The visual look of Borderlands, instantly recognizable today, was almost very different. According to Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick, the original game featured a somber palette typical of Xbox 360 shooters. An executive pointed out that this direction didn't differentiate the title, which forced a complete redesign with cel-shading and a delay of over a year.
A redesign that delayed the launch by a year 🎨
The change was not cosmetic. It involved redoing textures, lighting, and models from scratch to adopt cel-shading, a technique that emulates 2D animation. This process, combined with the need to adjust the graphics engine and revalidate builds, extended development by more than twelve months. Take-Two absorbed $50 million in additional costs, a figure that reflects the risk of pivoting the art style at an advanced stage of production.
$50 million to not look like Gears of War 💰
Imagine a gray and dusty Borderlands, like any shooter of the era. Luckily, someone with good judgment said enough. Take-Two paid $50 million so it wouldn't look like a Gears of War clone with toy guns. Now, every time you see those garish colors and black outlines, remember: they are the result of an executive who saved the studio from a look that no one would remember today.