Get ready, Vault Hunters! A fresh update for Borderlands 4 has just dropped, bringing some much-needed enhancements to Gearbox’s latest looter-shooter. It’s hard to believe it’s been sixteen years since this legendary franchise began (feeling old yet?), and while the newest installment is easily one of the year’s top co-op games, it’s also been battling some persistent PC performance issues. Good news, though: the developers are actively smoothing out those rough edges. This new patch not only delivers a host of character and weapon buffs, bug fixes, and even some slick menu improvements, but it’s just the beginning!
This latest Borderlands 4 update primarily targets stability and performance, a welcome focus considering the game’s had its share of frame rate dips and stutters during intense firefights. Despite these technical hiccups, Borderlands 4 remains one of the best FPS games in recent memory. Gearbox has issued a heads-up: you might experience a temporary dip in stability initially as shaders re-bake, but this should clear up within about 15 minutes of gameplay. The patch also tackles frustrating low FPS situations, crash incidents, and those dreaded “rare instances of infinite loading screens” that sometimes cropped up during Borderlands 4 crossplay sessions.
For all you gun fanatics, let’s talk weapon balance! Every Tediore weapon now boasts a significant 10% damage increase and a 10% larger magazine, directly enhancing their powerful reload attacks. The iconic Hellwalker legendary shotgun will now consistently spawn with the scorching fire element. The Lucky Clover legendary pistol gets a welcome boost to its fire rate, and the Fisheye legendary sniper’s damage has been cranked up. Plus, an annoying bug affecting Queen’s Rest pistols equipped with the Daedalus Ammoswitcher underbarrel has been squashed, ensuring they fire the correct projectiles.
Every single one of the four playable Borderlands 4 characters is getting some love! While many of the immediate changes are fixes for previously broken skills, that’s far from the whole story. Creative Director Graeme Timmins has revealed that the team “had too many Vault Hunter buffs to safely fit into today’s big update,” so instead you can expect even more substantial character changes to arrive in an upcoming patch slated for “early next week.”
Specifically, for Vex, her Spirit Bomb passive now correctly scales as companion damage and will visibly change color to indicate its active element. Harlowe players will be thrilled to know her Flux Generator will no longer accidentally heal enemies when paired with Potential Transference, and her Accretion passive will now properly provide lifesteal to allies. Furthermore, various interaction bugs between the Chroma Accelerator’s projectile and several other skill augments, passives, and capstones have been ironed out.
For Amon mains, his Onslaughter Rocket Punch is now far more reliable, especially when facing shielded foes – fantastic news for those (like me!) who find this build incredibly satisfying. His Primal Surge passive will now consistently restore shield and ammo when you apply status effects to enemies, and his Forgeaxes will home in on targets with improved accuracy. Finally, Rafa’s Blowout passive will correctly stack its effects when you repeat your action skills.
Beyond character and weapon adjustments, many general quality-of-life improvements have been implemented. NPCs and enemies will now navigate the environment more effectively, reducing instances of them getting stuck. You’ll no longer see broken gear thumbnails, and inventory dropdown menus won’t make those frustrating unintended selections anymore. The compass and custom waypoints have received “various improvements,” and UI visuals have been fine-tuned for better “alignment, consistency, and clarity.” Oh, and if you were like me and found yourself accidentally teleporting into Zadra’s Rest before it was unlocked, good news – that’s been fixed!
And of course, the regular weekly rotation is live! This means a new Big Encore boss challenge, a fresh weekly wildcard mission, and a new hideout for Maurice’s Black Market vending machine. This week, you’ll find Maurice nestled at the top of a cliff in Carcadia Burn, specifically in the Grindstone of the Worthy area. If your Rustical Hurl silo is unlocked, simply head to the top-right of the ridge north of it.
This significant Borderlands 4 update is available right now, so jump in and experience the changes! For a complete, in-depth breakdown of every tweak and bug fix, you can always consult the full changelog courtesy of Gearbox.
Before you dive back into Pandora, make sure you’ve claimed the latest Borderlands 4 Shift codes for your chance to grab Golden Keys and other valuable loot. We’re also continuously refining our guide to the best Borderlands 4 settings to help you squeeze every last frame out of your PC.
With all these new adjustments, what are your thoughts on BL4? Are you loving the buffs? We’d love to hear from you! Join the PCGamesN community Discord server and share your favorite build, or tell us what balance changes you’re hoping for in the next big patch!