Take-Two CEO admits Borderlands 4 sales “Softer than expected” despite record launch amid PC issues

Take-Two Interactive’s CEO, Strauss Zelnick, spoke about Borderlands 4’s launch, stating that the game’s sales fell short of expectations, calling them “a little softer than we would have liked.” This could be attributed to Borderlands 4’s performance issues on PC.

Strauss Zelnick recently sat down with The Game Business and, contrary to the gaming community’s sharp criticism, praised Borderlands 4’s reception, stating:

The critical acclaim for Borderlands 4 was superb, and we’re really happy with the release.

Equally, as you know, there were some challenges with the Steam release. Gearbox has been addressing those challenges and will continue to do so. So, in terms of units sold out of the gate. The numbers were a little softer than we would have liked. In the fullness of time, we think it’s going to do great.

Despite Borderlands 4’s globally “soft” sales, the game still dominated U.S. sales charts following its release on September 15, 2025. According to Circana data analyst Mat Piscatella, Borderlands 4 cemented its status as the best-selling “premium” game in the United States in September 2025, outselling titles like EA Sports FC 26 and NBA 2K26.

The title also managed to set series records, generating the highest launch month sales for Gearbox, nearly 30% greater than Borderlands 3, and becoming the third-best-selling game in the U.S. for the 2025 year-to-date, standing behind Monster Hunter Wilds, which fell to the number two spot, as NBA 2K26 swiped the crown.

Estimates suggest that Borderlands 4 sold 2.5 million copies in its first two weeks, generating $150 million in revenue, still falling short of Borderlands 3’s five million units sold in just five days.

It’s reported that the Borderlands series has surpassed 94 million lifetime sales, with Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford confident that Borderlands 4 will eventually push the series past 100 million units sold worldwide.

Gearbox is known for post-launch support, and the studio is addressing PC performance woes by shipping multiple patches. The studio called these issues its “top priority”. However, some updates exacerbated stuttering on multiple PC configurations.

Still, Take-Two’s Zelnick is confident of Borderlands 4’s long-term potential, drawing comparisons to Borderlands 3’s solid post-launch support, despite being plagued with its own bumpy release.

However, Borderlands 4 is struggling with content updates. Recently, Gearbox released the “Horrors of Kairos” Halloween event toward the end of October. Players called it a “huge step down”, dubbing it the worst content drop in the series.

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