Borderlands 4 will receive a day-one patch designed to resolve the majority of issues identified during the preview build. Learn what players can realistically expect regarding the game's performance and the improvements this initial update will deliver.
Optimizing Borderlands 4 on PC
Day One Patch Officially Announced
With Borderlands 4's launch just days away, Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford has provided insights into the game's optimization and system requirements. He confirmed that a day-one patch is in development to address performance concerns raised from the preview version. On September 7, Pitchford responded via Twitter (X) to feedback on Borderlands 4's pre-release build.
Pitchford's remarks were primarily directed at a post by Scott Duwe, a writer for the gaming news site Destructoid, who recounted his experience with the preview build. Duwe described his overall playthrough as enjoyable but stressed the necessity of a day-one patch due to frequent "crashing, hitching, stuttering, and freezing."
In his reply, Pitchford confirmed that a day-one patch is planned to mitigate these performance problems. He also noted that systems falling below the minimum specifications should not expect a playable experience, clarifying that "older hardware may not deliver consistently smooth performance."
Duwe tested the game on a PC equipped with an Intel Core i7-12700K running at 3.60 GHz, 16 GB of RAM, and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 at 1080p resolution—a setup that surpasses the game's stated minimum requirements. However, he acknowledged that his system had some internal hardware issues, which might have contributed to the problems he described.
Following updates to his original article, Duwe reported that Borderlands 4 now maintains a steady 58-61 fps, except during intense combat sequences. Despite this improvement, he and his colleagues maintain that a day-one patch is essential based on their collective testing.
Pitchford wrapped up his comments by explaining that Borderlands 4's expansive, seamless world—like other modern AAA titles—may not run optimally on older hardware. He remarked that this challenge "has always been a reality since the early days of PC gaming."
Setting Realistic Performance Expectations
In a follow-up comment, Pitchford expanded on how the game performs across various hardware configurations, urging players to maintain realistic expectations. According to testing conducted by 2K, the game can achieve an average of 60fps on medium settings when running on minimum-spec systems.
Pitchford further clarified that individual PC setups, including the use of HDD versus SSD storage, significantly impact performance. He elaborated, "This is a large, open-world AAA game, so lower-end and older hardware may not perform as well as modern, high-end PCs."
While he emphasized that the day-one patch will include important optimizations and enhancements, specific details about the update have not yet been disclosed. Meanwhile, many fans are requesting gameplay footage from console versions, and with the launch approaching, concerns are growing about the game's performance on consoles.
Borderlands 4 is scheduled for release on September 12, 2025, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC. For the latest news and updates on the game, be sure to read our related article below.
