Borderlands 4 may ditch Catch-a-Ride

Summary

• Borderlands 4 introduces vehicles that can be summoned almost anywhere, potentially replacing Catch-a-Ride.
• The new vehicle system aligns with Kairos' seamless exploration design, removing geographical limitations.
• Removing Catch-a-Ride from Borderlands 4 can increase player freedom and immersion in the open-world context.

From its humble beginnings, Border countries the series stuck to its guns, so to speak, relying heavily on certain traditions to carry the weight of each new game and propel the series into the future. One such Border countries tradition is the iconic Catch-a-Ride system, which originally saw players materialize new vehicles to use after interacting with a Catch-a-Ride terminal. However, despite how long the system has been in use, Borderlands 4 may be killing it off once and for all, based on a recent gameplay trailer and some concrete information released alongside it.

Borderlands 4 seems to be making every effort to improve in many areas where its predecessors failed and revitalize the series for veterans and newcomers alike. While the Catch-a-Ride system may be gone, it looks like players could be introduced to an even better vehicle system in Borderlands 4 which will help them explore the game's new planet Kairos.

Borderlands 4 may move away from Catch-a-Ride

Borderlands 4 includes vehicles that can be summoned almost anywhere

The main reason seems to be Borderlands 4 could be doing away with its long-running Catch-a-Ride system as a recent 2K Newsroom article published alongside the release of the game's latest gameplay trailer at the Game Awards 2024 mentions “a vehicle that can be summoned almost anywhere”. It's unclear if this new vehicle system will have limitations of any kind, though the word “almost” in that statement suggests there are. However, given that Borderlands 4His vehicles can be summoned almost anywhere, and summoning a vehicle via a Catch-a-Ride requires players to be at a Catch-a-Ride terminal to do so, Borderlands 4His vehicle's system should, in theory, be a bit more flexible.

That being said, every time a vehicle is shown to be summoned Borderlands 4The gameplay trailer of it appears to be next to a tower, almost suggesting that the new vehicle system could work similarly to Catch-a-Ride. If it works similarly, in that players must first interact with or be near the tower before they can summon their vehicle, then the fact that Borderlands 4His vehicles can be summoned almost anywhere implying that the landscapes of Kairos will be filled with these towers to provide enough opportunities for vehicles to be summoned so that players don't feel geographically limited.

Borderlands 4 Dropping Catch-a-Ride would make sense

Although it may be sad to see him go, Borderlands 4 removing the series' Catch-a-Ride system would make sense given the game's setting and its open design. Borderlands 4Its new planet, Kairos, has been purposely designed to allow for seamless exploration with absolutely zero loading screens, meaning Kairos will be a sizable open world. How big Kairos' explorable area will be has yet to be confirmed by Gearbox, but seamless exploration, one of its most notable features, means it will likely be larger than previous locations. Border countries games.

given that
Borderlands 4
His vehicles can be summoned almost anywhere, and summoning a vehicle via a Catch-a-Ride requires players to be at a Catch-a-Ride terminal to do so,
Borderlands 4
His vehicle's system should, in theory, be a bit more flexible.

In light of Kairos' intentions to provide seamless exploration, it would make sense for Borderlands 4 then to eliminate the iconic Catch-a-Ride system. After all, if Borderlands 4 wants players to be able to explore without interruption, making them stop at certain locations just to grab a vehicle could ruin the immersion it's trying to promote. Furthermore, if Kairos is indeed a much larger location than that Border countries The series has seen previously, requiring players to run between Catch-a-Ride terminals might be a bit too monotonous for some players.

Finally, if Borderlands 4 saying goodbye to the Catch-a-Ride system or simply reinventing it, the game's new vehicle system shows Gearbox's willingness to innovate long-standing traditions and even leave them behind in some cases. Kairos' vast, uninterrupted landscapes demand a traversal system that prioritizes player freedom, and the new vehicle summoning system seems to answer that call. While longtime fans may feel a bit of remorse over Catch-a-Ride's possible removal, it could be a blessing in disguise for Borderlands 4as they try to take the series to greater heights.