Frisco, Texas, March 28, 2026, 13:13 CDT
Borderlands 4’s debut paid story DLC dropped March 26, but right out of the gate, players aren’t happy with what they’re getting for the price. By this weekend, Mad Ellie and the Vault of the Damned was sitting at a Mostly Negative on Steam, just 32% of its 231 user reviews coming in positive.
This pushback lands at a crucial moment for Gearbox, marking its first serious paid effort to re-engage lapsed players after months spent ironing out performance issues and dealing with a Mixed overall Steam rating for the base game. Alongside the DLC on March 26, a patch bumped the level cap up to 60 and introduced shared character progression, meaning returning players now see their progress carry over and face less grind.
2K revealed that Story Pack 1 introduces C4SH the Rogue, a fresh Vault Hunter class, plus the Whispering Glacier zone, along with extra missions, bosses, enemy types, and gear. Priced at $29.99 in U.S. stores, the add-on lands alongside the standard edition of Borderlands 4, which lists at $69.99 before any discounts available now.
According to support documentation, players must have the base game and finish “A Lot to Process” before they can access the new zone. There’s another option: owners are allowed to create a new character and jump into the DLC starting at level 13. 2K has confirmed Story Pack 1 marks the first of two planned paid Story Packs, included as part of the $49.99 Vault Hunter Pack and the Super Deluxe edition. Borderlands Support
The debate is shifting as more players talk about time. According to Kotaku, users pointed out the main quest only takes two to three hours to finish—a detail that’s now driving the price controversy, overshadowing any discussion about the new character or loot additions.
Players are stacking the new pack up against Borderlands’ existing DLC lineup. On Steam, Borderlands 2 add-ons like Captain Scarlett and the Mechromancer Pack still show a $9.99 price tag. For Borderlands 3, campaign extras such as Moxxi’s Heist list for $14.99, pre-discount. Back in November, Gearbox made Borderlands 4’s Bounty Pack 1 free, after acknowledging it shipped with less content than intended.
Gearbox is also working to shift the dialogue around performance. In a PC status update this week, the studio reported a roughly 20% climb in average frame rates since launch, with crash rates dropping by nearly half since December. Lead game designer Josh Jeffcoat described the new pack as something designed to “come back for the adventure.” Borderlands
Earlier this month, senior character designer Tommy Westerman described C4SH as centered on “purposely unpredictable playstyles”—Gearbox is betting that gambler fantasy will lure fans back. But now, after launch, that draw looks a lot shakier than it once did. PlayStation.Blog
Not everyone is turning their thumbs down just yet. On the U.S. PlayStation Store, the DLC pulled a 4.17 out of 5 from 186 reviews as of Saturday—noticeably higher than what Steam users are giving it, and not far from the 3.9 out of 5 that the core game holds there. Still, if the debate over value keeps heating up, Gearbox could have trouble getting the DLC to do what they want: lure players back in and keep them playing.
Gearbox is planning more free and paid drops later this year: a second raid, an additional takedown, and Story Pack 2 are all on deck. But if you look at early storefront figures, signs of a real turnaround haven’t materialized just yet.
