This article contains MAJOR SPOILERS for one of Borderlands 4's early side missions, 'No Place Like Home'.
While its tone may be more grounded than prior entries, Borderlands 4 is still home to a very colorful cast of characters. The four new Vault Hunters are the stars of the show, facing off against the series' latest big villain, the imposing Timekeeper. These characters are joined by plenty of other heroes and villains, ranging from the caring, protein-obsessed rebel leader Rush, to the menacing Idolator Sol.
Much like its predecessor, Borderlands 4 is also jam-packed with familiar faces. Moxxi, Zane, and Amara all return for the series' fourth mainline entry, and while they're all given their moments to shine, the biggest winner of Borderlands 4 is, rather surprisingly, Claptrap, the franchise's infamously irritating mascot.
Claptrap Is One of Borderlands' Most Annoying Characters
Claptrap has appeared in every Borderlands game to date, and he's undoubtedly one of the franchise's most iconic elements, with him often appearing at the forefront of each game's marketing. But that doesn't mean fans like him.
As his name implies, Borderlands' Claptrap is renowned for his ability to talk endlessly, often about things that don't really have any relevance to the task at hand. And given Claptrap's high-pitched voice and exceedingly energetic tone, that endless dialogue can become grating very, very quickly.
Claptrap's implementation in previous Borderlands games certainly hasn't helped his reputation. In the first Borderlands, Claptrap would frequently pop up to remind players to hand in a task or speak with another NPC, his somewhat shrill voice echoing through the player's headset every time. Then in both Borderlands 2 and 3, players would occasionally have to follow Claptrap as he slowly rolled around the environment, stopping constantly and yapping relentlessly the entire time.
Claptrap has his own dedicated voice slider in Borderlands 4 that players can use to mute him, and only him.
Borderlands 4 Gives Claptrap Some Surprising Depth
But Borderlands 4 does the impossible with Claptrap, turning him from a temporary annoyance to a genuinely likable character with an arc that most players are going to remember for a good while. This dramatic change occurs during the side quest 'No Place Like Home,' which players can accept as soon as they enter Borderlands 4's open world.
This side quest opens with Claptrap nervously asking the player to track down a few items that are key to the Crimson Resistance's efforts on Kairos. These items are located deep within The Order's territory, but that doesn't phase Borderlands 4's courageous pack of Vault Hunters.
After killing the Big Orange Hothead miniboss, players will find the first item on Claptrap's list: a "Tasteful Portrait" of Mad Moxxi, which is located in a room that's covered floor-to-ceiling in similar portraits of the fan-favorite Borderlands character. The Vault Hunter calls out Claptrap for saying that this was a vital item for the Crimson Resistance, and the robot admits that they're his personal belongings that were stolen from him when he first arrived on the planet.
Reluctantly, the Vault Hunter agrees to get the next item on Claptrap's list, which is revealed to be the processor of VR-ON1CA, the robot that players helped Claptrap to build throughout Borderlands 3, and the one that abandoned him immediately upon its completion, leaving him sobbing uncontrollably. The final item is actually a Psycho that Claptrap stuck inside a porta potty, and accidentally left to die.
A Routine Fetch Quest Turns Into an Emotional Tale of Grief and Acceptance
While there are plenty of Claptrap voice lines in this quest that will have players rolling their eyes, there's a gradually unfolding feeling that there's something deeper going on with Claptrap and his mental health. Lines like "I just wish making friends was as easy as mechanical engineering" hint that the mascot may be a tad depressed, and the uncharacteristically disheartened expression in his voice teases a side of the character fans have never really seen before.
That all comes to a head at the end of Borderlands 4's 'No Place Like Home' side quest, which sees the Vault Hunter returning Claptrap's belongings. After handing them over, it's revealed that Claptrap is trying to make a shrine of his life back on Pandora, where he "had friends" and where "nothing bad ever happened."
Rather than poke fun at Claptrap for the sake of a cheap joke, Borderlands 4 takes the time to stay in the surprisingly emotional moment and deliver the decade-old character the development he's been sorely missing. The Vault Hunter convinces Claptrap that he can still have a bright future on Kairos if he just embraces it and lets go of the past.
Encouraged by the prospect, Claptrap tasks the Vault Hunter with loading the items they recovered into a boat, attaching some dynamite, and setting off the explosion when it's floating on the water. The boat erupts in a stunning array of colorful fireworks, cementing Claptrap's acceptance of his past, and his willingness to embrace his future.
This Borderlands 4 side quest delivers an emotional depth that many fans likely weren't expecting from a character who's often restricted to being the comedic relief, and an intentionally annoying one at that.
Borderlands 4
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 82 /100 Critics Rec: 88%
- Released
- September 12, 2025
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
- Gearbox Software
- Publisher(s)
- 2K
