Did Randy Pitchford Scrap Ava From Borderlands 4 After Hearing Fans’ Response?

Borderlands 4 is Gearbox Software’s latest major release, which came out just last month. Developers even managed to get this game out into the marketplace ahead of schedule. Of course, we know that the launch wasn’t the smoothest experience for some PC players. Fortunately, the development team has been releasing patches to optimize the game further and address some bugs.

That said, there’s a discovery thanks to a datamine. From what was uncovered in the files of Borderlands 4, it seems that the developers had a last-minute change. We won’t get too heavy into the spoilers for Borderlands 4 in our text, but you’ll find that there was a Borderlands 3 character planned to appear in the campaign, only to get cut out towards the end of development.

Borderlands 4 Almost Featured Ava

Borderlands 3 wasn’t the most beloved entry for the franchise. There were several fans who found the game to be lackluster and not quite on track to be the success they had hoped for. Regardless, the game did introduce players to a few new characters, such as Ava. While that character was also somewhat divided among fans, it appears that Gearbox Software was keen on having Ava appear in Borderlands 4.

This discovery comes from EpicNNG, which notes that Ava was a planned returnee character from Borderlands 3. It appears that they were set to aid Zane in the campaign, but we’ll refrain from saying anything else in case you’re still working through the campaign. Of course, you can read the full breakdown of where Ava was supposed to be in the game by reading through EpicNNG’s X post or check out our report here.

Of course, we’re wondering the reason for this sudden pivot. IGN noted that Gearbox Software’s head, Randy Pitchford, did ask their followers on X last year what players thought about Ava. So it’s possible that after hearing the different responses, the development team may have been prompted to make a quick change to their initial plans.

With that said, as IGN reported, Borderlands 4 is pretty clear from having leftover files still in the game. As a result, speculation is that this particular file, which reveals that Ava was planned to appear in the game, may have been left in intentionally. Maybe there’s some hope that the character will win over fans after some time has passed from Borderlands 3. In which case, there’s a chance we’ll see Ava used in a future update, but that’s just speculation on our part. Regardless, it seems that even Randy Pitchford wasn’t too sure about Ava, as they did make that post on X last year.