However, while there are plenty of Borderlands 4 features players want to see, there are a few that would not only dramatically change the game potentially for the better, but would also help flesh out the series’ RPG aspects. Of course, it remains to be seen just how different it will be, but by implementing a crucial and genre-defining feature from one of 2024’s best RPGs, Borderlands 4 could become a much better game.
Borderlands 4 Should Add AI Companions Like Dragon’s Dogma 2
They Would Fight Alongside The Player
Borderlands 4, much like the previous games in the series, will feature split-screen co-op as well as online co-op. Alternatively, the game can be played entirely alone, although without the assistance of any AI-controlled companions. This is how it has always been, and how, traditionally, most first-person shooters are. However, the Borderlands games are RPGs with a cast of unique characters, all with their own fun and interesting personalities. It would make sense then for Borderlands 4 to put these characters together in the same way that other RPGs incorporate companions into the hero’s journey.
The best example of this is in Dragon’s Dogma 2, which took the world by storm with its unique AI that acted mostly like real people. They can guide the player through quests, fight and use abilities without the player’s input, and banter with one another. This helped to make journeying across the forests and deserts of Vermund and Battahl a far more immersive experience, as it genuinely felt like adventuring with friends. Of course, there are limits to what the AI can do, and party banter eventually repeats itself, but for the most part, the illusion is rarely broken.
The original Dragon’s Dogma featured AI-controlled companions that were as close to real people as the technology of the time allowed for. However, Dragon’s Dogma 2 showcased it at its very best and thus should be the blueprint from which other RPGs should learn.
Borderlands 4 could be the best game in the series if it were to implement a similar companion system to the single-player side of the game. Importantly, there are several key benefits outside simply leaning further into the RPG side of its formula. Not only would it help make the single-player experience of Borderlands 4 more akin to that of the multiplayer side – which is undeniably more enjoyable – but it would also give Gearbox Software the opportunity to help flesh out the Vault Hunters and their relationship with one another.
AI-Controlled Companions Would Make Single-Player More Fun
It Would Bring The Co-Op Experience To Solo Play
The multiplayer component of the Borderlands series has always felt like the intended format, as, while playing solo is still enjoyable, it loses a lot of the magic that makes the first-person shooter so captivating. The synergies between each of the Vault Hunters help make combat more dynamic, while reveling in the jokes and narrative beats with a friend makes them either more tolerable or intensely more humorous, depending on one’s sense of humor. Conversely, only having a single Vault Hunter’s abilities available at any given time gets old eventually, even with the various upgrades and unlockable skill tree.
Adding companions would greatly increase the ways players interact with combat, as it could encourage them to prioritize certain skills or abilities that work best with those they’re fighting alongside. Additionally, AI-controlled companions would be able to help revive the player, preventing those who are struggling with certain areas from dying and having to run all the way back from a revival point. If players were given control over their AI-controlled Vault Hunter’s skills, they could also ensure that each character works efficiently with one another while also removing the need for the AI to know which skills to prioritize.
However, perhaps most importantly, it would make the game feel a lot less lonely. Thanks to the ever-expanding scale of the environments throughout the series, running around as a solo Vault Hunter gets increasingly isolating. Having companions by the player’s side would help alleviate this and make tasks in the open world feel a lot less tedious. It’s not as if any of this hasn’t been done, to some extent, before, as past Borderlands games have included AI-controlled characters that aid the player during certain missions. This feature would just be on a bigger scale.
Borderlands 4 Should Flesh Out The Vault Hunter’s Relationships
The Vault Hunters Could Have Party Banter
Borderlands 4’s initial reveal trailer showcased a darker world, with the potential for greater exploration of its central villains and heroes without sacrificing the trademark humor that has defined the series for so long. The developers have even come out and stated firmly that Borderlands 4 won’t feature any form of juvenile humor, which will hopefully result in a more enjoyable and meaningful experience overall. This pivot is the perfect opportunity for Borderlands 4 to implement some form of companion system, as it would allow each character to bond and interact with one another without ever grating on the player.
It has always felt that Borderlands’ single-player mode was lacking, and borrowing Dragon’s Dogma 2’s approach to companions would help to make it not only more enjoyable from a gameplay perspective, but also allow the characters to interact with one another in meaningful ways.
It has never really made sense that a Vault Hunter would venture out alone, not just because the co-op aspect of the game implies that Vault Hunters can work together, but because in external Borderlands media, they always end up coming together. Borderlands 4 adding AI-controlled companions that can banter would help flesh them out significantly, as it would give them the perfect opportunity to dish out lore details and backstories without it feeling too forced. The Vault Hunters throughout the Borderlands series have always had a lot of personality, but it is often not felt in the single-player mode.
It has always felt that Borderlands’ single-player mode was lacking, and borrowing Dragon’s Dogma 2’s approach to companions would help to make it not only more enjoyable from a gameplay perspective, but also allow the characters to interact with one another in meaningful ways. Alternatively, if adding other Vault Hunters is too complicated due to the sheer number of skills the AI would have to grapple with, players could recruit characters designed specifically for this purpose. Regardless, it is clear that Borderlands 4 would benefit from adding AI-controlled companions, and hopefully, it is a feature that makes the cut.
