Way back when, in the months leading up to the Nintendo Switch’s launch, Gearbox Software stated that Borderlands 3 was not in development for the Switch. That seems to be the case still, even as the rest of the series’ main titles have made their way to the portable console, but the latest from the rumor mill suggests that that might be changing.
An interesting job listing was recently posted by developer Fractured Byte, one of the studios involved with the Switch port of the Borderlands Legendary Collection. The listing in question is looking for a C++ game developer to work on a Unreal Engine shooter title, with specific tasks including developing for the Switch and aiding the studio in “shipping games like Borderlands and Borderlands 2 for Nintendo Switch.” On top of this, the listing also includes a link to Digital Foundry’s analysis of the Legendary Collection.
Given all this focus on Borderlands and the Switch, as well as Fractured Byte’s past experience with both, it led YouTuber Doctre81, who discovered the listing, to speculate that this unnamed shooter project could very well be a Switch port of Borderlands 3. Doctre81 has had some experience with listings like this, having previously uncovered evidence of The Witcher 3’s Switch port well before it was announced, as well as a recent listing for a Switch port of the cult GameCube game Killer7 (though that later proved to be inaccurate).
As far as Borderlands 3 is concerned, though, it wouldn't be too much of a stretch for Doctre81 to be correct. Some of the higher-ups at Gearbox, including CEO Randy Pitchford and creative director Paul Sage, have suggested that a Switch port of Borderlands 3 is possible, and if games as big as The Witcher 3 could fit on the Switch, then it stands to reason that the looter-shooter series’ latest entry could potentially do it too.
However, there’s still the question of the technical hurdles. Whereas the Borderlands games on the Legendary Collection were powered by Unreal Engine 3, Borderlands 3 is an Unreal Engine 4 title, and although the Switch supports UE4, a potential port would probably have to put in a fair bit of work figuring out how to compress the game to accommodate the Switch’s tiny storage capacity. As it stands, the game’s install size on other platforms alone is larger than the Switch’s 32GB internal storage limit.
But these technical constraints might be a moot point ultimately, what with the rumors that Nintendo is developing an upgraded 4K “Switch Pro,” which would likely remove much of the hurdles that currently come with porting games to the console. If these are true, then this could be the push publishers need to get more of the latest AAA releases on the console, Borderlands 3 included. That said, it remains to be seen if 2K has any intention of bringing the game to any version of the Switch, Pro or otherwise.
Borderlands 3 is available for PC, PS4, Stadia, and Xbox One, with PS5 and Xbox Series X versions in development.