Borderlands has never been a franchise known for subtlety, but sometimes the most important details are the ones that slip by the fastest. Sure, there are the loud, over-the-top shouts from Borderlands' Psychos and Goliaths that are anything but subtle, but that's precisely what makes the series' quieter messages so worth paying attention to. The most recent case of this is Borderlands 4, which teased something almost a year ago that it has since avoided like the plague.
Gamers don't really even need to keep their ears to the ground to know Borderlands 4 has been a hot topic in the industry this year, but that statement rings even more true when considering just how much Gearbox has pushed its upcoming title into the spotlight. To put it plainly, Borderlands 4 has been heavily marketed, receiving numerous trailers, an exclusive State of Play deep dive, and plenty of discourse surrounding the game's price, content, and even comments made by Gearbox head Randy Pitchford. However, despite all the different reveals and conversations surrounding the game, its original tease still remains an unexplained mystery.
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Borderlands 4 Is Still Keeping Its Eridian Mystery Under Wraps
Borderlands 4 Has Revealed Nearly Everything Except Its Original Tease
At this point, Borderlands 4 fans might know more about the upcoming title than fans of almost any other game currently slated for a 2025 launch. Gearbox has been generous with the reveals, to say the least, shelling out details about exploration on Borderlands 4's Kairos, some of the new Vault Hunters, new combat and traversal abilities, and even story details. Hands-on previews for the game have covered things like world events, boss variety, and combat pacing, while the game's State of Play deep dive went over mission structure, new weapon systems, and even returning characters. However, Borderlands 4's original tease remains to be seen, talked about, or even hinted at in all of these reveals.
Near the end of Borderlands 4's official teaser trailer, for a split second, the footage reveals lines of Eridian glyphs that translate to "HE IS WATCHING" and "BREAK FREE." Since then, one of Borderlands 4's taglines has been "Break Free," with it being used in various trailers. More than likely, this is in reference to the Timekeeper, his oppressive dictatorship over Kairos, and the struggle of the planet's inhabitants to break free of that control. As for "HE IS WATCHING," though, there has still not been a single callback to it, nor anything connecting the game to the Eridians.
The Eridian Thread May Tie the Whole Narrative Together
Considering "HE IS WATCHING" was originally written in Eridian glyphs, it's most likely a reference to the Eridian Watcher, a mysterious alien guardian introduced in previous Borderlands entries. At the end of Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, the Watcher speaks directly to the Vault Hunters and warns them of a greater war to come and suggests that there are far greater threats ahead of them. To this day, that war has not occurred. As such, it could be that Borderlands 4's Timekeeper is not actually the big bad and players could be introduced to the Watcher as the overarching antagonist of Borderlands' next era, potentially over the course of the fifth and sixth mainline games.
Considering "HE IS WATCHING" was originally written in Eridian glyphs, it's most likely a reference to the Eridian Watcher, a mysterious alien guardian introduced in previous Borderlands entries.
In any case, it's likely no accident that Borderlands 4, even with how much has been revealed about it so far, has still not addressed the mystery that got the whole community talking after the release of the game's first trailer. Given the initial reveal of the Eridian glyphs and the fact that the game has not revisited the topic, it's sensible for fans to expect a major plot twist in Borderlands 4, and perhaps one that occurs at the end of the game as a setup for the next. Surely Gearbox didn't expect this to just fly under the radar or be dismissed as an oversight, though, and wants fans to keep talking.
Borderlands 4
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OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 82 /100 Critics Rec: 88%
- Released
- September 12, 2025
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
- Gearbox Software
- Publisher(s)
- 2K
WHERE TO PLAY
