It’s not much longer now, Borderlands fans. Borderlands 4, the newest entry in the long-running looter shooter franchise from Gearbox, is set to release on September 12th for Xbox, PlayStation 5, and PC.
Now, there’s one console not listed on there: the humble Nintendo Switch 2. That’s because Gearbox is spending a little more time trying to get that version of the game just right before its launch on October 3rd. According to some reports from Gamescom, they’ll need all the time they can get.
According to EpicNNG on X, formerly known as Twitter, the Gamescom demo for Borderlands 4 on Switch is leaving a lot to be desired.
They added that they were unable to kill enemies without a huge stutter and noticed that other players experienced the same issues with the demo. Of course, your mileage may vary, as there’s video evidence of the game running well on the Switch 2 hardware, alongside other third-party games such as Cyberpunk 2077. If there are performance issues, though, Borderlands 4 isn’t the only third-party game to have this issue.
The Nintendo Switch 2 May Be Quietly Having A Third-Party Problem
One of my favorite things about the Nintendo Switch 2’s launch has been the impressive support from third-party developers. It’s something that recent Nintendo consoles have lacked. If we’re being honest, a Nintendo console hasn’t had third-party support in earnest since the Nintendo GameCube (Resident Evil 4), but I feel like even that is stretching it.
Having said that, it hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing for these third-party games. There are plenty of reports from Gamescom that Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition doesn’t run well, though Bandai Namco clapped back at that criticism.
Then there’s the performance I encountered with Madden NFL 26, which, despite having a stable frame rate, was littered with bugs and technical issues that affected my experience with the game.
It’s still early in the console’s lifespan, and Nintendo themselves have been, unsurprisingly, able to deliver impressive results with the Switch 2. Breath of the Wild has never looked better, and Donkey Kong Bananza is easily one of the best-looking games Nintendo has ever made. To be fair, this isn’t an issue that’s exclusive to the Switch 2. Speaking from experience, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has had issues running on Steam Deck, and my wife’s Lenovo Legion Go flat-out refused to launch The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered.
Microsoft is launching a new verification system for its upcoming handheld, the ROG Xbox Ally, which suggests that this isn’t strictly a Nintendo Switch 2 issue, but a handheld device issue.
