Borderlands 4 Has Had A Rough Few Months
Borderlands 4 launched strong, but the honeymoon did not last. After release, the game started to feel a bit wobbly. Players ran into a mix of small bugs, underwhelming events, and a big problem for any loot shooter: a weak endgame.
The Halloween event landed with a thud instead of a bang, and the lack of satisfying long term content left a lot of Vault Hunters feeling like there was not much to do once the main story was done. All of that was already building up just as the first paid DLC was about to arrive.
That debut DLC was supposed to be a holiday themed Bounty Pack. Instead of hype, it dropped into a pretty frustrated community that wanted fixes and better systems more than another bundle of content to buy.
The latest weekly update changes that story in a big way. Gearbox has rolled out a patch that not only tackles several major complaints, but also turns the first paid DLC into a free gift for everyone.
The Holiday DLC Is Now Free For All Players
The headline news is simple and very welcome. Bounty Pack 1: How Rush Saved Mercenary Day is now completely free for every Borderlands 4 player and you can grab it right away.
This pack was originally announced as premium paid content. Somewhere along the way, Gearbox realized it could not fit everything it wanted into the DLC and still hit the end of year deadline for the holiday theme. Rather than ship a smaller pack for full price, the team decided to make it free.
In a statement, Gearbox explained that there was more mayhem than time when it came to packing in all the planned features while still working on overall game improvements. Since Mercenary Day is a festive seasonal event, they needed to deliver something before the year wrapped up.
That left one big question: what about players who bought the Deluxe or higher editions that promised DLC ahead of time
To keep that value intact, Gearbox confirmed that there will be another DLC in the future, Bounty Pack 5. That extra pack is meant to balance things out for anyone who already paid for additional content, so nobody loses out.
It is a surprisingly generous move in a genre where paid add ons are usually locked behind season passes and deluxe bundles. Making the first holiday pack free while also planning another DLC later is a clear olive branch to the community.
Loot Grinding Finally Feels Smarter
Beyond the free DLC, the update also targets one of the most annoying problems for dedicated players: class mods.
Before this patch, farming for the right class mod could be a painful experience. You would grind a boss or activity for your favorite character and keep seeing drop after drop for someone completely different. If you have ever spent an evening trying to get a specific legendary mod, only to drown in loot for other heroes, you know exactly how that feels.
The update changes that in a big way. Class mods are now more likely to drop for the character you are currently playing. You still have a chance to see mods for other characters, which is nice if you enjoy playing multiple builds. But the odds are now clearly stacked in favor of the hero you are actively running.
This is a major quality of life improvement, especially for players chasing endgame builds. Instead of feeling like you are wasting your time, every run now has a much better chance of pushing your current character forward.
The update also adds a legendary loot indicator on the combat radar. When something high rarity drops, it is now easier to spot at a glance instead of scanning every inch of the floor. That might sound like a small thing, but in a game that rains guns and gear, a clean visual signal is a huge help.
Faster Missions And A Better Overall Feel
The patch also tweaks how Weekly Wildcard Missions work. These repeatable missions now have extra starting points that let you jump faster into the real action.
Previously, some of these missions could feel padded, with long sections of chatter or busy work before the fun parts kicked in. By adding more starting options, the game cuts down on waiting and talking and gets you into shooting and looting faster.
Here is what this change means in practice:
- Less time stuck in dialogue or setup
- More direct access to the core combat sections
- Better replay value for weekly content
On top of all this, the rest of the patch notes are what you would expect from a regular update. There are various bug fixes and small balance adjustments aimed at smoothing out the player experience.
None of those small changes on their own would change the community mood, but together with the free Bounty Pack and the big loot system upgrades, it starts to feel like a real turnaround.
For anyone who bounced off Borderlands 4 after launch or got tired of bad drops and weak events, this update is a strong reason to reinstall and check back in. The game still needs better long term endgame content to fully win everyone over, but this patch shows Gearbox is listening and willing to make meaningful moves to get players back on board.
If you love tweaking builds, chasing perfect class mods, and grinding weekly missions, Borderlands 4 just quietly became a lot more fun.
Original article and image: https://www.pcgamer.com/games/fps/gearbox-finally-fixes-borderlands-4s-infuriating-class-mod-drops-and-snore-inducing-wildcards-oh-and-its-first-dlc-is-now-free/
