Fans have lots of questions about the direction of 2K and Gearbox Software’s franchise, andBorderlands 4has its work cut out if it wants to answer all of them. TheBorderlandsseries has been beloved among its fanbase for many years, with its distinct art style, memorable characters, and enjoyably frenetic gameplay creating an over-the-top experience that helps it stand out from other looter shooters. However, in recent years the developer has focused on spinoff entries likeTiny Tina’s WonderlandsandNew Tales from the Borderlandsinstead of continuing the main storyline, and this is where players are hopingBorderlands 4can course correct.
FollowingBorderlands 3’s final DLC, gamers have mostly been left in the dark about the fate of many of the main characters and their meandering storylines. With the release of theBorderlands Legendary Collectionin 2020 repackaging older titles and subsequent games focusing instead on different formats and narratives, the mainBorderlandsplot has taken a bit of a backseat. While each mainline entry has explored its own cast of characters and premise, there have been recurring threads that fans would love to get some closure on inBorderlands 4, such aswhere Pandoran con artist Fiona ended upor what the origin story is for the enigmatic assassin Zer0 and the Beastmaster robot FL4K.
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Fiona’s Fate In The Borderlands Series
First introduced inTelltale Games' episodic adventureTales from the Borderlands,Fiona was a feisty playable character that soon won fans over with her scrappy attitude and her entertaining back-and-forths with other main character Rhys. Although Fiona and her allies' hair-brained schemes were the central focus ofTales from the Borderlands, she only appeared briefly at the end ofNew Tales from the Borderlandsand has otherwise been absent from the franchise. Rhys at least had more of a definitive storyline in the follow-up to the Telltale Games title, even though the fate of the two characters was very ambiguous at the end of the first game.
Fiona’s fate is once again a huge question mark after she’s last seen following the shard spirit and TIMM-E to the Gladius Nebula inNew Tales from the Borderlands, and fans have been left wondering what exactly happens to her. The mystery surrounding what she’s been up to and where she might end up appears to be deliberately vague, probably so that a futureBorderlandsgame could feature the plucky con artist once again.Borderlands 4could be the perfect space toexplore Fiona’s fate further, with some fans even hoping she becomes a playable Vault hunter.
Getting To The Bottom Of Zer0 And FL4K’s Origins In Borderlands 4
Some of the other characters in theBorderlandsseries' large cast that could do with more exploration are FL4K and Zer0. The robotic playable character FL4K has some details involved in their backstory, as thanks toan ECHO log players can find, they’ll know that they were an “Indexing Unit” controlled by a man known as the “Grand Archivist” before the events ofBorderlands 3kicked off. After becoming self-aware and longing to go on their own journey, FL4K was able to escape and forge their own path, but other than that not much is known about them or where they came from.
Super slick assassin Zer0 is in a similar position. With speculation around if Zer0 is even human (the four fingers on his hand seem to suggest that he’s not), the other playable protagonist is just as much of a blank page as hisBorderlands 3counterpart. Besides the fact that he’s an assassin for hire who lost his taste for his job and left looking for something more fulfilling, Zer0’s past and true name are as mysterious and hidden as his face. Bringing back popular characters like Fiona, FL4K, and Zer0 and fleshing out their stories a lot more could be a great way totie up loose ends inBorderlands 4.
