As $80 video games start to become more common, players are increasingly vocal about the financial strain of keeping up with new releases. Gearbox Software founder Randy Pitchford understands that frustration, and in a recent interview, he offered both empathy and reassurance to fans concerned about the price of Borderlands 4 and games in general.
“I remember working minimum wage and having to figure out how to find the money I needed to buy a premium game that was more expensive than I wished it was,” Pitchford told Tucker Hazell in the latest episode of Dev Dive. “But when I really want the game, I find a way.”
Pitchford continued to say that the frustration with pricing, he believes, stems from passion about a particular game.
MORE BORDERLANDS: Borderlands 4 Price Has Been Confirmed
“I think we see the angst about it most with the games people care about the most,” he said. “The more someone cares about a game, the more the friction of that pricing is in the way. But look, it’s all gonna be fine. It’s all gonna work out…”
He acknowledged that even a $10 increase in price can be meaningful for some, especially in today’s economy.
“Maybe there are some people where that $10 difference is super, super meaningful,” he said, “but from a video game hobbyist perspective, what does it really mean, the $10 difference?
“It means that you can’t buy some $10 indie game. Or that there was a $30 game that now you can only buy a $20 game. Like how tight is it? We’re talking about people that own consoles and own game ready PCs here, we’re not talking about homeless people. I’m not trying to be light about anything. The world’s the world, man. We’re all in it, doing the best we can. Everybody’s just struggling, doing the best they can.”
Still, he believes that value—not just price—is what matters most. Referencing $80 titles like Mario Kart World, Pitchford noted, “It’s 80 bucks, and you know what? It’s freaking worth it. Because you can feel the value in it.”
Shifting focus to Borderlands 4 again, Pitchford emphasized that the game won’t lean into live service trends or heavy microtransactions.
“…the expectation should be that it’s a premium game, it has a premium price, and then it launches as a full featured incredible value product that we might add more things to if you wanna spend more time with it,” he explained. “It’s not a live services conceit… It’s not a microtransactions-based business model.
“Borderlands 4 is absolutely committing to the bit. It is a premium game.”
Even at a $70 price point—more if you want one of the deluxe editions that includes post-launch DLC—Pitchford stands by what Borderlands 4 brings to the table, and what players will get out of it.
“I am 100% certain and 100% confident that whatever the price is that anyone who buys and plays Borderlands 4 is gonna be convinced that the value far, far exceeds the cost,” he said. “Borderlands 4 has huge, huge value, and I think people are gonna be really, really happy about everything.”
Borderlands 4 launches on September 12 for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
What do you think of Randy Pitchford’s general thoughts on the prices of video games and the value games like Borderlands 4 bring? Let us know down below, and join the discussion in the official Insider Gaming forums.
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Mike has been covering the gaming industry since 2012, and has reported on some of the largest events in the industry while also working as an investigative reporter. Outside of…
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