Game intel
Borderlands 4
See if you have what it takes to go down in history as a legendary Vault Hunter as you search for secret alien treasure, blasting everything in sight.
This patch caught my attention for two reasons: Tediore finally gets some love, and Gearbox is admitting PC performance is still a problem. Sixteen years into Borderlands, the loop lives or dies on two things-how good it feels to blow stuff up, and whether the game runs smoothly when everything on screen is exploding. Today’s update nudges both in the right direction, with some smart weapon and Vault Hunter tweaks, plus a promise of bigger buffs next week. But the “temporary instability while shaders re-bake” note is the kind of caveat only PC players could love.
Tediore getting a blanket +10% damage and mag size isn’t flashy on paper, but it matters in play. Tediore’s identity has always been tied to reload throws-toss the gun, watch it detonate or sprout legs and chase enemies. More damage fuels the explosion/throw value, and bigger mags mean fewer reload interruptions for spray-and-pray setups. If you’ve been flirting with a Tediore-centric build, this is your green light to respec and test.
Hellwalker always rolling as fire is the kind of consistency tweak I appreciate. In past games it riffed on Doom’s Super Shotgun and leaned hard into burning everything; standardizing the element means you can plan around it for mobbing and set bonuses instead of praying to RNG. Lucky Clover’s rate of fire bump gives it the snappiness pistols live and die by, and Fisheye getting a damage hike should elevate it from “cool idea” to a legitimate bossing/sniping option.
Meanwhile, Queen’s Rest pistols using the Daedalus Ammoswitcher underbarrel now fire the proper projectiles. That sounds small, but it fixes a feels-bad bug for players trying to lean into hybrid element or alt-fire synergies. These are the kinds of surgical changes that slowly push the loot pool toward “viable and fun” instead of “stash-fodder with a gimmick.”
Gearbox says they had “too many Vault Hunter buffs to safely fit into today’s big update,” so a heavier pass is coming early next week. That’s both encouraging and a little nerve-wracking—anyone who lived through BL3’s early balance rollercoaster knows how quickly a meta can flip. For now, this patch focuses on fixing busted skills that were kneecapping builds.
Vex players get a real W: Spirit Bomb now correctly counts as companion damage, which matters for pet-centric synergies, and it properly changes color with its element. Harlowe’s Flux Generator no longer heals enemies if you’re running Potential Transference (yes, that was as infuriating as it sounds), Accretion grants lifesteal to allies as intended, and there are broad interaction fixes for Chroma Accelerator’s projectile with other augments and capstones.
Amon’s kit sees practical reliability upgrades. Onslaughter Rocket Punch connects more consistently—especially against shielded targets—Primal Surge actually restores shields and ammo on status application, and Forgeaxes track enemies more accurately. If you’ve been running a punchy Amon build, this will simply feel better. Rafa’s Blowout passive finally stacks properly when repeating action skills, which should unlock the looping playstyle it was clearly designed for.
Net effect: more builds work the way the skill text promised in the first place. The big question is what next week’s “substantial changes” look like. If Gearbox follows its usual cadence, expect a few standout skills to get the spotlight and, inevitably, something currently overperforming to catch a nerf bat.
The patch includes stability and performance tweaks and a heads-up that shaders will re-bake after updating, which can cause brief instability or stutter for roughly 15 minutes. That’s typical for modern engines, but Borderlands 4’s worst moments are still the big firefights where effects stack and frames tank. The team also calls out fixes for low FPS, crashes, and rare infinite loading screens on crossplay. That’s progress—but I’ll judge this by how my frame time graph looks after a few boss arenas, not by patch notes promises.
If you’re hopping in tonight, my advice is simple: jump into a low-intensity zone first and let the game cook its shaders before you crack open a Big Encore fight. It’s not sexy, but your rig will thank you.
Improved NPC/enemy pathing means fewer stuck mobs and less loot clipped into geometry—always welcome in a looter shooter. UI adjustments fix misclicks in inventory dropdowns and clean up compass and waypoint behavior. And you can’t teleport into Zadra’s Rest before unlocking it anymore, which closes a weird progression hole that confused more than a few players (guilty).
The live-service loop continues: a new Big Encore boss and wildcard mission are in rotation, and Maurice’s Black Market vending machine has shifted to Carcadia Burn—perched on a cliff in Grindstone of the Worthy. If you’ve opened the Rustical Hurl silo, look toward the top-right ridge to its north. It’s a fun carrot to chase, and frankly, this weekly rhythm is what keeps me dipping back in between bigger patches.
Small but meaningful buffs and bug fixes land today, with a bigger Vault Hunter balance pass due next week. Tediore’s across-the-board buff revives reload-throw builds, a few legendaries get sharper identities, and QoL cleanup smooths the edges. Performance is trending better, but the game still needs to prove it can hold steady when the screen turns into fireworks.
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