Borderlands 4 Indefinitely Delayed On Switch 2 As Fans Get Refunds

Borderlands 4 was supposed to kick off the Nintendo Switch 2’s first big fall season but it’s now been indefinitely delayed as Gearbox Entertainment works to deliver the “best possible experience” for fans on the new portable console. It’s a surprisingly last-minute move for a game that was supposed to ship in less than two weeks, on October 3. The pivot comes after weeks of heated debate over the loot shooter’s performance on other platforms.

“We need to share that the release of Borderlands 4 on Nintendo Switch 2 is being delayed,” the studio wrote in an announcement on Tuesday evening. “We do not take this decision lightly, but are committed to ensuring we deliver the best possible experience to our fans, and the game needs additional development and polish time to do that.”

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The studio said it hopes to peg the new release date for Borderlands 4 on Switch 2 to the arrival of cross saves for all versions of the game, but didn’t provide a release window for that either. “We will update you all on the new release timing once we’ve fully adjusted our plans,” the announcement reads. In the meantime, all digital pre-orders on the eShop have been canceled in accordance with a Nintendo policy, and will be refunded starting September 26. 

The sudden delay comes after lots of complaints about Borderlands 4‘s performance on PC as well as some concerns on other consoles, including an apparent memory leak that makes the game run worse if you play it continuously for long stretches of time without quitting out and relaunching. The game is capped at 30fps on Switch 2, and initial hands-on impressions with the game suggested it ran well enough, though experiences on Steam Deck have reportedly been subpar. Digital Foundry’s analysis of the game across various platforms has also been less than glowing.

Gearbox boss Randy Pitchford has been all over social media since the sci-fi sequel launched earlier this month, but hasn’t yet weighed in on the delay as of publishing time.