Borderlands 4’s Useful Skill Tree Feature is Hopefully Just One of Many

Borderlands 4 is introducing a significant quality-of-life improvement to its skill tree system: an “Invest Maximum Points” option. This new feature allows players to quickly max out skills, eliminating the tedious process of repeatedly clicking to allocate individual skill points, a common frustration in previous games.

This addition is particularly relevant given that Borderlands 4‘s skill trees are significantly larger, with each Vault Hunter gaining three distinct Action Skills and associated trees, offering unprecedented build diversity. As for what other quality-of-life features the game could have, here’s to hoping they are equally as valuable.

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Borderlands 4’s Quality-of-Life Features Should Improve On Earlier Entries Across the Board

This streamlined process is part of a broader skill tree overhaul, which Senior Project Producer Anthony Nicholson describes as the deepest and most diverse in the series’ history:

Borderlands 4’s new trees feature branching paths, Augments, and Capstones, allowing for instant switching between unique builds. Coupled with unique Vault Hunter Traits and a new slotting mechanic for Action Skills, Augments, and Capstones (without spending skill points), the “Invest Maximum Points” feature is aimed at enhancing experimentation.

This improvement also hints at a much more user-friendly respeccing process, encouraging players to explore the expanded options when the game launches. However, while this is a welcome step forward, the broader success of Borderlands 4‘s quality-of-life features will depend on addressing other pain points and refining existing mechanics.

Quality-of-Life Feature Wish List

Expanded storage space
Cross-character Item Access
Improved Menu Responsiveness
Weapon Comparison Interface
Reduced Visual Clutter
Split Screen Optimization

Inventory Management Overhaul

Beyond skill tree management, another crucial area ripe for improvement is inventory. Borderlands 3‘s limited inventory space created constant frustration, often forcing players to make difficult decisions about which legendary items to keep. To truly enhance the player experience, Borderlands 4 desperately needs expanded backpack and bank storage, alongside better organization tools. Features like item tagging, robust sorting options, and the ability to save loadouts would significantly streamline inventory management. Furthermore, the ability to mark items as trash directly upon pickup would be a game-changer, eliminating interruptions during intense gameplay sessions.

In the Borderlands ecosystem, players must log into multiple characters and make numerous trips to the vault to compare gear across their roster. An inventory management app or cross-character access system would eliminate this tedious process, allowing players to view and transfer items between characters without being bombarded with loading screens. This slight tweak would transform what currently takes precious minutes into a seamless experience.

Despite patches aimed at addressing this particular issue, Borderlands 3‘s menu system remained sluggish throughout its lifespan. This led to frustrating delays when trying to check maps, allocate skill points, or manage inventory during co-op sessions. As a result, Borderlands 4 needs completely rebuilt menu systems that respond instantly, particularly during split-screen play, where menu lag can make the game almost unplayable.

Comparing weapons in Borderlands can be complicated, as it requires players to manually contrast numerous stats without clear indicators of overall effectiveness. A streamlined comparison system highlighting meaningful differences between weapons would help players make informed decisions quickly during gameplay.

Visual Clarity and Performance

Borderlands 3 suffered from extreme visual pollution during combat, making it difficult to see enemies or important items during intense firefights. Players need options to reduce particle effects, explosions, and screen shake without sacrificing core visual information. If nothing else, a visual effects slider of sorts would let players customize their experience based on their preferences and hardware capabilities.

Frame rate drops and stuttering were persistent issues in previous editions, particularly during co-op play. To distinguish itself from its forebears, Borderlands 4 needs better optimization mechanics to maintain stable performance across all platforms, especially during chaotic combat scenarios with multiple players. Borderlands 4‘s transition to Unreal Engine 5 provides an opportunity to address these long-standing performance issues.

Split-Screen Optimization

Split-screen co-op in Borderlands 3 was nearly unplayable at launch due to severe performance issues and UI problems. While Gearbox has announced improvements to the lobby system for Borderlands 4, the core split-screen experience could use a revamp to ensure smooth gameplay without the crippling lag that plagued the previous game.