Borderlands 2 level cap could rise next year

The level 50 cap in Borderlands 2 could see an increase next year, according to a Gearbox Software official.

The popular shooter has been available since September and has seen two new expansion packs, with a third coming in January.

Many players have already started to hit the level 50 cap with their characters and would prefer to see it raised sooner rather than later.

"We are planning to do a level cap increase," Gearbox Software's James Lopez told Polygon. "We should have some more information on that probably in the next quarter... but it will be considerable and should allow for a third play through."

Lopez added that while the increased level cap is something a lot of players want to see, it's important to keep the game balanced.

"You have to worry about scaling," he claimed. "The more skills you make available, the more powerful your character becomes. Of course, that's the whole idea. Imagine if you were able to have all of the points in all three skill trees and how much of an unstoppable force you become."

Gearbox also has to keep the game challenging for higher level players to make sure they don't just blast their way through missions with ease.

"That could ruin the purity of the experience. We try to find ways to balance it out and we also need to adjust the enemies so they are still challenging at the higher levels. It's one of those funny things where people assume that whenever they hit level 50 they're going to steamroll through everything.

"That's why we have badass versions of everything, so you don't just go through and one-shot everything around you. Because if you do, for a lot of people, the fun evaporates.

"Part of the game experience is the struggle."

A trailer for the next downloadable content coming to Borderlands 2, Sir Hammerlock's Big Game Hunt, was released earlier today.