There's only a few more months to wait until you and the squad can jump into Borderlands 3. Online multiplayer is arguably one of the Borderlands series' strongest features but if you are more of a lone-wolf, or don't have a great gaming mic, you may find yourself a little unenthused about playing with others.
Taking this into account, Borderlands 3 developer Gearbox Software is aiming to make Borderlands 3's multiplayer easier to jump into.
At a panel at Guardian Con last week (via PC Gamer), Gearbox revealed it has added a range of new features to Borderlands 3 to make multiplayer more accessible than its predecessors. The biggest addition? An Apex Legends-style ping system that allows players to communicate with each other without ever having to say a word.
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Much like in Apex Legends, Borderlands 3's multiplayer will allow players to simply cover over an enemy or chest and then press a button to 'ping' it to your fellow teammates. In other words, it lets you highlight important things like hostiles, good loot and objectives.
This feature will allow players to communicate easily and without having to deal with the stress of a stranger screaming down your headset. Of course, that option remains available.
Check out a video of the new ping system in action below:
Accessibility adaptions
In addition to the new ping system, Borderlands 3 includes a bunch of other features that aim to increase the game's overall accessibility including compatibility with the Xbox Adaptive Controller, re-mappable controls, a variety of subtitles and closed captioning options, and level-syncing (which will allow you to play with friends, even if you're different levels).
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There have also been improvements made to online match-making. Players will be able to search for a match in the background while continuing to play the game, and match preferences can be more specific than previously. This means you can find players at the same point in the story as you or set the mode you want to play in.
These quality-of-life changes are big improvements which should hopefully encourage a larger player-base to jump into Borderlands 3 when it releases in September.
An award-winning games journalist, with seven years of experience in games journalism and a degree in journalism from City University, London, Vic brings experience from IGN, Eurogamer, The Telegraph, VG247, Dot Esports and more to the TechRadar table. You may have even heard her on the radio or speaking on a panel, as she’s previously appeared on BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio 5, BBC Radio Ulster and more. Not only is Vic passionate about games, but she's appeared on both panels and podcasts to discuss mental health awareness. Make sure to follow her on Twitter for more.