I’ve actually been enjoying Borderlands 4 after picking it up post-launch, but the game isn’t without its faults. Randy Pitchford is one of them. The game was released on September 12, 2025, and did well in sales. However, Pitchford struggled to keep quiet, stirring up controversy during launch week.
He told players to “refund” the game, suggested they “code their own engine,” and generally fueled frustration online. At one point, he even said, “Accept the reality of the relationship between their hardware and what software they are running is doing.” That’s a real quote — directed at players struggling to run the game on RTX 5090s, not just those meeting minimum specs.
Now, it seems Pitchford is back in the spotlight for another reason. In a recent Shacknews video about the making of Borderlands 4, he moved from talking about development to reflecting on gaming as a whole—and whether the industry has ever truly produced a masterpiece.
What Randy Pitchford actually said about gaming’s “Citizen Kane” moment
In the video, over an hour long with Shacknews and reported on by wccftech, several developers from Borderlands 4, including Randy Pitchford, sat down to talk about the making of the game. During the conversation, Pitchford discussed the massive investment that modern AAA games require. He described how it takes the collaboration of hundreds of people and comes with costs that now rival blockbuster movies.
Toward the end of the interview, Pitchford moved from talking about production to a broader reflection on the state of gaming as a whole. He closed with a statement that could spark heated discussions online, stating:
It can only happen if everybody in that loop believes that what is being imagined has more value to exist in the world than what it takes to create it. Which means you both need the idea of what it takes to create it, the belief in what it takes to create it, and a sense of what it might be worth if it was created. And everybody has to have that understanding, or it just doesn’t work. I love that I’m in it and I love that we’re just getting started. When I say ‘we,’ I’m talking about the whole industry together. We haven’t even had our Citizen Kane yet, let alone Jurassic Park or Star Wars. We’re just figuring this out. But it’s fun.”
Randy Pitchford - Gearbox Software CEO
Pitchford makes it clear he’s talking about the gaming industry as a whole, not just Gearbox or Borderlands 4. His comment is both an acknowledgment of how far games have come and a claim that the industry’s defining artistic moment is still ahead.
Do gaming masterpieces already exist? Halo 3, Baldur’s Gate 3, and more might say yes
It does raise an interesting question: do gaming masterpieces already exist, or are we still waiting for that defining moment? I’m sure many would argue that we already have them, but what one person calls a masterpiece might not mean the same to someone else.
For me, it’s games like Halo 3 that stand out as true masterpieces, especially for how much they defined my childhood and shaped multiplayer gaming for a whole generation. For others, it might be Baldur’s Gate 3, which redefined what a CRPG could be and showed that deep, complex games can still become massive hits. Some people see Red Dead Redemption 2 as the gold standard of cinematic storytelling in games, even if it’s not quite my cup of tea. You could also look at The Witcher 3 for its vast, detailed open world and emotional narrative, or Elden Ring for how it brought challenging gameplay to a mainstream audience and became a cultural phenomenon.
What counts as a masterpiece in gaming is always going to be subjective. With so many different genres and ways to play, there probably won’t ever be a single, universally agreed-upon “Citizen Kane” of games — and maybe that’s a good thing.
Is Pitchford right — or just stirring the pot again?
This time around, it’s a lot more nuanced, and no one honest answer, and in some cases, there’ll be people who don’t even like Citizen Kane, but that doesn't mean it isn’t a masterpiece in its own right for its groundbreaking innovations at the time in 1941. It’s no secret that gaming seems to be constantly evolving with new games coming out all the time, and many being considered masterpieces now more than ever. It’s almost like a golden age, despite industry concerns and rising prices, there’s always a game that stands out among the crowd, breaking the norm that corporations keep chasing.
With that said, do you think gaming has had a single true masterpiece yet, or are we still waiting?
FAQ
Who is Randy Pitchford?
Randy Pitchford is the co-founder and CEO of Gearbox Software, best known for the Borderlands series.
What did Randy Pitchford actually say?
He said gaming hasn’t had its “Citizen Kane moment” — meaning no single game has reached the artistic or cultural impact of cinema’s most iconic works.
Is he saying all games are bad?
Not exactly. He said the industry is “just getting started” and still “figuring this out.” It’s more about potential than criticism — though it’s definitely a spicy take.
What’s the context?
The quote came from a Shacknews documentary about the making of Borderlands 4. Pitchford was discussing the scale and ambition of modern game development.
Why is this controversial?
Because many gamers believe titles like Half-Life 2, The Witcher 3, Breath of the Wild, and Red Dead Redemption 2 already qualify as masterpieces.
Why was Borderlands 4 controversial at launch?
Despite strong sales, players reported major performance issues and optimization problems, particularly on PC. Pitchford’s public responses to criticism — including telling players to “refund” the game — only added to the backlash.
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