Borderlands 4 Might Have Included The Franchise’s Most Polarizing Character, Dataminer Claims

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Okay, so I’ve been following the Borderlands 4 leaks, and this dataminer, EpicNNG, found some interesting stuff in the game files. Apparently, a character that fans *really* have strong opinions about – some love ’em, some hate ’em – was actually considered for inclusion at some point during development. It’s wild to think about what could have been!

Warning: Spoilers for Borderlands 3 and 4 below

In Borderlands 4, players exploring the planet Kairos will encounter the Siren Amara while searching for the main villain, Vile Lector. Amara was a playable character in the previous game, Borderlands 3, released in 2019. However, according to EpicNNG, discovered game files suggest the story was initially planned to feature a different Siren ally at this point: Ava.

So, it looks like AVA was originally going to be in Borderlands 4, but she was ultimately cut from the game. Game files show she was planned as a character, but was replaced by Amara during the later stages of development. This means she was intended to be a playable character alongside…

— EpicNNG (@EpicNNG) October 6, 2025

The new Siren character first appeared in Borderlands 3, but has since become very unpopular – even more so than the often-disliked Claptrap – because of her story and personality. Recent discoveries by EpicNNG show several files referencing a character named “Ava,” and Amara’s powers closely resemble the abilities Ava had, which she learned from her late teacher, Maya.

According to EpicNNG, all game data except for references has been completely removed, including audio and models. They believe this might have been done on purpose by someone at Gearbox, as it’s incredibly difficult to find information about future content within the Borderlands 4 data. “The game is completely sealed off to datamining,” they said. “There’s no content – either before or after release – currently in the game files, which suggests a developer intentionally left things this way.”

Ava was a controversial character in Borderlands 3. Many players disliked her annoying personality, her involvement in Maya’s death at the hands of the Calypso Twins, and her tendency to act childishly. Some felt she was an irritating addition to the game. However, a cut scene revealed plans for a storyline where Ava would recognize her mistakes and feel remorse for her role in Maya’s death, hinting at a possible character redemption.

Last year, Randy Pitchford, head of Gearbox, polled fans about bringing back the character Ava in Borderlands 4. The overwhelming majority responded that they didn’t want to see her return.

It’s still uncertain if Ava will be back, but we can confirm that Ellie, Moxxi’s daughter, will play a significant role in the first expansion for Borderlands 4 after launch, alongside the new playable character C4sh.

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2025-10-08 17:39