Gaming and politics have a much more unique history than you might think. On the one hand, gaming has always had certain stigmas put against it that still continue to this day, including that it’s “Just For Kids,” or that “violent video games cause violent incidents in the real world.” However, there are times when things actually “work out well” with the two, including Congress going after loot boxes, unintentionally helping set up the ESRB, and more. At this point, you might wonder, “What does this have to do with Borderlands 4?” Well, it has to do with both that game and the games that have come out before it.
Gearbox Software has never been afraid to make clear that they’re doing “whatever they want” within these games, for better and for worse. Naturally, the franchise has had some peaks and valleys as a result, but as one group on Twitter noted, the franchise is famous for having a wide range of characters across the LGBTQ+ spectrum, and Borderlands 4 is likely to continue that.
When Gearbox Software saw this, they couldn’t help but show appreciation for the callout and used emoji hearts that symbolized the colors of the Pride Flag.
Why does this matter? Simply put: it matters a lot. In our world today, there are MANY people who don’t want the level of LGBTQ+ representation that you see in games like this, or others that are out there. There used to be a time when such a thing was “taboo,” and then, certain companies started to “make waves” by making it clear that they would have such representation in their titles because it helped reflect the real world in a meaningful way.
BioWare, Naughty Dog, Gearbox, and more have made big moves on this front, and it’s something to be appreciated.
Naturally, there have been those who have already called this out. But, there are also those who have not only defended Gearbox Software, but have brought up past comments they made about how important this was to them.
One such comment that you’ll find in the comment section was a screenshot of a person praising Gearbox for what they did and asking if same-sex marriage was allowed on Pandora, and they replied:
“Yeah. Wait, it’s not legal where you come from?”
Oh, and that comment? It was made ten years ago! So, yeah, they’ve been passionate about this for a while, even when the world hasn’t exactly been “as accepting” as Gearbox.
