can challenge yourself and likely get the best loot.

All About the Guns

Eliminating all who stand in your way is the name of the game in Borderlands 4, and players will have a great selection to choose from. There are eight companies supplying different guns, and the list includes Order, Ripper, Daedalus, Tediore, Maliwan, Jakobs, Vladof, and Torgue. What they bring to the table are:

Order guns focus on precision with high-powered bursts
Ripper guns charge up to go fully automatic
Daedalus guns are easy-to-use and incorporate multiple ammo types
Tediore guns are reloaded by tossing them as grenades
Maliwan guns specialize in elemental damage to burn, freeze, and shock
Jakobs guns can fire bullets as fast as you can shoot with ricochets on critical hits
Vladof guns have a high rate of fire and huge magazines
Torgue guns have heavy-duty explosive rounds that can switch to sticky projectiles.

In addition, there is a new Licensed Parts system in play, meaning you may find guns that have multiple manufacturers’ properties to create a unique killing machine. Borderlands 4 is also changing how Legendary guns work, with unique effects you won’t find on any other piece of gear.

Gearbox is not stopping there. There are two new gear slots to help specialise your build further:

Ordnance is a shared slot for Grenades and Heavy Weapons like rocket launchers. It recharges on a cooldown to keep you always ready for the big fight.
Enhancements replace the Artifact slot seen in Borderlands 3. It helps to augment weapons based on the manufacturer, adding even more firepower.
Repkits add utility by letting you heal yourself or activate temporary buffs in times of need.

Fighting Together

Multiplayer has always been a big part of the Borderlands formula, and it is no different this time around. The developers have made considerable efforts to streamline the experience, hopefully creating the best multiplayer system yet.

The game is designed for co-op from the ground up, with instanced loot for each player, dynamic level scaling, and individual difficulty settings to keep the party together and have fun throughout the entire campaign.

Cross-play will be available at launch, and the improved lobby system should make it easier to join friends instantly, with drop-in/drop-out action for up to 4 players online. There is also the reliable option of split-screen co-op, so Vault Hunters will never hunt alone.

Borderlands 4 will release on September 12 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.