Warframe developers propose controversial paid story skip feature

Warframe's 174th Devstream went live this week on October 27, 2023. Other than a review of major changes introduced in the last patch, Abyss of Dagath, the developers talked about the upcoming update, Whispers in The Walls. This will be the title's first proper story content after the Duviri Paradox.

As a way to get new players interested in this new content, the developers proposed the possibility of a paid story skip feature. As one would presume, the idea was received negatively by the live chat audience.

Warframe creative director Rebecca Ford clarified that this is only their rough sketch of a catch-up express for new and returning players, a quality-of-life feature that the game lacks.

Ford said:

"These are the types of conversations we are having internally, and the reason we are talking about it now is to be open with the community."

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'Pay-to-skip' for Warframe's story may be a necessary evil

Warframe has been out for over 10 years now. As one of the most celebrated free-to-play pioneers of the MMO-lite niche, it also has a surge of new players every major update. However, often, a player will need to play the game for roughly a hundred hours to get to a point where they can fully enjoy the latest content.

Duviri Paradox sidestepped its issue by injecting its new open world into the early game. The update originally offered itself up as a completely new way to begin the game on a fresh account, an option that was removed in the Echoes of Duviri update.

The upcoming Whispers in The Walls update will require players to beat major story quest breakpoints, including The New War and Rising Tide. The developers fear that placing the newly marketed content at the deep end of a long quest log may turn away new players who are excited to try it.

The solution proposed in the Devstream 174 was essentially a fast-track express package that would unlock instant access to the Whispers in the Wells quest for a couple of hundred Platinums, the premium currency of Warframe.

This story-skip bundle will also give players all the tools they need to take on the Murmur, including a Railjack and a Necramech. However, a paid story skip may nevertheless leave a player disoriented. Among other problems, they will lack the foreknowledge of critical characters like Albrecht Entrati or the Man in the Wall.

Although it mostly holds true to its image of a fair free-to-play model, Warframe is not completely without pay-to-skip options. Other than outright purchasing new equipment and Warframes, Platinum can let you rush foundry research to craft things faster or skim the grind with Boosters that can double XP and loot drops.

While some may see the necessity of a catch-up mechanism like this with the story, the instant community backlash in Devstream 174 means that the developers will have to reconsider its implementation carefully.

In this vein, the developers also mentioned that they are thinking of alternative ways to give returning players a refresher. The current idea is a recap of the major story beats by a certain in-game character, breaking down key details that players may have forgotten since they originally beat the quests.