PAX East 2025 certainly had its share of moments, and Gearbox took center stage to talk about two of their big games: Risk of Rain 2 and Borderlands 4. For the first, a brand new expansion called Alloyed Collective was announced. For the second, members of the team including Gearbox boss Randy Pitchford talked about the game and answered questions. Pitchford could not answer one important question, saying Gearbox does not have an answer for it yet. This kind of frankness is always interesting to see at these big events.
Starting with Risk of Rain 2, the new expansion promises to take players deeper into a place called Petrichor V. It will have six new stages to go through. What I find really great is that if you are playing with friends, only one of you needs to own the Alloyed Collective expansion for everyone to enjoy the new content. This is a very player-friendly decision and something I think other developers should definitely consider doing. It makes it easier for friends to play together without everyone having to buy the same thing right away.
The Alloyed Collective will also bring 15 new items for players to grab, seven new enemies to fight, and two new survivors to master. There is no release date yet, with the announcement trailer only saying it is "coming soon." This leaves us wanting more. But the idea of new things to play with in Risk of Rain 2 is always a good sign for fans of the game. It is a title that thrives on new content keeping the runs fresh and exciting.
New Borderlands 4 Details Emerge From The PAX East Stage Presentation
From Character Backstories To The Biggest World Ever In The Franchise
When it came to new details about Borderlands 4, Pitchford was joined by Andrew Reiner, Gearbox chief creative officer. April Johnson, associate narrative director, Nick Thurston, lead game designer, and Grant Kao, associate creative director, were also there. They started by talking about what happened at the end of Borderlands 3. Johnson explained that the Crimson Raiders have all gone their separate ways. They are looking for Lilith across the galaxy. Johnson also confirmed that we will see more of them in Borderlands 4, but she did not say much more. This leaves a lot to the imagination about what everyone has been up to.
Johnson also talked about the main bad guy in Borderlands 4, the Timekeeper. She spoke about the events that start the story of Borderlands 4 and the chaos that the vault hunters find when they get to Kairos at the start of the game. The general ideas of these story details were already revealed during Gearbox's State of Play event for Borderlands 4 last week. So with more time at this panel, Johnson and the team talked about the individual stories of the four new vault hunters: Rafa, Vex, Harlowe, and Amon. They also went into detail about the planet of Kairos. This is a good way to give more context to players who are really eager for new information.
Pitchford added that there are no loading screens when players are moving around Kairos. He also claimed it is the "biggest" world the team has made for players to move around in the entire Borderlands series. This is a huge statement. No loading times in such a large world would be a welcome improvement for players. It would make exploring feel much more smooth and continuous. The idea of a truly massive Borderlands world without interruptions is something that many fans will be very excited about. It suggests a game that feels truly expansive.
Randy Pitchford Addresses The Elephant In The Room: The Price of Borderlands 4
A Look At The Industry's Pricing Trends And What It Could Mean For Future Games
Beyond giving us many story details and trying not to spoil too much of the game, one notable question Pitchford did not fully answer was how much Borderlands 4 will cost. Instead of giving a direct answer, Pitchford gave a long response about what Gearbox and his own thoughts are on this. "I'll tell you the truth, I don't know. And that is the truth," he began. This honesty is something I appreciate, even if it does not give us the specific number we all want.
He explained that it is an interesting time in the industry. On one hand, there is a competitive market. People making the choices want to sell as many copies as possible. They need to be careful about people who are sensitive to price. So some people, even those who decide prices, do not want to see prices go up. On the other hand, there are people who accept that game budgets are getting bigger. There are also fees for physical packaging. "It's getting gnarly out there, you guys," he said. He added that Borderlands has more than twice the budget of Borderlands 3. This is a significant jump in cost.
Pitchford concluded by saying, "So the truth is I don't know what the price is going to be. I do know that we will be opening pre-orders soon, and that will be when the price is set." He believes they will have a price set soon. It might be the new price that Nintendo and Microsoft have led with, or they might stick with something else. He noted it would be the people at the Gearbox publishing house who decide. "I think it’s going to be fine, whatever it ends up being. Borderlands 4 is amazing. It’s worth it." His confidence in the game’s quality makes me hopeful, even if the price is a question mark.
The question of pricing has been a big topic for games recently. Discussions about Grand Theft Auto VI possibly costing $100 have been making the rounds. Now that Nintendo has set a new standard with an $80 Mario Kart game, it seems very likely that GTA VI will cost at least $80. It would not be surprising to see Take-Two, the publisher, test the waters of an $80 game price with Gearbox and Borderlands 4 hitting that same mark. This is a conversation that affects all of us who buy games. It is always interesting to see how these big companies navigate what players are willing to pay.
What To Expect Next From Gearbox And The Future of These Franchises
Looking Ahead To More Announcements And Release Information For Fans
Pitchford mentioned an event Gearbox will be hosting in June. It is possible that pre-orders will go live around the time of that event. This could line up with Summer Game Fest. If so, we will not have to wait long to see where Gearbox lands on the price. This kind of speculation is always part of the fun in the gaming world. Everyone loves guessing when the next big announcement will drop.
From what we have seen at PAX East 2025, it looks like Gearbox has some exciting things planned. The new Risk of Rain 2 expansion sounds like a solid addition, especially with its co-op friendly features. And the details about Borderlands 4, particularly the large, seamless world, are very promising. Even with the pricing questions, the overall feeling is that these games are going to be worth checking out. I am certainly looking forward to seeing more as we get closer to their release dates.
The commitment to ongoing content for Risk of Rain 2 shows that Gearbox is still invested in that community. For Borderlands 4, hearing about the expanded world and new characters suggests a fresh start for the series while keeping what fans love. These events like PAX East give us a peek behind the curtain and build up the excitement. It is a good time to be a gamer, with so many promising titles on the way. I believe both of these games will find their audiences and continue to make a mark in the gaming world.