If you mention the New War anything outside the Warframe subreddit or Warframe Twittersphere, you might get some weird looks and not much else. Folks would assume that it is likely an upcoming sci-fi epic from Michael Bay or perhaps a new album by Slipknot. So if you’re one of those people, this article might not be of much use to you. But this is where I come in! I’m here to explain to you all about New War, why is it pretty much the only thing that is being talked about in Warframe circles, and why this just might be the best time to hop in Warframe (if you are not in there already).
Let’s take a short timeline trip
Warframe has come a long way for a game that’s technically still in beta. I didn’t get early on the train (started seriously playing in 2015 and the game was released in 2013) but through perseverance and a lack of social life, I sure achieved a lot. 1840 hours of playtime and counting, all Steam achievements unlocked and every quest and Warframe (prime and non-prime) acquired. Even when I joined in, the game was pretty tough around the edges. Visually it wasn’t exactly appealing and the grind was something you had to put up with. It is still there, though, but DE found a way to not make it so mind-numbing like it is in other MMOs (I wrote more about that here). Slowly but surely, we got a lot of content and expansions to the story. New characters were introduced, some plot twists that shook us to the core, and to this day I haven’t played a game that has such fluid movement and engaging gunplay. The game always has a large and dedicated fanbase and one thing that constantly impresses me is how the veterans are always there to support new players and guide them through the game. After all, with so much content that’s been released in these 8 years, finding your goal at the start can be a bit overwhelming.
Winter New War is coming
The New War was teased at the end of Tennocon, in July 2018 and we didn’t learn anything more about it for a while. That all changed this year where it was revealed that for the first time in Warframe, we get to play different non-Tenno characters during the quests. The characters will be Kahl-175 of the Grinner faction, Veso of Corpus faction, and one of the key characters in Warframe – Teshin. We got to see some gameplay finally but the most of story is still under the wraps. Understandably so, considering that a certain plot twist from The Second Dream quest is still being talked about (and it is always fun reading the reactions of newbies on r/Warframe who just got there). In any case, on December 2nd I was a part of a virtual press event with DE (along with other journalists and streamers) where Reb talked about the upcoming update, gave us an expanded look at the gameplay, and answered the questions from us. My question was specifically about Stalker and considering his story was pretty much in limbo after the Second Dream update, I wanted to know if he will make an appearance in The New War. Well, I got the answer from Reb that he will indeed return and that only got me even more excited. All the questions from others were pretty much story-related and the answers were given without being too spoilerish. Unless something changes along the way, the update is set to go live on December 15 for PC.
Why should you NOT lower your expectations
I’ll tell you why. The most recent big updates to Warframe introduced a new planet (and a hub) and gave us a railjack (aka a fully operable spaceship) and aside from some large bug fixes and QOL improvements, that’s where the story ended. Or better yet, stopped. Ever since then, we have been pretty much on our own. Lotus abandoned us at the end of Apostasy Prologue quest, Stalker occasionally appears in missions but he is now more of a nuisance than a threat (and we still know very little about him and Hunhow). I have a strong feeling that is all about to change once The New War drops. Based on what I’ve seen so far, it will be the most story-focused update yet and it will give us a much-needed expansion regarding some story elements and lore. As scarce as it can sometimes be, the world of Warframe is also incredibly engaging and it is with one of the most unique stories and settings as far as MMO games go.
In any case, the countdown to New War has officially started.
