Borderlands 4's Horrors of Kairos event is the wrong kind of Halloween haunting

Borderlands 4 it may have launched with some technical difficulties, but other than that, fans were quite happy with the game upon release. Sure, some Vault Hunters needed nerfs while others needed buffs, but the combat itself was and is incredibly satisfying, the loot remains consistently rewarding, and the storytelling was a step in the right direction. While Borderlands 4It takes a bit of work to fully clear the open world level and Ultimate Vault Hunter, now many players have done everything needed and are patiently waiting for something new. Unfortunately, Gearbox's first stab at major post-launch content is a big mistake, especially compared to the series' past success.

For those looking for a meaty post-launch experience to dive into, Horrors of Kairos certainly doesn't tick that box. In fact, it's so limited in scope that most players won't even notice anything is happening, with new features limited to a slight “weather” change and two pieces of legendary gear. Sadly, both of these additions are largely disappointing, and participating in this event will feel more like the worst installment of the original's iconic General Knoxx DLC. Border than anything else. Considering how much better Borderlands 3 she managed her halloween party, it's shocking how weak she is Borderlands 4's spin on the holiday is, and it's a worrying sign for some future additions to the game.

Borderlands 4's Horrors of Kairos is a boring grind with poor rewards

Instead of introducing new bosses, basic enemies, or locations, the only way to progress in the Horrors of Kairos event is to face the world bosses. These fights work exactly as usual, with bubbles randomly appearing in the open world and players killing bosses in them. Upon entering the bubble, players will experience the “seasonal weather variant” teased for the heist shooter, which is just some bloody rain and a pretty crushing orange sky. That's the extent of the “newness” to the event, as all of the world bosses players fight are exactly the same as the ones they've been fighting since launch. Normally, world boss bubbles are an exciting distraction between activities or quest objectives. However, with the need to farm, players are constantly seen driving all over Kairos waiting for a bubble to pop, with such long downtimes between actions that the event becomes boring almost immediately. If franchise veterans hated driving 10 minutes at a time in “General Knoxx's Secret Armory”, this content is not for them.

Worse while he said Border The expansion paid off brilliantly among all the management, whether it was the well-timed opening of the red chest at the end of the story or the pearl drops from Crawmerax the Invincible, the two new Legendaries in Horrors of Kairos are painfully bland. The first is the Skully Grenade, and while the throwable skull seems cool in theory, it's incredibly weak and won't do anything other than sit inside players. Borderlands 4 safes. The Murmor Tediore Assault Rifle is also pretty weak, its damage doesn't match the neat bloody look of the weapon, although in theory it could be decent if players dropped it with the right parts. Unfortunately, these two Legendaries don't drop from world boss bubbles that often, so players have to open several reward crates before getting just one drop. Hours of farming world bosses in the hope of getting the right parts means the assault rifle won't be missing either, as players will be better off going after better legendaries than any of these limited time unlocks.

Borderlands 3 already has Halloween events right

What's so frustrating about this new content is that Borderlands 3Blood Harvest was very well received. In this seasonal event, players battled their way through a special haunted map full of themed enemies, with a fun boss battle against Captain Haunt at the end of the location. The map featured a secret puzzle as well as some really good legends to chase, and while Revenge of the Cartels was a much better event, Bloody Harvest was still a strong first outing. Borderlands 3free updates. As Borderlands 4 managed to screw up the concept so badly after the previous main game nailed it that it's anyone's guess, but given their similar theme, it's impossible not to compare the two.

Although it may be unfair to say that this content is worse than that Tiny Tiny's Wonderlands DLC, as players had to pay for these controversial content packs, while Horros of Kairos is free, the absence of a price tag does not excuse the event from criticism. Players now have legitimate reason to worry about future post-release updates Borderlands 4. Additional seasonal events could be as bland as Horrors of Kairos, with players fighting the same world bosses for a few pieces of mediocre (or worse) gear to collect. The “How Rush Saved Mercenary Day” DLC has been described as something similar Borderlands 2Headhunter Packs, so it should provide at least an hour or two of really new content, even if it won't keep fans busy for too long. WITH Borderlands 3 to do seasonal events better and also have a hugely enjoyable Takedowns ending, the pressure is on us Borderlands 4The Mad Ellie expansion will right the ship, as a free game update just isn't worth looking forward to if Horrors of Kairos is anything to go by.

Released

September 12, 2025

ESRB

Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Crude Language, In-Game Purchases, User Interaction