Borderlands 4 has officially been rated by the ESRB and Singapore’s IMDA, confirming the series’ signature blend of graphic violence, mature themes, and irreverent humor will return. The looter-shooter is set for global release on September 12, 2025, for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC, with a Nintendo Switch 2 version to follow. These early ratings suggest Gearbox Software is maintaining the franchise’s characteristically intense tone for its next installment.
According to the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB), Borderlands 4 has been rated M for Mature 17+. The rating cites Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, and Strong Language, along with in-game purchases and user interactions. Players take on the role of a Vault Hunter journeying across the war-torn planet of Kairos to stop a villain known as the Timekeeper, who rules through cybernetic oppression.
In keeping with the franchise’s established formula, combat is presented through a chaotic first-person perspective. Players utilize an arsenal of weapons—ranging from shotguns and machine guns to explosives and blades—to dispatch waves of human and fantastical enemies, including creatures called rippers, pangolins, and splices. The ESRB describes these encounters as “frenetic combat” marked by “realistic gunfire, cries of pain, and blood-splatter effects.” Many enemies dismember upon defeat, with limbs and chunks of gore filling the environment. Some cutscenes raise the level of brutality further, including depictions of impalement, self-inflicted death, and explosive creature deaths that spray blood across the screen.
The rating also draws attention to the game’s frequent sexual innuendos and suggestive content. Dialogue reportedly includes lines such as, “I’m gonna go home and have sex with my wife,” “Start a weird robot sex commune,” and “Have you seen my penis strap?” In at least one in-game location, players will encounter objects resembling sex toys, including phallic imagery and dildos. As expected, strong profanity including the word “f**k” appears throughout.
Singapore’s IMDA also classified Borderlands 4 under the M18 rating for similar reasons. The agency highlighted the game’s portrayal of dismemberment, decapitation, and the disturbing visual of disintegrated enemies leaving severed limbs behind. IMDA’s rating summary additionally references specific moments of graphic violence during story sequences, such as a character pulling a blood-soaked device from a woman’s neck and another stabbing himself.
While the game maintains its signature over-the-top humor, IMDA’s description also points to a radio opera subplot involving a same-sex romance, showcasing the narrative’s occasional shift into character-driven drama. Coarse language is confirmed, again including explicit terms like “f**k,” consistent with previous titles in the series.
Borderlands 4, developed by Gearbox and published by 2K, continues the franchise’s signature formula of frenetic shooting, expansive open worlds, and loot-focused progression. As both the direct sequel to Borderlands 3 and the fifth core entry in the series, the game promises to expand the universe with fresh locations, an arsenal of new weapons, and the series’ trademark offbeat humor. The game’s dark tone and unapologetically mature content position it squarely for adult audiences.
