Following confusion among fans and conflicting statements from Gearbox concerning whether Borderlands 3 will have microtransactions, publisher 2K has now confirmed what is actually the case; there will indeed be Borderlands 3 microtransactions. However, the publisher states unequivocally that they will be for cosmetic items only.
Borderlands 3 Microtransactions Will be Cosmetic-Only, Confirms 2K
The question of whether Borderlands 3 would have microtransactions has been circulating online since the recent gameplay reveal livestream event. During that event, Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford said that the game wouldn’t have microtransactions, or any; “microtransaction-y, free-to-play junk”. However, a conflicting statement followed shortly after from Paul Sage, the game’s Creative Director. Sage told Game Informer that there would be cosmetic microtransactions.
Pitchford subsequently criticised Game Informer on Twitter, accusing them of distorting his statements. It seems that Pitchford had been referring to premium currency and loot boxes, rather than all microtransactions, though that certainly wasn’t clear from his prior statements. As reported by Eurogamer, publisher 2K has now issued a clarifying statement; “Players will have the option to purchase certain cosmetic items like character, vehicle, and weapon skins, but none of these purchases would be considered pay-to-win or impacting on gameplay, like weapons or actual gear.”
In other words, there will be Borderlands 3 microtransactions in the game. However, these microtransactions will be cosmetic-only in nature. There won’t be loot boxes or any sort of pay-to-win mechanics. This clarification should calm down some of the social media furore which has developed in the midst of these conflicting statements. Furthermore, players will still be able to get these cosmetic items for free as in-game loot drops; something which Pitchford confirmed in a follow-up tweet. While microtransactions in general aren’t popular among many gamers, most people don’t have serious problems with cosmetic-only ones. As such, the Borderlands 3 microtransactions are likely to become a non-issue fairly quickly.