Borderlands 4 Takes Customer Service to New Lows

Randy Pitchford’s ongoing Twitter activity continues to draw significant attention to player complaints about Borderlands 4‘s performance. Most recently, the Gearbox boss escalated the situation by directly advising unsatisfied players to simply refund the game. Despite the title’s strong critical reviews and record-breaking launch on Steam, it was overshadowed by widespread reports of technical problems. That said, was telling your customers to get a refund really the best way to handle criticism?

Borderlands 4 Performance Hits a Gear-box

Pitchford has been actively surfacing Borderlands 4‘s performance issues himself through a series of lengthy posts. He argues that expectations of a game’s performance are perhaps unrealistically high among modern players. Furthermore, the executive has offered some technical advice to alleviate these issues. He primarily recommended that players utilize DLSS and frame generation technologies to boost their frame rates.

However, after users countered his suggestion that relying on such features is not an ideal solution, his response was notably blunt. Additionally, he reiterated his refund suggestion and stated that Borderlands 4 “is what it is,” before he further elaborated with an automotive analogy. He compared the situation to putting a Ferrari engine in a monster truck and expecting Ferrari-like handling.

The Boss Fight Nobody Asked For

While he expressed regret that some players dislike his DLSS advice, he firmly believes it’s the necessary path to a smoother experience. According to Pitchford, a player who is unhappy with Borderlands 4‘s performance and unwilling to use the available tools should play a different game entirely. So, does this strategy effectively address the core concerns of the player base, or does it risk alienating a loyal fan community? Viewing how other studio heads handled similar launch controversies shows Pitchford’s approach appears different.

For instance, the CEO of Arrowhead Game Studios once advised players to hold off on purchasing a game until server stability improved. After taking this approach, he later recalled receiving a swift call from PlayStation executives questioning that very public recommendation. Unsurprisingly, it appears that the standard corporate advice is clearly never to tell potential customers not to buy your product. Only time will tell where this direct and confrontational strategy ultimately leads for both Borderlands 4’s reputation and the studio’s relationship with its audience.

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