Borderlands 4 update September 18, 2025 brought some much-needed stability improvements to PC players who’ve been dealing with crashes and progression issues since launch. Gearbox finally addressed several critical problems that were making the game unplayable for many vault hunters.
What’s Fixed in This Borderlands 4 Update
The September 18 patch weighs in at around 800MB and focuses entirely on stability rather than performance optimization. While some players hoped for frame rate improvements, this update tackles the more pressing crash issues that were preventing people from enjoying the game at all.
Stability Improvements
The biggest wins in this Borderlands 4 update come from crash fixes. Gearbox addressed several types of crashes that were tied to animation states, audio processing, and collision detection. These were particularly frustrating because they could happen at any time during gameplay, often causing players to lose progress.
GPU-related crashes also got attention in this patch. Many PC players with different graphics card configurations were experiencing random crashes, especially during intense combat sequences with lots of visual effects on screen.
Progression and Gameplay Fixes
One of the most annoying bugs involved the Reward Center completely stopping after players claimed their Gilded Glory Pack rewards. This left many pre-order customers unable to access their bonus content, which understandably caused frustration in the community.
The “Talk to Zadra” mission was causing progression blockers for players who quit during dialogue sequences. This is a common scenario – you start talking to an NPC, something comes up, you quit the game, and when you return, the mission is broken. Now that’s fixed.
Players were also seeing incorrect “Doesn’t own DLC” warnings on regular gear that wasn’t part of any downloadable content. While this didn’t break gameplay, it was confusing and annoying to deal with constantly.
Loot System Changes
The Gilded Glory Pack caused another issue where exclusive pre-order weapons were showing up in regular loot chests throughout the world. This diluted the value of the pre-order bonus and made the exclusive items feel less special. The Borderlands 4 update fixed this by updating loot pools to keep these weapons exclusive to the pack.
What’s Still Missing from This Borderlands 4 Update
While this patch addresses critical stability issues, it doesn’t tackle some of the bigger problems players are facing. Performance optimization is still missing, meaning players with stuttering frame rates and memory leak issues will need to wait for future updates.
The skill point reset bug that’s affecting co-op players hasn’t been addressed yet. This devastating bug essentially resets players back to level one by wiping their skill trees clean. For a game built around character progression, this is a major problem that needs fixing soon.
Balance changes are also absent from this update. Gearbox confirmed that overpowered builds are safe for now, but many players are hoping for weapon and character balancing in upcoming patches.
Weekly Content Updates
Beyond bug fixes, Gearbox announced that Borderlands 4 will receive weekly minor updates. These include rotations of the Weekly Big Encore Boss, Wildcard Missions, and Maurice’s Black Market Vending Machine locations.
Weekly Big Encore Bosses are tougher versions of existing bosses with better loot pools. Wildcard Missions add challenging modifiers to existing missions while guaranteeing legendary drops. These features should help keep the endgame interesting for dedicated players.
Console Players Still Waiting
While PC players got their stability fixes, console players are still waiting for some of these improvements. Gearbox mentioned that certain fixes will “be coming to consoles in the coming days,” but didn’t provide specific timelines.
Looking Ahead
This Borderlands 4 update represents an important first step in stabilizing the game, but there’s clearly more work to be done. Gearbox has acknowledged that performance optimization is a top priority, so hopefully future patches will address frame rate issues and memory leaks.
For now, PC players should see fewer crashes and progression blockers, making the game much more playable. The fixes to the Gilded Glory Pack issues should also improve the experience for players who pre-ordered the game.
Frequently Asked Questions
How big is the Borderlands 4 September 18 update?
The update is approximately 800MB in size and will download automatically through Steam when you launch the client.
Does this Borderlands 4 update fix performance issues?
This update focuses on stability and crash fixes rather than performance optimization. Frame rate improvements and memory leak fixes are expected in future updates.
Are console versions getting these fixes too?
Some fixes are PC-only for now, but Gearbox confirmed that console versions will receive similar updates “in the coming days.”
Did they fix the skill point reset bug?
No, the skill point reset bug affecting co-op players has not been addressed in this update. This remains a significant issue that many players are waiting to see fixed.
What’s included in weekly updates for Borderlands 4?
Weekly updates include rotations of the Weekly Big Encore Boss, Wildcard Missions, and Maurice’s Black Market Vending Machine locations. These don’t require downloads and happen server-side.
Will there be balance changes in future Borderlands 4 updates?
Yes, balance changes are expected in future updates, but Gearbox hasn’t provided a timeline. For now, existing powerful builds remain unchanged.
Conclusion
The September 18 Borderlands 4 update marks a solid step toward fixing the game’s most pressing stability issues. While it doesn’t address everything players want to see improved, it makes the game significantly more stable for PC players dealing with crashes and progression blockers. Console players will need to wait a bit longer for their fixes, and everyone will need to be patient for performance optimizations and balance changes. Still, it’s encouraging to see Gearbox actively working on these problems and communicating their priorities to the community.