Borderlands 3 Post-Release Updates Detailed, Includes Story Expansions And Free Events

At PAX West, Gearbox announced the first stage of post-release content for Borderlands 3, which is out now. The loot shooter has three content drops scheduled to release this year, with more on the way in 2020. The full Borderlands 3 Fall/Winter 2019 content calendar is pictured below.

Following its release, Borderlands 3 will get a Halloween-themed limited-time event called Bloody Harvest. The event will include thematically spooky activities and side missions, and completing these will allow you to unlock unique rewards. Later in the year, a much larger expansion called Maliwan Takedown will release. This expansion adds a whole new map to Borderlands 3, and the area will contain brand-new enemies, a never-before-seen boss, and powerful weapons and rewards. Both Bloody Harvest and Maliwan Takedown will be free.

Finally, before 2019 ends, Borderlands 3 will receive the first of its major DLC expansions. These larger expansions are not free, but they include a lot more content than the free add-ons. The DLC will also be included in the Season Pass, so buying the Borderlands 3 Super Deluxe edition unlocks all of its content automatically. Like the free add-ons, this DLC adds new side missions, enemies, and loot but it also expands on Borderlands 3 with campaign missions that act as a sequel to the game's story.

It will be interesting to see how Gearbox handles Borderlands 3 going into 2020, given the landscape of loot shooter games. Post-release content for Borderlands 2 was largely new playable Vault Hunters or additional story missions that could be tackled with another person if you wanted. Including free pieces of content like holiday-themed events and map expansions in the post-release calendar is a new strategy for the series. Then again, Borderlands 3 changes a lot of what makes a Borderlands game a Borderlands game--such as adjusting how skill trees and active skills work, giving the Vault Hunters more personality, moving the setting off the planet of Pandora, and implementing movement mechanics inspired by modern day shooters like Titanfall 2.

Borderlands 3 is out now on Xbox One, PS4, and PC on September 13. It's also scheduled to release on Google Stadia, a cloud-based game streaming service.