Now here is a pleasant surprise. 2K Games and Gearbox have released a new update for Borderlands 4 that removes the Denuvo anti-tamper tech.

Borderlands 4 came out on PC in September 2025. This means that it took over a year to remove Denuvo. This is also one of the very few games from which 2K Games has removed Denuvo. For instance, all the previous NBA 2K games still use it.

This latest update also brings many fixes and small improvements. It cleans up sound, visuals, menus, and gameplay. It also adds a new option for Steam Deck users and makes the game run more smoothly.

The update fixes many sound and voice issues. Some missing voice lines, sound effects, and subtitles are now back. It also fixes subtitle names and adds missing audio filters. ECHO Logs in Amara and the Vile Shadows content will now play only once when picked up. This stops them from playing over and over.

Visuals have also been improved. Some NPCs now have better animations, and face moves match the spoken lines more closely. The update fixes bad textures, gaps, and lighting issues. It also fixes visual effects that could pass through solid walls. Items you can use will now show the right highlights. Hint areas will only show when you need them.

The menus and HUD have also had a few changes. The game now tracks a missing ECHO Log in the list of items you can find. Debuff icons will update when you target an enemy with more than one effect. Element icons now show the right type on the Weapon Wheel and in the gear menu. Prices will no longer use short forms. The update also fixes wrong names for some cosmetic rewards and restores missing vehicle options for players with no old save data.

There are also several small fixes to menus and controls. One fix stops a rare bug that could change your choice for shared progress. Another restores button use after opening the map in a no-signal area. The update also fixes typos and makes text and icons easier to read.

Photo Mode gets its own set of fixes. The screen should no longer flicker if you lower the camera into water during the Subjugator or Thol the Invincible fight. The camera will no longer turn around when you enter Photo Mode in a vehicle. Loveless’ eyes now move the right way when you use synchroniz.exe. Photo Mode will also stay active when you use jump pads in the Phase Dimension.

Steam Deck players get a useful new option, too. AMD FSR is now in the Steam Performance menu. This lets players turn it on from the system’s own settings.

The update also aims to make the game run better. It reduces the sudden pop-in of plants, flags, and cloth in performance mode. It also limits odd screen shake and controller rumble. Moreover, the devs have made more changes to improve game stability and performance.

In case you’re wondering, I don’t expect 2K Games to remove Denuvo from its other PC titles. In other words, it seems unlikely to follow the example of some other PC publishers.

Take, for instance, Square Enix. Square Enix has removed it from DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake. In December 2025, it also removed it from Just Cause 3. Not only that, but it has removed it from The Diofield Chronicle, VALKYRIE ELYSIUM, TRIANGLE STRATEGY, LIVE A LIVE, and Forspoken. Moreover, both Octopath Traveler and its sequel no longer use it. And that’s not all. In May 2024, SE removed it from Star Ocean The Second Story R. Finally, in March 2025, the publisher removed it from Final Fantasy 16.

Another publisher that has removed Denuvo from its PC games is Capcom. In November 2025, they removed it from Onimusha 2: Samurai’s Destiny. Monster Hunter Rise, Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin, and Resident Evil Village are also Denuvo-free as we speak. Similarly, Resident Evil 2 Remake and Resident Evil 3 Remake no longer use it. In July 2025, the Japanese team also removed it from Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess. Plus, Capcom has recently removed it from Resident Evil 4 Remake.

Those are the two publishers that have removed Denuvo from a lot of their PC games. However, this does not mean that other publishers have not removed it from some of their games.

In March 2023, KRAFTON removed Denuvo from The Callisto Protocol. NEOWIZ has also removed it from its Souls-like game, Lies of P. In October 2024, Gearbox removed it from Homeworld 3, too.

Then we have Bandai Namco, which has removed it from CODE VEIN 2, Tekken 7, and NARUTO TO BORUTO: SHINOBI STRIKER. IO Interactive has removed Denuvo from 007 First Light. Bethesda’s Wolfenstein Youngblood, Ghostwire: Tokyo, Doom Eternal, and Doom: The Dark Ages no longer have it. And finally, Warner Bros. has removed it from Mortal Kombat 11, Gotham Knights, and Back 4 Blood.

Stay tuned for more!