Introduction to Warframe (Gaming)

by Korny , Dalton, Ga. US. Earth, Sol System, Tuesday, July 09, 2019, 10:43 (1752 days ago) @ cheapLEY

Warframe isn’t for everyone, and it’s not even remotely good about explaining itself. I won’t tell anyone who played for 40 hours and didn’t like it that they’re wrong.

I’ve had Korny leading me through. Without him, I wouldn’t be playing, because who has the time to figure all that shit out alone?

The game very much encourages (demands, at times) playing with others. But it does so through mainly positive pressures. Remember how I had a Nightmare mission available on a node you didn't? Or how we split up our debuffs to open that vault for the Corrupted mod? Or how we had more choices between rewards when cracking Relics together? The game rewards not going it alone, and it definitely makes it easier to find people who are willing to help you through early game hurdles.

For me though, the grind it Warframe feels worth it, like there’s some direction to it. The grind in Destiny feels like dull busywork that I have to do before I am allowed to do what I want. That’s partly the case in Warframe, too. Unlocking all these nodes is not the most captivating thing ever. But I still feel like I’m getting stuff along the way that will be useful. I’m getting cool mods, lots of materials for crafting later, the occasional rare item that I can sell for Platinum.

Remember when I failed to equip a Relic? The game was still rewarding me with Void Traces that I could use to upgrade my next one. The run wasn't a waste for me, because I was still making progress. Everything in the game will reward you in some way, big or small. Sure, in Destiny, you can get engrams from enemies in any activity, but if the rolls are weak, or the weapons suck, then all you get from it is some weapon parts and a Legendary shard for an hour of playtime while you try to grind out a strike weapon or a Catalyst. In Warframe, you can simply pick up the Blueprint for the item that you want, or the one you already have the resources for, and you get to it.

I think the weapon frames and Menagerie recipes in Destiny are a really great way to implement a similar system, but it would be better if you weren't railroaded into those two specific activities. The Lumina quest sort of has shades of this, where you can do several activities to make progress, but part of the grind was just unreasonable for someone like me, who doesn't want to spend the entire evening grinding out Blind Well (though I did later on open up my first Forge).

I’ll probably always wish that Warframe was a bit more player friendly and had a more straightforward way to get into the story. And I’ll probably always wish that Destiny felt like it respected my time better and gave me more options to play the way I want (both I terms of character builds and the leveling grind).

I mean, it's been their biggest problem for six years, and one they've been trying to address multiple times, but yeah, it'll likely always have a steep barrier for entry. The systems just can't be streamlined much more without sacrificing the very complexity that makes them great and distinct. I do hope that this year's big New Player Experience overhaul succeeds in making the game more appealing to a casual audience, but ultimately, it'll never be for everyone, and that's ok.

But come on, Mac, plug a keyboard in!