While Digital Extremes is hoping to one day return to a physical convention,Warframe’s annual TennoCon is once again a strictly digital affair. The big day is practically a holiday amongWarframefans, injecting the game with previews, generous giveaways, and fresh content. In that spirit, Digital Extremes supported Inspire - a charity benefitting the education of indigenous peoples - with a $200,000 USD donation, prompting players to give as well in a livestream full of customary Twitch drops.
There has never been a better time for new players to try outWarframe, whether they areDestinywearyor completely new to MMORPG looter-shooters. Veteran tenno have a lot to look forward to as well. Werewolf-like frames will soon stalk the Sol System, drifters shall explore the twisted dreamland of the tyrannical Dominus Thrax, a fan-favorite side character will return for a new adventure, and the gilded mistress of kavats has already arrived. These are just some of the most exciting announcements coming out of TennoCon 2022.
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Drifting Through Duviri
The centerpiece of TennoCon 2022 is the gameplay trailer and in-game, in-universe amphitheater experience focused on the upcoming Duviri Paradoxexpansion. First teased in 2019,The Duviri Paradoxpromises a new open-world setting focused around a roguelike game mode. While it will not be a sprawling, six-hour epic like The New War, Duviriwill feature a new narrative mission starring the Drifter that will take roughly an hour to complete, introducing the new game mode and environment.
More exciting are the mechanical hooks and narrative premise of the Duviri Paradox. Players will enter the demented imagination of Dominus Thrax, running a nightmarish,Groundhog’s Day-esque gauntlet for his amusement. To begin with,the environment is rendered in monochrome, but it will respond to Drax’s mood swings, becoming more hostile and perilous as players invoke his ire. The narrative trailer shows off the Drifter musing about being stuck, right before he is about to be executed by Thrax and his cronies. Then the Drifter is freed by the mysterious intervention of a ghostly, magical hand, which seems to be the key to this area.
In terms of gameplay, the Drifter will receive a variety of new, equipable weaponry, as well as the abilities imparted by his mysterious hand. The coolest new mechanic is the Kaithe mounts. These surreal, dream-like steeds are the latest addition toWarframe’s companion pantheon, and it sounds like they will initially be exclusive to the Duviri Paradox. LikeNecramechsand Archwings, it is possible that they will eventually find their way into other open-world regions.
The feature with the most potential to shake upWarframe’s gameplay is open-world puzzles. In addition to the other staples ofWarframe’sopen worlds, such as combat, resource farming, and exploration, players will encounter puzzles in Dominus Thrax’s mind. Digital Extremes has teased players with puzzle-like content before, most notably as a part of previous Nightwave experiences, but this will be the first time players encounter open-world puzzle-solving. It will be interesting to see how these mechanics behave in multiplayer, and how they will compare toother open-world brainteasers.
The Cat Lady and The Wolf
Another TennoCon tradition is the addition of a new prime version of an existing Warframe. This year, that frame is the killer cat-lady Khora. Originally introduced in 2018, Khora is loved among the community thanks to her ferocious looks, her innate Kavat companion Venari, and her drop-rate enriching Pilfering Strangledome builds. In addition to the golden trim traditional to prime frames, Khora Prime comes with Venari Prime - an enhanced version of her normal pet who will also grant the player mastery. Khora is now live via prime access, with a bundle including Khora, an alternate helmet, the dual swords, Keres Prime, as well asthe elementally versatileHystrix Prime sidearm, the Kerata Prime Syandana, and boosters.
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It is also a longstanding tradition for TennoCon to reveal a new warframe, and at this year’s art show, Digital Extremes showed off a concept that players have been requesting for a very long time: a werewolf warframe. In partnership with game designer and comic book artist “Joe Mad” Madureira of Marvel,Darkstalkers,andBattle Chasers' fame, Digital Extremes has developed a fiendish new frame with a wolfish aesthetic. While the new frame is more wolf than werewolf, its design has horror hallmarks that will doubtlessly scratch Tennos' lycanthropic itch.
Kahl-175 Returns and More
While The Duviri Paradoxpromises to shake up theWarframeformula in interesting ways, the forthcoming expansiondoes not have a release date. Fortunately, at least one other expansion will ease Tennos' wait before they can take the fight to Dominus Thrax. Veilbreaker is the next major expansion coming to the Sol System, arriving before Duviri Paradox.While less time was devoted to Veilbreaker and it seems to be a briefer experience,there is still room for excitement.
The show-stealing Grineer lancer introduced inThe New War, Kahl-175, will be returning in Veilbreaker.The next expansion’s brief trailer revealed Kahl battling through a variety of environments, even sporting different armor skins to suit the locations. It is unclear what degree of Kahl customization will be available in Veilbreaker, butWarframefans are sure to welcome this fan-favorite character back into the fold.
TennoCon wouldn’t be TennCon without limited-time items. A new cosmetic for the Drifter and Operator will be available for one credit in theWarframeshop until the end of TennoCon weekend. Players can also purchase a Digital TennoCon pack, which includes more operator cosmetics, a commemorative glyph and emblem, as well as a Baro Ki’teer ticket that will allow players to spend theirhard-earned ducatson anything from Baro’s inventory for a limited amount of time.
Warframeis available for play on the PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. TennoCon 2022 items are available until Jun 25, 2025.
