Borderlands' Randy Pitchford defends recent flops by comparing Gearbox to The Beatles
Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Tina.
Gearbox founder Randy Pitchford has defended recent flops such as the Borderlands film and its Risk of Rain 2 DLC by comparing the company to one of the most highly-regarded bands of all time. Yes, The Beatles.
Replying to a user who had commented on the developer's recent "judgement and shot calling ability", Pitchford stated he was "going to keep making stuff" and subsequently brought the English rock band into the conversation.
"I wish everything could be a hit, but that is not how it works," Pitchford wrote in the exchange on social media platform X (spotted by PC Gamer). "The greatest musical act of all time, The Beatles, had a 25 percent hit rate."
Pitchford carried on to state he was "sure every song they recorded was done with love and commitment to the art and belief in the quality of their work", adding: "My favourite artists, performers, and entertainers have all made things I didn't like so much."
Others, of course, picked up on Pitchford's comments about The Beatles, with one user pointing out that "even their worst stuff is gold". This is something, sadly, Gearbox can't say. Just last month, the Borderlands film released to low opening numbers and less than complimentary reviews.
Meanwhile, Gearbox's Risk of Rain 2: Seekers of the Storm DLC - which came out at the end of August - currently sits with a Mostly Negative review average on Steam, with players calling out issues such as bugs and "incoherent" content.
As a quick reminder, Gearbox acquired the Risk of Rain IP from Hopoo back in 2022. However, while Hopoo's games were met with plenty of praise, some fans are now saying Gearbox has "massacred" the series with its own DLC.
"It is mind-bendingly incredible to me that Gearbox can somehow go from ruining their own games to now ruining other people's already-existing beloved good games," reads one review on Seekers of the Storm's steam page.
Gearbox recently announced Borderlands 4, with a short teaser which you can see above. "In this next instalment of the definitive looter shooter, players will assume the role of a legendary Vault Hunter as they blast their way through hordes of enemies in search of new treasures to loot on an all-new planet," reads the official blurb.
While we don't have an exact release date yet, when Borderlands 4 does arrive it will be available across PS5, Xbox Series X/S and PC via Epic and Steam. Soon after this was announced, Pitchford admitted his long-term hopes for the Epic Games Store were "misplaced or overly optimistic", having previously predicted Steam could become a "dying store".