Pros:
+Gorgeous cinematics using in-game engine
+Storyline that will leave players hungering for more
+New warframe Ivara offers diverse and unique gameplay mechanics
+New ship designs offer a unique blend for players to enjoy
+Designing your Tenno
+Moon tile set is a blast and brings a new breath of air to the game
Cons:
-The want for more story that takes place post Second Dream
Warframe, when you hear the name many gamers will give a nod to the game or a shake of their head. The fact of the matter is, that Warframe is one of the few games that has given me hope for the free-to-play with in-game microtransactions for people who want to spend the real money or people who simply want to mess around with the in-game market and make some money. As one of my favourite free-to-plays, I’ve had no problems getting around with spending as little money as possible since it’s launch, and intend on keeping it that way thanks to the open trade market that the developers allow us gamers to have.
But what is my articles real focal point on, you might ask, and that’s the idea that triple A free-to-play games can exist. Recently I returned to the game and was welcomed back by some of my friends at both Digital Extremes and through PlayStation Network. My return has been enjoyable thanks to my friends Amber, Alec and a few others. My welcoming back even included the games newest update, which includes a fully cinematic storyline with missions, and even cutscenes as you might imagine. This even includeded a detailed origin of our Warframes operator, the Tenno, and who they are. Titled as “The Second Dream,” the update brings in some amazing changes and even includes a revamped variant of the Stalker known as “Shadow Stalker.”
Known as a previously laughable foe, The Stalker was one that players like myself would group up, run missions, and if Stalker came after us, turn him into stringed confetti with our swords. That has since changed as he has been completely reworked due to this new update, and he now plays a larger role in the game than what he did previously. Sounds impossible? Not so-much. But I do want to advise, if you continue reading, please do so at your own will. Mechanically the game is very much the same beast as I remember it a year ago, but with a few changes to Warframes like Trinity, Excalibur, and my all-time favourite Saryn who has taken position as the new “Prime” for Update 18.
The biggest changes that can be noticed are the fact that things have been reworked, Stalker is a new monster, one that is more lethal before, and even provides a challenge from any range of combat. The prefered range of combat used for multiple occasions has been a mix of up-close with melee, and eventually range with bows or guns depending on the person’s play style. The major change to Stalker is that his loot table has seemingly changed it up a bit. His newest entry is the sword Shadow Stalker uses called “War”. This sword is amazingly powerful and even comes with its own stance mod, one that includes Stalkers weapon stance, and provides players the chance to feel, well, like the Stalker to say the least. As for the mechanics part of the review? There’s not been just a whole lot of changes that we can see as of now, but we will come back if anything noticeable happens.
SPOILER WARNING BEGINS HERE
Many of us over the years since the games launch have been twiddling our fingers, drawing up conclusions, and even discussing what each Warframe is and if they have a story. Now? That has drastically changed from what we originally had thought as we now know who the Tenno really are and why they play such a pivotal role in Warframe, but also for Lotus herself. The story starts out with us decoding a message, one that causes Lotus to go missing, and in turn we are met with a new not-so-charismatic person, but one that sees the flaws in everything; Teshin. For those unfamiliar, Teshin is a conclave master, and the one that we’ve seen a few times before hand, mostly for those who PVP like myself from time to time.
But now he has been given a larger role with Warframes newest update and story arch, one that blows the lid off everything we’d previously thought about the game. This story arch uncovers the truth about the Lotus and her hidden past. We learn that her race is nasty, they are the sentients, and ones that wanted to wipe out the Tenno due to their true power and in turn destroy what was left of humanity. Once discovering this, we find out that the Lotus calls upon one of our most hated nemesis, the Corpus leader known as Alad V. Alad V for many who don’t know has been troublesome since his first appearance. Now? He’s to help us stop an even far greater enemy by the name of Hunhow. A sentient being who has been locked away for seemingly hundreds, if not thousands of years in an ancient chamber where he has slept, and now the Grineer seek to find him, awaken him, and reverse their physical degradation due to over-cloning themselves. As our story gets underway everything eventually begins to become explained as to why the Tenno have become so important to the Lotus and why she has been adamant in protecting “her children”.
Once towards the end of the story it all begins to become explained. We learn the truth behind these child warriors, why they were asleep in their “second dream,” and even as to why their Warframes were in the original chamber and “awoke” from their “dream”. The truth is now out there, our Warframes were the only thing that awoke, our Tenno were put in stasis in order to keep them from going insane and leading the same fate as what Stalker had. With them now awake, we learn our child warriors are one of the greatest things to happen to the universe, but there are only so few of them left in the world. Their mission has been to keep peace, to maintain balance, and even follow the ways of Naramon, Madurai, Unairu, Vazarin or even Zenurik. Each of these ways lead different ways of combat for the Tenno. For the review, the choice was Naramon, the way of the tactician as it can be called since it leads to confusion, and weakness in the enemies.
These focus also give base to the past our Tenno lived. With Naramon, our Tenno were master tacticians, ones that used enemy confusion, displacement, and weakness against them. This even allows us to see our Tenno appear through their Warframe and unleash tremendously powerful abilities that weaken enemies and cause disarray among their legions. This opens up quite a bit of combat advantage for those who want to put their enemies asunder. As we learn about these ways, Natah or rather Lotus, guides us to what each one was, she even describes to us that she found the ship that housed the Tenno. She explains as to why they are even her children due to her being barren, much like the rest of her kind after slipping through the Void, which leaves the idea that our Tenno are truly going to be unique if they suffered the same consequences from going through the Void themselves.
As this review winds down to its end, it’s hard to think that a game a few years ago was primarily a mission to mission game has come full circle to begin its journey as a story-based MMO style game with a very lively group of gamers who enjoy the story just as much as myself. If there is anything to be said about Warframe, it’s that the game is very much alive, and one that will continue to evolve into a beautiful cinematic experience at this rate. One that we’ll be along the ride for.
The Review is based upon the latest update version of the game that can be downloaded for free on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. For information about our ethics policy please click here.
Final Score: 9 out of 10
About the Writer:
Dustin is our native console gamer, PlayStation and Nintendo reviewer who has an appetite for anything that crosses the boarders from across the big pond. His interest in JRPG’s, Anime, Handheld Gaming, and Pizza is insatiable. His elitist attitude gives him direction, want, and a need for the hardest difficulties in games, which is fun to watch, and hilarity at its finest. You can find him over on Twitter, Google+, and or you can find him on PSN with RaivynLyken.