37-year-old Caleb McAlpine is so seriously ill that he may not live to see the release of Borderlands 4. He asked if it would be possible to see the game before its release. After an initial response from the CEO, he is now presenting the concrete plan that Gearbox has for him.
What has McAlpine done? The man who claims to be a big fan of Borderlands reached out to the Borderlands community. He had a big wish:
- McAlpine has terminal cancer. According to his medical team, he has only 7-12 months to live. If the chemotherapy works, he may have nearly 2 more years.
- He fears that he will not live to see the release of Borderlands 4. The game is scheduled for 2025, and it could still be that the release is pushed back further.
- Therefore, McAlpine turned to the Reddit forum and asked if anyone had contact with Gearbox, the developer of Borderlands 4. He would be delighted if there were a way to see the game before its release.
Initially, the sick fan received a response from Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford. He wrote that the two were in email contact and that Gearbox would do everything possible to make something happen. Now McAlpine is back and presenting Gearbox’s concrete plans.
So far, there has only been a small teaser for Borderlands 4:
McAlpine and the chance of a lifetime with Borderlands 4
What does Gearbox’s plan look like? McAlpine replied to his own Reddit thread. He thanks the community for the kind words and writes that Gearbox has something planned for him. The Borderlands fan is set to be flown to Gearbox’s office in mid to late November, just a few weeks away.
There, he has the opportunity to see the current state of Borderlands 4. Whether he will be able to take the keyboard and mouse in hand himself is unfortunately not revealed in the post. However, McAlpine is already expressing how overwhelmed he is by this opportunity and that it feels like a dream for him.
Since Borderlands 4 has been announced for 2025, the title will still need some development time. Accordingly, the shooter will not be in a state that could be released right now. Nevertheless, it is a great opportunity for McAlpine to get a glimpse of Borderlands 4 before anyone else.
Is this an exception? Gearbox has previously launched several initiatives for fans. A similar case occurred with Borderlands 3. According to his own statements, McAlpine was not even aware that Gearbox had already helped other sick fans.
It touched his heart when he read what a great company Gearbox is. The developer studio has helped fans even though they didn’t have to.
McAlpine has been a huge Borderlands fan since the first game in the series. Each game is good in its own way, from the characters to the weapons. Nevertheless, MeinMMO has created a ranking of all Borderlands games and reveals which titles are more worthwhile than others: 6 games about Borderlands in the ranking
