New Tales from the Borderlands announced at Gamescom, to bring all new characters in October

Anu and Stapleface from New Tales from the Borderlands
(Image credit: 2K)

What you need to know

  • New Tales from the Borderlands, which was officially announced during Gamescom Opening Night Live, is set to arrive on Oct. 21, 2022.
  • The game will feature three all-new playable characters described as "lovable losers."
  • We learned details about the game last week when Twitter accounts like Wario64 noticed a preorder page on Amazon. Preorders are now available.

After an Amazon preorder page leaked the game's release date early, New Tales from the Borderlands (actual name) has officially been announced today at Gamescom. It's set to release on Oct. 21, 2022, across all platforms (Xbox X|S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, Switch, and PC via Steam and Epic).

Instead of following the characters from the first game, New Tales from the Borderlands will feature all-new characters: Anu, described as an "altruistic scientist;" her "streetwise" brother Octavio; and Fran, a woman in a waitress outfit who slings something called frogurt. Instead of Pandora, the game will take place on Promethea, which was introduced in Borderlands 3. Gearbox Software promises a lot of action, like an invasion and monsters, despite the three characters being civilians and not terrifying and violent Vault hunters.

Like the first Tales, this will be choice and story-driven instead of being overrun with gun loot and combat.

In screenshots supplied to press before the announcement, we get a look at other characters, including a character called Stapleface, a corporate girlboss named Susan, and a robot called Lou13.

The original Tales from the Borderlands was created in a partnership between Gearbox Software and Telltale Games (Gearbox licensed the property to Telltale) and released in 2014. The game followed the story of Rhys, Fiona, Vaughn, and Sasha as they worked to scam mega corporation Hyperion and steal a Vault Key and learned to trust each other in the ever-violent world of the Borderlands universe. The game also featured the return of main series characters like Handsome Jack and Scooter. Tales from the Borderlands ends on a cliffhanger, but Rhys and Vaughn appear in later Borderlands games. 

The game wasn't available for sale for a while following Telltale's closure, but 2K Games has since republished the series. New Tales from the Borderlands is being done completely by Gearbox, along with Telltale veterans.

We'd highly recommend checking out the original if you haven't yet. You can obtain a copy on PC through Steam and the Epic Games Store and on console through Xbox and PlayStation. Players who preorder the new title can also get the Deluxe Edition, featuring digital and physical copies of the new game, along with the first Tales from the Borderlands.

Carli Velocci
Gaming Lead, Copy Chief

Carli is the Gaming Editor and Copy Chief across Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore. Her last name also will remind you of a dinosaur. Follow her on Twitter or email her at carli.velocci@futurenet.com.