Warframe: TennoCon 2019

Warframe constantly amazes me. Digital Extremes, the team behind it are a beacon of light in a business otherwise all too often rife with stories of corporate greed. Warframe could easily compete in the full-price AAA market, but instead runs as a completely free-to-play title. All content expansions, all potential gear, including the ‘Prime’ variants. The full works.

Yep–they sell stuff. Some of it is even quite expensive. But the premium currency of the game is player tradeable and more–there is a conscience to it we just don’t often see out there. Before EA started sweating under regulatory threat for loot boxes sorry, ‘surprise mechanics’? Digital Extremes was policing themselves. They voluntarily removed what by any financial metric would be a successful microtransaction item for fear of it being too similar to gambling.

Since last year’s TennoCon I’ve been super excited by the fact Warframe would be taking onboard the feedback that the elements of the game can feel quite disjointed from one another. And that they’d be tackling this in part through providing spaceships. Well–more spaceships. This time of the pilotable and combat ready type.

The theme of connectivity ran right through-out the Empyrean demo (aka Railjack from last year’s reveal. The ship captain can provide ground support to units infiltrating enemy capital ships. Or in return receive support from other nearby squads — all within their own game environment, seamlessly connecting together.

This we’re told will be in place by Christmas this year. *squee* Along with the New War story quest. *double squee*

We also saw a tease for the next major cinematic story quest after The New War: The Duviri Paradox. I would consider going into detail on either to be extremely significant spoilers for anyone not already current though.

Neither trailer included a musical number though, so in that respect — a definite disappointment. ;) If you missed it — the reveal of last year’s new open world set on Venus came along with a musical number. Look, it’s easier if I just show you.

But I think the best thing to me was the New Player introduction cinematic (included above). This didn’t have a musical number either sadly, but it was suitably amazing. I think it’s meant to help new players make a choice of starting frame. But good luck on that because it makes all three of them pretty appealing. Luckily you can gain them all through play so it isn’t a permanent choice — but still.

It was directed by Dan Trachtenberg and I feel it does an incredible job of seeding a bit of foreshadowing, giving a wink to players already in the know. All the while without out and out spoiling it ahead of time if you don’t already know.

It will be one of those clips you can come back to and look at quite differently once you have played through some of the game’s cinematic quests and had the revelation in question… well, revealed.

I had thought I wouldn’t be going back to Warframe until Railjack/Empyrean was released — but the hype is pretty real right now. So… We’ll see. ;)