Last week Gearbox announced that there will be an addition to the Borderlands franchise that will release before the year’s end. Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel will be released for PS3, Xbox 360, and PC.
The biggest reveal though was that the player will be able to control Claptrap, the bouncy helper-bot from the first two games, as well as controlling other new playable characters. (The last game’s decision to add all new playable characters was a point of contention for many fans.)
I was not aware of much Claptrap hate before I read the Joystiq article. Matt Armstrong, Borderlands franchise director at Gearbox, said this to Joystiq concerning players love/hate relationship with the franchise mascot:
Some people will love Claptrap. Some people will hate Claptrap, as it’s always been. We would not be surprised to see – not to get too deep into what Claptrap is or how he works – but we fully expect to see servers that are called ‘No Claptraps Allowed,’ where if you join as a Claptrap, you get kicked. We’re okay with that.
I am one of the fans who does like Claptrap. I could see how the character could become annoying after hours of play, but shouldn’t the team take that as a challenge? Shouldn’t players who hate Claptrap expect dialog and action that will change their feelings towards the mascot?
The newest addition to the series will not be developed by the Plano, Texas based Gearbox studio, but instead 2K Australia will take the reins on this project. Gearbox is working on the next generation sequel to it’s popular Brothers in Arms franchise and most likely in development on the next Borderlands game.
But, why isn’t Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel coming to Xbox One and Playstation 4?
Armstong threw some PR spin on his response to Joystiq’s question concerning why the game is not running on “current” generation platforms (i.e. Xbox One and PS4). Armstrong and Gearbox believe the Borderlands audience is still using their Xbox 360, PS3 and PC. “The install base [on Xbox One and PS4] isn’t quite there yet,” he says. “They’re doing fantastically well, and it’s going to be great in the next couple years, but I think we’re going to go where our fans are.”
What does this say about Borderlands audience?
What does this say about the Xbox One and Playstation 4 audience?
This kind of thing happens every generation, so there is no need to worry about your favorite franchise or your Xbox One or Playstation 4. Smaller developers tend to make a play for keeping “last” generation consoles relevant.
Even though Armstrong doesn’t want us to believe that the development of the next game in the series wasn’t driven by marketing, we all know that was – and that’s fine. They want to keep Borderlands on people’s minds until Borderlands 3 and the best way to do that is to use the current engine and hardware to put out an offshoot.
That’s okay. Actually, that’s great. But…it’s still driven by marketing.