Saber Interactive CEO Matt Karch has confirmed that a recent trailer for the taxi simulation game Rideshare Stimulator deliberately mocks Gearbox boss Randy Pitchford, framing it as retaliation for jabs Gearbox made at former parent company Embracer in Borderlands 4. The public spat highlights lingering tension between executives whose studios were once both owned by Embracer, whose troubled acquisition strategy has left a fractured legacy across the games industry.

The Rideshare Stimulator trailer includes several pointed references, including a car with the licence plate "USB DRV" and a nod to the Magic Castle in Hollywood, which Pitchford owns, alluding to a widely reported incident in which he lost a USB stick containing pornographic material. Karch said the jibes were payback for "Embracer's Bluff", a location in Borderlands 4 seemingly mocking Embracer, and argued that without Embracer's backing, Pitchford would be reduced to performing magic tricks for a living. Gearbox is now owned by Take-Two, while Saber operates independently of Embracer, though Karch previously defended the conglomerate's much-criticised acquisition spree as well-intentioned.