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Borderlands

From PCGamingWiki, the wiki about fixing PC games

This page is for the original 2009 version. For the 2019 GOTY Enhanced version, see Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced.

Borderlands
Borderlands cover
Developers
Gearbox Software
Demiurge Studios[1]
Shadows in Darkness
Darkside Games
macOS (OS X) Feral Interactive
Publishers
2K Games
macOS (OS X) Feral Interactive
Engines
Unreal Engine 3
Release dates
Windows October 26, 2009
macOS (OS X) December 3, 2010
Reception
Metacritic 81
IGDB 80
Taxonomy
Monetization One-time game purchase
Modes Singleplayer, Multiplayer
Pacing Real-time
Perspectives First-person
Controls Direct control
Genres Action, FPS, RPG, Shooter
Vehicles Automobile, Off-roading
Art styles Cel-shaded, Comic book
Themes Post-apocalyptic, Sci-fi
Series Borderlands
Borderlands on HowLongToBeat
Borderlands on IGDB
Borderlands guide on StrategyWiki
Borderlands on MobyGames
Borderlands on Wikipedia
Borderlands
Borderlands 2009
Borderlands 2 2012
Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel 2014
Tales from the Borderlands (series)
Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced 2019
Borderlands 3 2019
Borderlands 2 VR 2019
Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep:
A Wonderlands One-Shot Adventure
2021
Tiny Tina's Wonderlands 2022

Warnings

GameSpy online services have been shut down (see Network for solutions).

Borderlands is a singleplayer and multiplayer first-person action, FPS, RPG and shooter game in the Borderlands series.

The online component of retail disc copies is not functional as of September 15, 2014. Retail owners who did not use the granting tool on Steam to convert their retail disc copies into a digital Steam copy before March 27, 2019 must purchase Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced to play online.[2]

Steam owners received all four DLCs for free for the original game following the release of Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced.[3]

General information

Official Discord server for game series
Manual
Gearbox Forums - Borderlands Tech Support
Steam Community Discussions

Availability

Source DRM Notes Keys OS
Retail
Disc check (requires the CD/DVD in the drive to play)
Requires online activation
SecuROM DRM disc check.
Original disc: SecuROM DFA DRM release date check.[Note 1]
GOTY disc: SecuROM DFA DRM for the DLC.[Note 2]
Non-functional online mode following the shutdown of GameSpy.
Windows
Developer website
CD key
Requires online activation
Can only be used x times
GOTY Edition. Five machines limit.
macOS (OS X)
Amazon.com
Icon overlay.png
GOTY Edition. Bundled with the GOTY Enhanced version.
Windows
Steam
Icon overlay.png
GOTY Edition. Bundled with the GOTY Enhanced version.
Windows
Games for Windows Marketplace (unavailable)
Icon overlay.png
[5]
Windows
Mac App Store (unavailable)
Icon overlay.png
GOTY Edition
macOS (OS X)
SecuROM DRM was removed from the Steam version on July 28, 2014 from the main game and all of its DLC.[6]
From September 15, 2014 and up until March 27, 2019 owners of retail disc copies could use a granting tool on Steam to convert their retail disc copies into a digital Steam copy, as part of a multiplayer service transition to Steamworks following the shutdown of GameSpy. This tool was disabled shortly before the announcement of Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced.[2]


Version differences

Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition

Not to be confused with Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced released in 2019.
Complete edition released on October 12, 2010 which included the base game as well as the four DLCs.
Also included Duke Nukem Forever First Access Club Code that granted early access to the demo of Duke Nukem Forever.
While the granting tool only unlocked the base game on Steam, the included GOTY product key in the retail copy could be used to unlock the four DLCs.

Monetization

DLC and expansion packs

Steam owners received all four DLCs for free following the release of Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced.[3]
Name Notes
Claptrap's New Robot Revolution Included in the Game of the Year Edition.
Windows
macOS (OS X)
Mad Moxxi's Underdome Riot Included in the Game of the Year Edition.
Windows
macOS (OS X)
The Secret Armory of General Knoxx Included in the Game of the Year Edition.
Windows
macOS (OS X)
The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned Included in the Game of the Year Edition.
Windows
macOS (OS X)

Essential improvements

Skip intro videos

Instructions[7]
  1. See Command line arguments.
  2. Use -nostartupmovies or -nomovies (will turn off all video including cutscenes)
Delete or rename video files[8]
  1. Go to <path-to-game>\WillowGame\Movies.
  2. Delete or rename 2K_logo.bik, Gearbox_logo.bik, and NVidia.bik.
Manual fix[9]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands\WillowGame\Config
  2. Open WillowEngine.ini file with Notepad or other text editor.
  3. Find:
    StartupMovies=2K_logo
    StartupMovies=Gearbox_logo
    StartupMovies=NVidia
    StartupMovies=Loading
    
  4. Replace it with:
    ;StartupMovies=2K_logo
    ;StartupMovies=Gearbox_logo
    ;StartupMovies=NVidia
    ;StartupMovies=Loading
  5. Save changes.

Skip splash screen

Instructions[7]
  1. See Command line arguments.
  2. Use -nosplash
Delete or rename the splash file[7]
  1. Go to <path-to-game>\WillowGame\Splash\PC.
  2. Delete or rename Splash.bmp.

Improved mouse aiming

Edit configuration files[citation needed]
  1. Go to the configuration files location.
  2. Open WillowInput.ini.
  3. Change LookUpScale=-250 to LookUpScale=-300
  4. Open WillowEngine.ini.
  5. Change OneFrameThreadLag=true to OneFrameThreadLag=false

Notes

Feel free to adjust the mouse sensitivity as needed. This can be done with the in-game slider or by changing MouseSensitivity=100.0 (WillowInput.ini) to your desired value
See also disable mouse smoothing
Setting OneFrameThreadLag to False may cause a drop in performance.

Game data

In-game general settings.
In-game general settings.

Configuration file(s) location

System Location
Windows %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands\WillowGame\Config\
macOS (OS X)
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/8980/pfx/[Note 3]

Save game data location

System Location
Windows %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands\SaveData\
macOS (OS X)
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/8980/pfx/[Note 3]

Save game cloud syncing

System Native Notes
OneDrive
Requires enabling backup of the Documents folder in OneDrive on all computers.
Steam Cloud
Approx. 100 MB available.

Video

In-game video/audio settings.
In-game video/audio settings.

Field of view (FOV)

Borderlands Configuration Editor[10]
  1. Download Borderlands Configuration Editor.
  2. Run the tool and set your FOV in the middle-bottom section. You must set the FOV change to a key.
  3. Hit apply and close the hack. Then run Borderlands as normal and press your set FOV changing key. The FOV will "snap" to the Hor+ value.

Notes

Using a vehicle or triggering a video in the game resets the FOV. Setting the FOV key to a movement key is recommended to instantly set the FOV again.
Alternative fixes[citation needed]
Modify .ini file[citation needed]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands\WillowGame\Config.
  2. Open WillowInput.ini file with Notepad or other text editor.
  3. Find under [Engine.PlayerInput] the section: Bindings=(Name="F8",Command="shot").
  4. Add the following: Bindings=(Name="F11",Command="FOV 90",Control=False,Shift=False,Alt=False).

Anti-aliasing (AA)

Anti-Aliasing[citation needed]
  • Use the Borderlands Config Tool.
  • Force AA through the graphics control panel.
  • Force AA through a third party utility such as nHancer for Nvidia-cards or RadeonPro for AMD. This may cause large performance drops.
  • Use an FXAA-injector such as this one.

Vertical sync (Vsync)

V-Sync[citation needed]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands\WillowGame\Config.
  2. Open WillowEngine.ini file with Notepad or other text editor.
  3. Change UseVsync=False to UseVsync=True.

High frame rate

Edit configuration file[citation needed]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands\WillowGame\Config.
  2. Open WillowEngine.ini file with Notepad or other text editor.
  3. Change bSmoothFrameRate=TRUE to bSmoothFrameRate=FALSE or change MaxSmoothedFramerate=62 to your choosing.

Notes

Setting the frame rate too high can adversely affect physics.

Input

In-game keyboard/mouse settings.
In-game keyboard/mouse settings.
In-game key map settings.
In-game key map settings.
In-game general gamepad settings.
In-game general gamepad settings.
In-game gamepad layout settings.
In-game gamepad layout settings.

Logitech GamePanel

Information such as mission log, friendlist, level, exprerience points, money and weapon proficiency stats can be displayed on the LCD panel or smartphone application.[12]
Display Notes
Arx Control application
G19 color screen Native support. Displays mission log, friendlist, level, exprerience points, money and weapon proficiency stats.
G15 monochrome screen Native support. Displays mission log.

Fix mouse smoothing and aiming

Modify config files
  1. Launch the game once after installing in order to generate config files.
  2. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands\WillowGame\Config
  3. Open WillowInput.ini file with Notepad or other text editor.
  4. Change bEnableMouseSmoothing=true to bEnableMouseSmoothing=false
  5. Change LookUpScale=-250 to LookUpScale=-300
  6. Open WillowEngine.ini file with Notepad or other text editor.
  7. Change OneFrameThreadLag=true to OneFrameThreadLag=false

Enable scroll wheel in text boxes

Enable scroll wheel[citation needed]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands\WillowGame\Config.
  2. Open WillowInput.ini file with Notepad or other text editor.
  3. Search for all instances of InputKeyName="MouseScrollUp",ModifierKeyFlags=42 and change them to InputKeyName="MouseScrollUp".
  4. Search for all instances of InputKeyName="MouseScrollDown",ModifierKeyFlags=42 and change them to InputKeyName="MouseScrollDown".

Enable Xbox 360/PlayStation 3 controller UI

Modify .ini file[citation needed]
  1. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands\WillowGame\Config.
  2. Open WillowGame.ini file with Notepad or other text editor.
  3. Change the FakePlatform= value to one of the values listed below:
    • -1 - disabled/auto
    • 0 - PC
    • 1 - Xbox 360
    • 2 - PlayStation 3
If this fix works, the "Online Game" and "LAN Game" main menu options will change to "Xbox LIVE" and "System Link."
The loading tips and training tooltips will still show keyboard bindings.

Audio

Audio feature State Notes
Separate volume controls
Music, SFX, and microphone volume.
Surround sound
Auto configures up to 7.1 output.[13]
Subtitles
Closed captions
Mute on focus lost

Localizations

Language UI Audio Sub Notes
English
French
German
Italian
Polish
A Polish patch made by distributor is available here. Note that this patch requires at least game version 1.41, and DLCs are not included.
Separate fan translation for The Zombie Island of Dr. Ned is available here.
Brazilian Portuguese
Fan translation, download.
Russian
Official localization by 1C-Softclub retail only.
Russian
Fan translation by «Dimon485 / TTL T.Community».
Spanish
Turkish
Fan translation. Details missing—please edit this page and add it.

Network

Multiplayer types

Type Native Players Notes
Local play
4 Co-op
See this Steam Users' Forums Guide on hacking splitscreen into the game.
LAN play
4 Co-op
Online play
4 Co-op
The official GameSpyservice has been shut down, but the Steam release was migrated over to Steamworks on September 15, 2014.[14] Retail owners who did not use the granting tool on Steam to convert their retail disc copies into a digital Steam copy before March 27, 2019 must purchase Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced to play online.[2]

Connection types

Type Native Notes
Matchmaking
Peer-to-peer
Dedicated
Self-hosting
Direct IP
Add the target IP and port as a command line argument.[15]

Ports

Protocol Port(s) and/or port range(s)
TCP 7777, 28900, 28902, 28910
UDP 7777, 27900, 28902
Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support status is unknown.

VR support

3D modes State Notes
Nvidia 3D Vision
See Helix Mod: Borderlands 1.
vorpX
G3D, DirectVR
Officially supported game, see official vorpx game list.
Devices
3RD Space Gaming Vest

Issues fixed

Cannot install disc-based copies

This section details the necessary procedure and workarounds required to install a retail disc-based copy of the game on modern machines.[16]
Note that online will not be functional unless using a LAN/VPN-based workaround (e.g. Hamachi) to create a virtual LAN over the Internet with those you intend to play with.
Install and update Borderlands from a retail disc[16][17]
  1. Ensure that the retail disc is available and ready, and that the game is not currently installed on the computer.
  2. Use the instructions for the Manual Release Date Check tool to generate a proper activation license for the computer.
  3. Now insert the retail disc and go through the installation as usual.
  4. The game should be fully playable after the installation has been completed, given that the disc is legit and is inserted in the disc reader when launching the game.
  5. To update the game to the latest available patch for retail versions, use the Borderlands Worldwide Patch v1.4.1.

Notes

If the activation license had not been generated beforehand the installation process would fail after all files and folders had been copied over, when SecuROM DFA DRM tries to perform an online-based check that the release date of the game have passed. Instead of failing on that step, however, the process will just skip it entirely as a valid activation license already exists on the computer.
GOTY owners might want to check out the WaybackMachine archived SecuROM support page for instructions (at the bottom) on how to activate the DLCs manually.

General Protection Fault

General Protection Fault[18][19]
  1. Go to <path-to-game>\Binaries.
  2. Make a copy of cudart.dll in the same folder and call it physxcudart_20.dll.
    • Both copies of the DLL files needs to be retained, or otherwise the game will not launch at all.
  3. Launch the game.
General Protection Fault / R6025 runtime error[citation needed]
Some users are experiencing a General Protection Fault, followed by an R6025 runtime error.
  • One fix is to run Windows Update and install the KB2600217 update also found here.
  • A collection of additional troubleshooting steps can be found on the Steam Users' Forums

Fixing performance issues

Fixing Performance Issues[citation needed]

Some systems, despite exceeding the recommended specs, simply do not run Borderlands well. Even after turning down graphical options, the frame rates can be much lower than would be expected. Taking these steps can help make the game much more responsive and raise frame rates significantly. If Borderlands is running poorly on an otherwise stout system, try the following:

  1. Add -dx9 to the command line (helps fps)
  2. Go to %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands\WillowGame\Config.
  3. Open WillowEngine.ini file with Notepad or other text editor.
  4. Find UseVsync and set it to True (helps with tearing).

Another known issue has been with the inclusion of Dynamic Shadows, for some users having this graphical setting turned on causes huge drops in frame rate, no matter the specs of the computer. Turning off this setting can greatly improve performance.

Progress not being saved

Progress Not Being Saved[citation needed]
Sometimes Borderlands will not save your progress when you exit. To fix this there are two methods:

First Method:

  • Add -nohomedir to the command line arguments; this is less than ideal as it will start you over from the beginning as it causes the game to create a new save folder.

Second method

  • This fix worked for some people, is to ensure that your SaveData folder (located in %USERPROFILE%\Documents\My Games\Borderlands) and all its contents are NOT set to Hidden and/or Read Only.

Some weapon stats are not visible

Weapon stats visibility fix[citation needed]
The default font size allows for only 4 lines of stats to be visible, while weapons can have up to 5 stats.
  1. Go to <path-to-game>\WillowGame\Localization\INT.
  2. Find gd_globals.INT and create a backup copy.
  3. Open gd_globals.INT with a text editor.
  4. Search for:
    AttributePresentationTranslation="$NUMBER$ $CONSTRAINT$ $DESCRIPTION$"
  5. Replace it with:
    AttributePresentationTranslation=<font size="14">$NUMBER$ $CONSTRAINT$ $DESCRIPTION$</font>

Game freezes in Lockdown Palace (General Knoxx DLC)

Lockdown Palace crash fix[citation needed]
The problem lies with the grass rendering inside the Prison and affects no other part of the game.
  1. Go to <path-to-game>\WillowGame\Config
  2. Find WillowEngine.ini and create a backup copy.
  3. Open WillowEngine.ini with a text editor.
  4. Search for:
    FoliageDrawRadiusMultiplier=1.000000
  5. Replace it with:
    FoliageDrawRadiusMultiplier=0.000000

Do not alter Foliage Quality within the game settings as that will reset the edit. However, as this problem only affects Lockdown Palace, it is fine to allow it to reset for any game session that you don't plan to go to that zone.

No sound through headphones on laptops

Some laptop users struggle to output the game sound through headphones when they have laptops with built-in microphones.
No Sound through headphones on laptops[citation needed]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Open WillowEngine.ini with a text editor.
  3. Change bHasVoiceEnabled=True to bHasVoiceEnabled=False
Disable Microphone Array[citation needed]

Go to the sound options (Control Panel/Sound and Hardware/Sound) go into the recording tab and disable Microphone Array.

Issues unresolved

Crashes on startup (Windows XP)

Some users, after having installed and successfully played the game on Windows XP, experience a standard "Borderlands has encountered an error and needs to close" message after some time. There are no known solutions for this problem.

Other information

API

Technical specs Supported Notes
Direct3D 9.0c
OpenGL 2.0 OS X only.
Shader Model support 3
Executable 32-bit 64-bit Notes
Windows
macOS (OS X)

Middleware

Middleware Notes
Physics PhysX
Audio FMOD, SpeechFX
Interface Scaleform
Cutscenes Bink Video
Multiplayer GameSpy, Steamworks Original retail version used GameSpy, but was migrated over to Steamworks on September 15, 2014.[14] Retail owners who did not use the granting tool on Steam to convert their retail disc copies into a digital Steam copy before March 27, 2019 must purchase Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced to play online.[2]

Mods

Borderlands Config Tool[20]

Borderlands Config Tool unlocks a number of settings not available in the in-game menu.
Borderlands Config Tool unlocks a number of settings not available in the in-game menu.
Run the game and change a keybind in the options menu at least once before using this tool. This will create the necessary .ini files and should fix options being disabled in the tool.
This tool unlocks many options including the following:
  • Disable startup movies
  • Disable mouse smoothing
  • Disable in-game voice chat
  • V-sync
  • Change FOV

Skip new character movies

Delete or rename video files[citation needed]
This method disables the unskippable video sequence that plays every time you create a new character.
  1. Go to <path-to-game>\WillowGame\Movies.
  2. Delete or rename Prelude.bik, Attract.bik, and VoG_Transition_Movie.bik.

System requirements

Windows
Minimum Recommended
Operating system (OS) XP
Processor (CPU) Intel Pentium 4 2.4 GHz
System memory (RAM) 1 GB (XP)
2 GB (Vista)
Hard disk drive (HDD) 8 GB
Video card (GPU) ATI Radeon HD 3000 series
Nvidia GeForce 7000 series
256 MB of VRAM
DirectX 9.0c compatible
macOS (OS X)
Minimum Recommended
Operating system (OS) 10.6.4
Processor (CPU) Intel 1.4 GHz
System memory (RAM) 1 GB
Hard disk drive (HDD) 10 GB
Video card (GPU) 128 MB of VRAM


Notes

  1. Automatic release date check service for retail discs of the original Borderlands seems down, but using the manual activation website (leave serial number field empty) along with the manual release date check tool should work.[4] Note that this must be performed before you start the setup / installer of the game. See SecuROM support page for more information, although also note that the Borderlands-specific page does not work any longer, so the generic page (leave serial number field empty) must be used instead.
  2. GOTY DLCs might require manual activation. See SecuROM support page (at the bottom) for more information and instructions.
  3. 3.0 3.1 File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data (use Wine regedit to access Windows registry paths). Games with Steam Cloud support may store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/8980/ in addition to or instead of this directory. The app ID (8980) may differ in some cases. Treat backslashes as forward slashes. See the glossary page for details.

References

  1. Demiurge Studios - Blog: Borderlands Released (retrieved)
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2K Support - Borderlands GameSpy Shutdown and Conversion Tool - last accessed on 2019-03-30
  3. 3.0 3.1 [[[Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced]] Steam - Community Hub - Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced Out Now!] - last accessed on 2019-04-04
    "ALL DLC: Didn’t own any Borderlands DLC? Now you got it all! On BOTH the original game and in Borderlands: Game of the Year Enhanced!"
  4. Verified by User:Aemony on 2019-04-05
    Confirmed worked for me on Windows 10 v1803 today.
  5. Games for Windows marketplace relaunches - last accessed on 19 August 2022
  6. Borderlands update released - last accessed on 2021-10-14
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 Verified by User:Diskersen on 2018-05-02
  8. is there a way to skip the logos when you start borderlands? :: Borderlands Message Board for PC - GameFAQs - last accessed on 2018-05-02
  9. How to Skip Intro? (Read) :: Borderlands General Discussions - last accessed on 2018-04-02
  10. Borderlands - WSGF - last accessed on December 2, 2016
  11. Alice: Madness Returns - last accessed on December 2, 2016
  12. Logitech G's albums - Borderlands GamePanel Support - last accessed on May 2023
  13. PC Gaming Surround Sound Round-up - last accessed on May 2023
  14. 14.0 14.1 Borderlands multiplayer update released
  15. PC Connection Issues - Borderlands Wiki - last accessed on May 2023
  16. 16.0 16.1 Verified by User:Aemony on 2019-04-06
    Verified with original disc-based copy from 2009 (non-GOTY version) on Windows 10 v1803 these last few days.
  17. Wayback Machine - SecuROM - Borderlands support page - last accessed on 2019-04-06
  18. Verified by User:Aemony on 2021-01-30
  19. Steam - Borderlands GOTY - General Protection Fault - Fix - last accessed on 2021-01-30
  20. PC Utility Borderlands Configuration Tool - The Gearbox Software Forums - last accessed on May 2023