If you read this article’s title as a question, then you also don’t quite understand why a brand new game that was just announced will not be playable on your shiny new consoles. There may very well be good reasons for this once you look a little deeper. Let’s explore the details of the game first and then move on to the lack of new console support.
The aptly named game is set in the time period between the original Borderlands and Borderlands 2. You will play with and as familiar characters as a cohort of Handsome Jack. Yes, the same villainous Handsome Jack that plagued you in Borderlands 2. This time you are on his side helping make the Hyperion Corporation in to an empire. For those that have a longing for it, you will finally be able to play as Claptrap. Yes, if you ever wanted to be on the other side of his witty commentary your chance is coming. No official release date is given at this time, but all press releases state fall of 2014 ro be the release window.
On to why this is for PC and past generation consoles(PS3 and Xbox 360) only. One point to consider is that Gearbox is not manning this project directly. Rather 2k Australia is doing the brunt of the work. They will have full access to all assets of the Borderlands universe and Gearbox will still be involved in the development. Brining in a different studio to do a game in a established franchise is a calculated risk and I speculate that the reason 2K Games is willingly doing this is so that Gearbox can work on developing Borderlands 3 for the current generation of consoles(PS4 and Xbox One). However, Gearbox swears up and down that this is not the case. There is already a strong precedent set for this scenario and quite recently in fact. We need only look to the famed Batman series of Arkham Asylum and Arkham City being developed by Rocksteady Studios and then Arkham Origins being developed by WB Games Montreal. Now that Batman Arkham Knight has formally been announced, we can backtrack and realize that they had been developing the game over the last several years in utter silence.
So don’t worry about one more game coming to your old console. It’ll be just fine and I’m sure we’ll all enjoy it just as much as we have the first two games. Until we have further proof, however, we’ll just have to keep hope alive in the day dream that the power of our new consoles will someday be allowing us to explore the greater, more infinite beauty that is Pandora.
Paul Novak is a self described Polish ninja toiling away as an IT professional but more into gaming and writing. Physically existing in the west side of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania yet existentially flowing with the ether of the Internet. Found here at What’s Your Tag? and on the Twitter @dudewantshisrug. Game on with Team XBRO!
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