Out of Nowhere, A New Borderlands Game Has Arrived! But…

2K has just rolled out a new entry in the Borderlands universe. However, don’t get your hopes up for Borderlands 5 or a sequel to Wonderlands. Instead, we have Borderlands Mobile, a mission-driven looter shooter designed specifically for mobile devices, and it’s available for free on iOS.

As noted by a keen observer, Borderlands Mobile is now live and can be downloaded at no cost from the App Store. Currently, it’s exclusive to iOS devices, primarily optimized for the iPhone. I tried it out on my iPad and had to hit the “full screen” button to make it fit, which suggests it’s not really tailored for larger screens. Here’s a glimpse of the gameplay from Borderlands Mobile:

Interestingly, this release came out of nowhere. There was no prior announcement from 2K or Gearbox, and I couldn’t even find a trailer. As of April 9 around 11 a.m. EST, the official Borderlands Twitter account hadn’t mentioned it either. The game feels a bit incomplete at the moment; I could only select the Siren character without any customization options. The opening video hints that the story takes place after Borderlands 3, but likely before Borderlands 4.

It’s quite unusual for a major franchise like Borderlands to launch a new game, even a mobile version, without any hype or promotional material. Perhaps they’re looking to gauge player reactions first and may ramp up marketing if it performs well. But that’s just speculation. Regardless, I’m diving into a new Borderlands experience today, which was a surprise when I woke up this morning.