With the recent crossover of Captain Jack Sparrow from Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean joining Sea of Thieves, it seems only logical for another well-known pirate to also join Rare's swashbuckling adventure: Captain Scarlett from Borderlands 2. The Borderlands 2 expansion, entitled Captain Scarlett and Her Pirate's Booty, was released in 2012 when the Borderlands franchise was at its height, similar to the Pirates of the Caribbean. Gearbox is clearly eager to relive this period as seen with its newest upcoming title, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, which is itself a spin-off of another great Borderlands 2 DLC: Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep.

Not only does Tiny Tina's Wonderlands prove that Gearbox is more than happy to go through its back catalog, but it also provides an opportunity for Gearbox to expand its Borderlands worldbuilding. Not least of all would it be a breath of fresh air from the rather stereotypical portrayal of pirates currently seen in Sea of Thieves.

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Old Content, Made New

If the recent announcement of The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim being re-released for the seventh time doesn't prove that there is still an incredible appetite for decade-old video games, then nothing will. Gearbox Software, like Bethesda, understands this desire for nostalgia-fueled fun within the gaming community, which is likely why it is releasing a full game, with a loaded cast, all about one of Borderlands 2's best DLC.

Gearbox has such well-known and iconic IPs to its name such as Duke Nukem, Brothers in Arms, and Borderlands. The first Borderlands even got a recent remaster in the form of Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition to solid reviews as the studio realized that when games begin to age, they become less and less accessible to a newer audience. Similarly, the exceptional characters, writing, and world-building present in Borderlands 2, and especially its spectacular four story-based DLCs, will also soon be in the same state as the original game unless Gearbox allows these Borderlands characters to appear in other games.

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Borderlands Worldbuilding

One fan shares their detailed Handsome Jack cosplay.

Even though the main appeal of the Borderlands series is the addicting gameplay and hunt for that next best weapon, there is a ton of lore and major story beats that are worth the player's attention. Everything from the incredible voice acting, to the quest descriptions, to the characters themselves, makes it difficult to describe any of them in a single sentence; it's all a lot more complex and serious than the goofy comic book style makes it appear.

Gearbox even made an entire game, Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel devoted to exploring one of the most complex and interesting characters present in Borderlands 2: Handsome Jack. While Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel was largely more of the same in terms of gameplay (with a few additions), it did mark the first time a player would step foot off Pandora, clearly implying that Gearbox is interested in exploring every facet of this universe.

With no sign of any new mainline games set in the Borderlands universe to expand its lore, Gearbox should consider crossing over in new and popular games as an alternative. It's no secret that the Borderlands franchise has an immense impact on popular culture and the gaming industry as a whole; it has been referenced countless times and itself references many popular shows like The Office and Doctor Who. Furthermore, the team at Gearbox could easily come up with an in-universe explanation for its characters venturing out into other IPs. In fact, the process of expanding Borderlands characters and lore to other game franchises has already begun.

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Why Sea of Thieves for Borderlands?

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Despite Sea of Thieves' rocky start, Rare is committed to making Sea of Thieves the premier pirate game on the market, just as Hello Games have since made No Man's Sky the premier space sandbox game. As part of this continued support, Sea of Thieves announced its third season of content titled A Pirate's Life, which sees players crossing paths with one of the most iconic modern pirates: Captain Jack Sparrow himself.

However, this piece of news is overshadowing the most relevant aspect of its Borderlands connection, the Making Mayhem event. This new event allows players to compete and earn an entire ship directly inspired by the Borderlands franchise, vault symbols, and everything. Though this may be small in comparison to Captain Jack Sparrow's appearance, it certainly seems to be hinting towards something larger.

There are clearly not many actual pirates within the Borderlands franchise, given that it is set in the far future on an alien world, so the fact that Rare already collaborated with Gearbox for a Borderlands pirate-themed event is intriguing. The most iconic pirate in the franchise is without a doubt Captain Scarlett from the first DLC in Borderlands 2. She is unapologetically a pirate, embodying all the cliches that people know and love.

However, Captain Scarlett is not as stereotypical as one might initially think, as she outright tells the vault hunters on multiple occasions that she is not to be trusted. She displays and maintains this ironic and unexpected sense of honesty despite her chosen profession of looting and swashbuckling. Alongside the expected humor of Borderlands, Captain Scarlett is a truly unique portrayal of a future pirate. These aspects, combined with the fact that the community knows precious little about her because she was just in one DLC, make her the perfect choice for Gearbox should it continue down this path of collaboration with Rare for Sea of Thieves.

Sea of Thieves is available now on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

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