Randy Pitchford Talks Empowering Players and Expanding Borderlands Universe

What is the goal of certain video game developers when they make gaming titles? That is the question that has haunted many in recent times, as we see a certain kind of “bias” creeping forth where it’s not about the games, but about the profit, or the accolades, or helping “keep them on top” in one form or another, fan reaction be danged. In the case of Gearbox Software and its CEO, Randy Pitchford, they love their FPS/RPG franchise so much that they truly want to make each entry better than the last, and just as important, give their players the power to go nuts with Vault Hunter builds so that they can be as powerful as they desire.

In an interview at the Tokyo Game Show, Randy Pitchford talked about ensuring that gamers had the most fun with the title by tweaking builds so that no matter what they picked, they would feel the full power of each character:

“We want players to become gods and feel like gods. It’s not cool to just knock them down. Instead of weakening strong builds, we make the weaker ones stronger. That way, players still get that godlike experience but are encouraged to try new things.”

Variety is the “spice of life” when it comes to a game like this, and with four main Vault Hunters, with a fifth on the way next year, options are there for players to take care of and then empower them to the moon and back. There have already been builds posted online that can “break the game,” and that’s pretty awesome…for however long they last.

As for the franchise itself, Randy loves expanding things in new directions and not being afraid to see what happens, even if it doesn’t exactly go as planned:

“I’d rather live in a world where more things can exist than less. Whether it’s a collaboration with a musician like Zayn Malik or a movie with Lionsgate, every project gives fans another way to connect with the universe.”

To be fair, some of the collaborations have worked out well, including them doing a collaboration with a fashion show recently to highlight one of the franchise’s newest characters! However, the less said about that movie, the better. Seriously, what the heck happened, Lionsgate?

Regardless, things are looking good overall for the franchise, and despite Randy “going off” on fans a bit too much due to technical woes, it does appear that he’ll get to keep growing the franchise in the coming years.