The Borderlands series is best known for its wacky and addictive looter shooter gameplay. Each entry delivers a base game at launch, before providing players with often hilarious DLC missions and features over multiple years. Borderlands 3 continued the series' legacy, with Psycho Kreig and the Fantastic Fustercluck being viewed as one of the best DLC in the Borderlands franchise. However, one post-launch addition saw an underappreciated mini-game arrive, which not only provided a break from the action but also had a serious positive impact on the world beyond the screen. Given the benefits it provided to players, both on and off-screen, this underappreciated feature deserves a second chance in Borderlands 4.
Borderlands 4 has yet to be announced, but that hasn't stopped fans from speculating that it could be announced any day. The last two years have seen the release of both Tiny Tina's Wonderlands and New Tales From the Borderlands, with the latter setting up some major events within the mainline Borderlands universe. In the closing moments of New Tales From the Borderlands, a montage hints at the return of Handsome Jack, as art from across the title's episodes merge to form the silhouette of his face. This could hint at just one of the many dangling threads that Borderlands 4 hopes to address, though some fans hope to see the title move in a new direction.
Borderlands Science Was Much More Than A Mini-Game
In April 2020, Gearbox revealed the Borderlands Science mini-game for Borderlands 3. By accessing an arcade cabinet in Tannis' Lab, players could complete a mix-and-match puzzle for in-game rewards. Each round saw the player face-off against different characters from the main game, as each tried to match puzzle-block sequences to those shown on the left side of the screen. The winner was rewarded with in-game currency, which could be used for one of six in-game boosts, or a cosmetic item.
Borderlands Science's in-game rewards were just the beginning, as the game's puzzle sequencing was part of something much more important. The mini-game was a collaboration between Gearbox and scientific institutions like McGill University, Massively Multiplayer Online Science (MMOS), and the Microsetta Initiative at UC San Diego School of Medicine, which saw each row of blocks portray a portion of the human gut genome, which had been inaccurately mapped by computer sequencing.
By completing the game's puzzles, players partook in fixing these inaccuracies, correcting actual sequences of human DNA. This helped scientists successfully map gut DNA, in hopes that computer sequencing will be advanced to the point where this process could be done at a much higher rate, allowing for treatments and preventative medicine to be developed.
Borderlands 4 Players Could Continue to Benefit from Borderlands Science
There are many pieces of Borderlands 3 DLC that Borderlands 4 should include. However, none offer the same level of benefits as Borderlands Science. By getting players involved in an important medical process while enjoying the entertainment and in-game rewards of its puzzle-solving mini-game, the feature could grow from an underappreciated gem to a major boost mechanic. Were the mini-game to be available at launch, it could provide Borderlands 4 players with their earliest XP and stat boosts, setting them up for success in the early events of the narrative.
Following the success of both Borderlands 3 and Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, players have a long wishlist of features for Borderlands 4. Borderlands 3 DLC, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, and New Tales of the Borderlands each added fresh narrative or gameplay elements, which Borderlands 4 can pick and choose to grow upon. However, the title has yet to receive any official details, including an official announcement. Fans hoping for early details may not have to wait too long, as an announcement could come at one of this Summer's many gaming events.