Borderlands 4 Review – New Vault Hunters, Story, Gameplay, and Open World on Kairos

Borderlands 4 Game Review

Borderlands 4 Introduction

Borderlands 4 arrives as the latest entry in Gearbox’s beloved looter-shooter series, taking clear lessons from past missteps and pushing its trademark chaos to new heights. Six years after Borderlands 3, this sequel dials back the try-hard irreverence, sharpens the gunplay, and stretches into a fully open world on the new planet of Kairos. The result feels like a return to form: mountains of loot, over-the-top combat, and sharper pacing that could make it the best Borderlands since the 2012 classic.

Borderlands 4 New Characters and Vault Hunters

Amon — The Forgeknight

A towering “warrior-poet” forged by tragedy, Amon conjures hard-light weapons and shields on the fly. He thrives up close—hurling elemental axes, cracking energy whips, and overloading his creations for burst effects. He’s the squad’s durable bruiser with surprising warmth beneath the steel.

Harlowe — The Gravitar

A sunny-tempered ex-Maliwan combat scientist who bends gravity to her will. Harlowe excels at crowd control—linking enemies with “Entanglement,” pinning them in Stasis, and amplifying team damage with clever debuffs. She’s the cheerful yin to BL4’s darker yang.

Rafa — The Exo-Soldier

Kept alive by a custom Deadframe exosuit, Rafa plays like the most agile Vault Hunter to date. He digi-structs an arsenal mid-fight—arm cannons, shoulder turrets, or twin arc-knives—and enters Overdrive for speed and DPS spikes. A run-and-gun showman with a renegade streak.

Vex — The Dark Siren

A freshly awakened Siren with occult-tinged powers. Vex summons spectral Reapers and a giant cat familiar, “Trouble,” to taunt and shred foes. She can leech life, swap elements, and thrive as a pet-class controller or as a self-sustaining soloist.

Why this roster works: All four heroes feel mechanically distinct, with sprawling, genuinely build-defining skill trees. Co-op synergies emerge naturally, and—crucially—no class feels like the runt of the litter.

Story and World-Building (Spoilers Ahead)

Kairos is a once-hidden world exposed after cosmic shenanigans with Elpis. It’s now a prison-planet under the Timekeeper: a chillingly polite tyrant obsessed with order, implants, and surveillance. Early on, he tags the Vault Hunters with control devices—only for your ECHO-4 drone to jam the signal, shifting the focus back to rebellion and vault-hunting.

The campaign arcs across four vast regions—each ruled by a lieutenant—before a push into Dominion City for the finale. The plot is straightforward but better paced than BL3, with a darker tone that lends real stakes. The Timekeeper isn’t another shrill meme-villain; he’s composed, methodical, and hateable in a new way. Cameos (yes, Claptrap; yes, Moxxi) land as seasoning, not the main course. New allies like Rush and Zadra are functional if archetypal. World lore—Eridian tech, resistance logs, and Kairos’ exiled culture—rewards exploration without bogging you down.

Borderlands 4 Gameplay Mechanics — Guns, Skills, and Mayhem

This is the tightest Borderlands has ever felt. Gun recoil, hit feedback, and alt-fire quirks are gratifying across billions of generative variants. A new “licensed parts” concept lets weapons mix manufacturer DNA for wild hybrids (think sticky-explosive snipers or burst-fire shotguns that consume SMG ammo).

Movement is the breakout upgrade: double-jumps, air-dashes, a grappling lash, and a hover-glide pack transform encounters into vertical playgrounds. You’ll perch, dive, slam, and zip between cover with fluidity older entries can’t match.

Skill trees are broader and deeper, with multiple action skills per character and robust augments. Post-campaign, an endless progression track keeps the treadmill compelling. Bosses sometimes veer into bullet-sponge territory—especially solo—but the toolkit breadth and co-op options soften the grind.

Borderlands 4 Open World Design and Exploration

Kairos is truly open: three immense biomes plus a neon-drenched capital, stitched together with minimal gating. Dynamic events, outposts to capture, secret caves, and high-value hunts dot the landscape. Nearly everything feeds progression—XP, cash, Eridium, loot, or cosmetics—so detours rarely feel like filler. Navigation is aided by ECHO-4’s on-ground guidance line; it’s not perfect in multi-level areas, but it’s a welcome addition. Performance is generally solid post-patch, with occasional streaming hitches during high-speed traversal.

Graphics and Sound

Cel-shaded style, modern muscle. Lighting, shadows, and scale bring Kairos to life, from sun-washed clover fields to blizzards in the Terminus Range. HUD/UX is cleaner, inventory comparisons clearer, and split-screen readability improved. Guns roar with distinct audio signatures; reactive music swells when elites or bosses crash the party. Voice work sells both the menace (Timekeeper) and the mirth (Claptrap’s eternal chaos).

Humor and Tone

BL4 reins in the cringey, meme-y excess of BL3. It’s darker overall, but the black comedy still bites—mostly in side content and ambient banter—so big story beats can breathe. It won’t rival prestige dramas for pathos, but it finally stops undercutting itself at the worst moments. You’ll chuckle often, rarely groan.

Multiplayer and Co-op

Four-player online co-op with full cross-play and two-player split-screen on consoles. Instanced loot and level scaling make mixed-level squads painless. Drop-in/out is seamless; fast-travel to teammates, vehicle warps, and forgiving revives keep the flow snappy. BL4 shines brightest with friends, where class synergies turn arenas into sandbox fireworks.

Pacing and Balance

Acts escalate cleanly—one region, one lieutenant, one set-piece—punctuated by smartly placed hubs and shortcuts. Side content is plentiful yet optional. The late-game difficulty spike and a handful of spongey boss marathons are the main blemishes. Otherwise, generous loot cadence and meaningful levels keep momentum high.

Verdict

Borderlands 4 is a loot-fueled triumph. It marries the series’ riotous identity—absurd guns, anarchic humor, and co-op mayhem—with modern mobility, deeper buildcraft, and an open world that respects your time. The villain intrigues, the roster sings, and the moment-to-moment action is the best the franchise has offered. A few bullet sponges and safe side characters aside, this is the refined, confident Borderlands fans have been waiting for.

Play it if you want:

• The most kinetic Borderlands gunplay to date

• Wild build variety and co-op synergy without class duds

• A huge world where almost every detour pays off

Temper expectations if you crave:

• Profound character studies or heavy emotional arcs

• Zero sponge bosses in the endgame

Bottom line: Kairos is a blast—go make it louder.