Borderlands 4’s creative director has responded to certain concerns about the looter shooter’s Ultimate Vault Hunter endgame mode, noting that “endgame is supposed to be earned/tough, so we like the challenge.”
After you finish Borderlands 4’s main campaign, you’re able to unlock the Ultimate Vault Hunter mode, which allows you to start with a new character – already at level 30 – and skip the campaign. Additionally, completing the campaign for the first time unlocks the new Specialization skill tree, providing you with even more perks.
However, not everything carries over with the Ultimate Vault Hunter mode – namely, the map is wiped of things like fast travel points and landmarks. That’s not to mention the fact that you’re thrown into the mode with an unfinished character build. These are two concerns raised by Forbes writer Paul Tassi, and echoed by others on Twitter.
“The trade-off for skipping the story and 30 levels but still starting with basically nothing is kind of off-putting,” one player writes. “I started with Rafa as well and then started a Vex and was kind of disappointed when I realized the task that lie ahead of me.”
“The start at lvl 30 feels very underwhelming,” another agrees, adding that you may as well “just burn through the campaign again” if you have to unlock things regardless.
Responding, creative director Graeme Timmins explains that “our goal was to provide a canvas for you to re-explore the world (and earn SDUs [Storage Deck Upgrades] while doing so), level to 50, do your UVH [Ultimate Vault Hunter] ranks challenges, and use your campaign mission rewards to jump start a build to try/experiment with.”
Replying to the suggestion that perhaps the experience could be improved if fast travel points carried over into the endgame mode, as well as the question of why Specialization points aren’t shared across different characters, Timmins continues: “Any fast travels that are unlocked as part of the campaign (HUBs, a couple safe houses) are unlocked, but they need to be revealed from beneath the fog. We’re still looking at other options.
“For Specializations, we wanted players to really specialize their individual characters. We got feedback in previous games that the account-wide stuff gave power boosts to players who wanted natural playthroughs. And now all characters get that Level Up moment more frequently.”
Although Timmins argues that “end game is supposed to be earned/tough, so we like the challenge,” he still appears to suggest that adjustments could potentially be made if players are seriously unhappy. “We’re always watching the community’s reaction to the game,” he adds. So, who knows, perhaps Gearbox might make some changes in updates to come.