Summary
One of theBorderlandsseries' most popular elements is its many pop-culture references and easter eggs, and the upcomingBorderlands 4has the opportunity to take the concept up a notch. As each subsequent entry introduced a larger, and more varied, open world to explore,developer Gearbox Softwarehas included more expansive and complicated secrets to find. However,Borderlands 2may include the series’ best, as one easter egg sees players reenact one of the fantasy genre’s most legendary storylines. InBorderlands 4, Gearbox could build upon this specific concept, making the complicated easter egg even greater, and far more tempting.
Little is truly known aboutBorderlands 4, aside from the fact that it is in development. However, fans have been speculating about many of its major elements since the release ofBorderlands 3. The third entry in the series failed to leave a lasting impression, but its follow-up DLCs, and the release ofNew Tales from the Borderlandsopened the door to a variety of new storylines. With so many potential paths laid open forBorderlands 4, the title has the opportunity to course-correct on a lot of the issues fromBorderlands 3and to improve on the series’ implementation of lore and pop-culture references.
Borderlands 2 Featured an Expansive Lord of the Rings Easter Egg
Borderlands 2stands as the best entry intheBorderlandsfranchise, and for good reason. The title introduced players to the series’ best villain, Handsome Jack, and saw them traverse a variety of unique environments in an attempt to thwart his opening of the vault on Pandora.Borderlands 2also featured one of the series’ best and most complicated easter eggs. After obtaining a hidden item from the title’s opening area, the easter egg saw players tasked with traversing the entirety ofBorderlands 2’s map on foot, in a reenactment ofLord of the Rings’ The Quest of the Ring.
To beginBorderlands 2’s LOTR easter egg, players must return to Claptrap’s Place after discovering Eridium Blight on True Vault Hunter mode. Within the location’s fireplace, they can find The Gear, which acts as the journey’s One Ring, setting the easter egg into motion. Much like the Hobbits in theLord of the Rings, players are then tasked with traveling to the top of Eridium Blight’s volcano completely on foot. Upon reaching the pinnacle of the Blight’s volcano, they will encounter a Psycho named Geary, the easter egg’s Gollum. Should players accidentally use a fast travel station, enter a vehicle, or die along their journey, they must restart the entire process. If players followed all the rules, Geary will slap them, steal The Gear, and leap into the volcano, releasing Rakks that drop a few loot chests. If they failed, Geary will slap them indefinitely, and they will need to restart from Claptrap’s Place.
Borderlands 4 Can Make The Gear Easter Egg Even More Tempting
WhileBorderlands 2’sLOTReaster egg is among the series' best,Borderlands 4could improve upon the concept and its execution in a repeat task. While the march from Claptrap’s Place to Eridium Blight was expansive, the trek proved more arduous than interesting. A newThe Quest of the Ringeaster egg could implement smaller easter eggs along the journey, replicating key moments from theLord of the Ringsseries. Not only would this increase the amount of unique easter eggs withinBorderlands 4, but it could also indicate whether players have reached certain checkpoints correctly.
In addition to adding checkpoint easter eggs toBorderlands 4’s potential Quest of the Ring, Gearbox could increase the risk and reward by thrusting players into combat encounters that replicate major conflicts within theLOTRseries. Players could encounter witty knock-offs of Helm’s Deep, Shelob’s Lair, The Black Gate, and many more events as they trek toward their final destination, with each providing additional loot to players who pass each checkpoint. Upon reaching the “volcano” at the end of this difficult journey, players can even be gifted exclusive loot referencing key weapons from theLOTRfranchise, akin toBorderlands 3’s Burning Chomper shotgun. It remains to be seen whatBorderlands 4may entail, as the title has yet to be officially revealed. Still, fans hope the title will continue the series' long trend of deep and complicated easter eggs, with an update toBL2’s The Quest of the Ring providing just one promising concept.
Borderlands
Borderlands is an action RPG first-person shooter created by Gearbox Software and published by 2K Games. The series is commonly called a looter shooter set in a space Western style, where players can select from multiple classes that can level up and acquire new skills. The franchise has quickly become one of the best-selling franchises and produced spin-offs like Tales from the Borderlands as well as a film adaptation being developed by Lionsgate.
