Borderlands 4 might not feature fan-favorite Tiny Tina, as her voice actor says they "haven't heard anything" about returning to the series

It sounds as though fan-favorite Borderlands character Tiny Tina won't be featuring in Borderlands 4, as the character's voice actor says they "haven't heard anything" about coming back to record.

In an interview with Ginx TV, Tiny Tina actor Ashly Burch was asked all about her character, but when it came to whether or not we might see her in the upcoming Borderlands 4, Burch said "I haven't heard anything" about being asked to come back for the role. That would certainly imply that there won't be any sign of Tina in the upcoming looter-shooter.

Burch doesn't elaborate much, but it's certainly a surprising admission. Tina has appeared in every Borderlands game since 2012's Borderlands 2, and while her original role was relatively minor, she ended up headlining an entire DLC for that title. Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon's Keep was a D&D parody, but it went on to shape Tiny Tina's Wonderlands, a full-fledged spin-off.

In fact, that spin-off was so successful that developer Gearbox and publisher 2K were quick to label it a new franchise, one that it was clearly prepared to invest in. Just months after its release, this Tiny Tina-fronted titled was hinted to have new experiences "under development." That might have been referring to its DLC, but if the team had only been rolling out a pre-determined content plan, they likely wouldn't have been so loud about it.

Either way, Gearbox has gone to some substantial effort to establish Tina as an important character within the wider Borderlands-verse over recent years. She was even included in the much-maligned Borderlands movie, and while that might have flopped, I'm not sure it was all down to Tina.

Of course, Burch could be pulling the wool over our eyes. It wouldn't be the first time that an actor had had to be economical with the truth when it came to their appearance in a new franchise movie. But if she is telling the truth, it does sound like this could be the first Tina-less mainline Borderlands game in more than a decade - with Borderlands 4 due out later this year, Gearbox might be leaving it a little late to get Burch into the booth.

Borderlands 4's Randy Pitchford sorta kinda apologizes over $80 "real fan" comment: "Nobody likes being taken for granted and it was not my intent."