After more than a decade of constant updates, Digital Extremes brought one of the biggest updates in Warframe. The 1999 update was announced at The Game Awards 2024 and released on December 13, 2024. The update has been so successful that the developers are already using it to move to the next big update.
The developers at Digital Extremes were initially unsure at how the playerbase would receive the 1999 update. But in hindsight, they shouldn’t have worried because the update did the job perfectly. We got the fresh new content but it also didn’t take away from the essence of Warframe. And with the Techrot Encore update coming out soon, we hope to see more of it.
The devs were actually worried about Warframe 1999
When Warframe: 1999 was first announced, it’s safe to say that we were all surprised. Digital Extremes moved away from the high-tech sci-fi aesthetic and leaned into a gothic European style world that no one expected. Set in Höllvania, a hauntingly beautiful world with Gothic architecture, we got a new hero-villain duo in Arthur and the Hex, and it has turned out to be great.
One of the best updates to date for me. You all did such an incredible job and, honestly? I’m glad Coda was delayed despite how excited I was for it (you know me and infested weapons).
This allows the Hex and the current content to breathe a bit before the ear worms arrive. pic.twitter.com/x5StaUVYEt
— 💙Mura Casardis💙 (@MuraCasardis) December 18, 2024
The thematic shift was a big one, but the bigger shift was how 1999 focused almost entirely on Warframe combat. Unlike past expansions where we saw a focus on other gameplay styles like Operator Combat, Necramechs, or Railjack, 1999 took us back to the core combat mechanics. And it was the right move.
Pablo Alonso, Warframe’s design director, admitted in an interview with The Gamer that the team wasn’t sure how certain elements of the 1999 update would be received. But the overwhelmingly positive reception has been a breath of relief for the team.
There were a lot of things that we didn’t know how they were going to land – for example, the relationship system… We were hoping people would like it, but people liked it way more than we expected, so that was great.
The concern is very fair, the relationship system could’ve very well felt out of place in an action sci-fi game. But it didn’t, because players had a very positive reaction because it was actually well done. The lesson to learn is that changing the game’s tone was actually a strength. We hope to see more well thought out changes in the future.
Following this success, there’s more coming
One of Warframe‘s greatest challenges has been creating content that remains good over time. In this aspect, 1999 was praised for reinforcing the traditional Warframe loop rather than pulling players away from it. That is, in comparison to past expansions like Duviri Paradox where players felt that some of the new content was too far out of what’s normal.
With the upcoming Techrot Encore update arriving on March 19, Digital Extremes is building upon the success of 1999 in several ways. Alonso revealed that the team carefully evaluates which older content should be revisited. For example, the Deep Archimedea system from 1999 is returning with adjustments in Techrot Encore.
We can expect this newfound success and passion to drive the game’s coming future. With new characters, weapons, and game modes on the way, Techrot Encore is set to build on that foundation. And we’ll be here for it.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
