Borderlands 4 is approaching its launch date, with the fourth numbered entry set to send fans to the next chapter of the adventure on September 12. Since its official reveal and subsequent showcases, Gearbox Software has been focusing on some of the major changes it is making to both Borderlands 4's established gameplay and the franchise's previous tone and writing style. With a turn into more mature territory while continuing the series' story and spirit, the next title is set to push Borderlands into a new era.
Among one of its shakeups is Borderlands 4's Licensed Parts System. This mechanic will let players access and mix and match traditional arms manufacturers' hardware and components to create new combinations of weapons and items. While a cool idea, one company that was previously a big part of Borderlands in this area won't be in the same way in the fourth outing. Hyperion has been "downgraded," and given that the company is formerly responsible for inventing and sustaining the New-U stations, which in turn resurrected players' Vault Hunters after death, it raises the question of if and how this standard feature and product will appear in BL4.
Borderlands 4 Has All-but-Missed the Boat For a Repeat of BL3's Best Trick
Borderlands 4 is inching closer to arrival, but Gearbox may have passed up an opportunity to recreate a great BL3 inclusion for the fourth entry.
Borderlands 4 Not Including Hyperion Weapons Could See its New-U Stations in a Strange Situation
Hyperion Held the Monopoly on Borderlands' New-U Respawn Stations
Introduced in the original Borderlands (where they doubled as fast travel points) and seen throughout most main entries as well as mentioned in spin-offs like Tales From the Borderlands, the Hyperion New-U terminals are Borderlands' in-universe explanation for characters being able to respawn. The terminals scan and store the Vault Hunters' and presumably other inhabitants' DNA, which is used to digistruct clone copies of them in the event of their demise or "other fatal catastrophes."
The situation was particularly amusing in Borderlands 2, since the villain Handsome Jack was CEO of Hyperion, but yet the Vault Hunters would still be recreated by the corporation's New-U units whenever they perished, even as Jack sought to stamp the heroes out at every turn. The greater question at hand, though, is whether, and to what extent, the current situation along with Borderlands 4's framework will affect their presence.
How Hyperion's Absence May Affect Borderlands 4's New-U Terminals
It should be noted that it's entirely possible that New-U machines will return and remain largely unchanged in Borderlands 4, spouting their familiar slogans like "Hyperion would like to remind you that there is only one thing worse than respawning, and that is not respawning" whenever fans find themselves on the losing side of an encounter. But with the changes that Hyperion has undergone in the overall story at this point, and the fact that it won't be playing as prominent of a role, it could present some new narrative opportunities for Hyperion to be re-branded or presented in a new light.
Hyperion would like to remind you that there is only one thing worse than respawning, and that is not respawning.
Borderlands 4 is set on the planet Kairos, a previously unknown place that has been hidden away by something like a time-bubble for an unknown period. Because of this, Hyperion theoretically wouldn't have been able to install New-U outposts on it. But it's also known that prior expeditions and other unluckly travelers stumbled upon and became trapped on Kairos. And those who haven't been captured and forcibly incorporated into the new antagonist, the Timekeeper's army, have been working towards escaping.
This could be the key to explaining how Borderlands 4's Vault Hunters might see New-U stations on Kairos. Players could find a jury-rigged network set up by the band of surviving rebels, with them having salvaged or tinkered with existing models to get them up and running based on previous knowledge and experience with them back on Pandora and other planets. The remaining free residents of Kairos may have been able to install their own version of Hyperion's system to keep themselves in the fight against the Timekeeper's forces, offering a more natural reason for New-Us to be in Borderlands 4. Of course, Gearbox may also surprise players with entirely new or different versions of them, and provide an explanation for how and why they work identically. It will be interesting to see how Borderlands 4 handles this aspect along with its other inclusions.
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
