Warframe:1999 was released back in December 2024, showcasing the journey of the Drifter as they traveled in time back to the 90s. Their personal story introduced a new cast of characters called the Hex, a new group of Protoframes with ties to Albrecht Entrati and his shenanigans.
However, Tennocon 2025 brought audiences back to the present, as the main story will resume the Operator’s point of view in the upcoming The Old Peace update. But after such a Drifter-focused chapter in Warframe, how does it feel to go back to the Operator, especially with all the heavy lore implications the Old Peace will bring?
“It’s challenging, especially since the Drifter has access to the KIM system and all the additional lore-rich conversations therein while the Operator doesn’t,” says Lead Writer Adrian Bott. “But the Operator’s story has been unfolding for far longer in the game, and we have a great many emotional landmarks to refer to.
It’s always interesting to explore what we haven’t seen. The young Drifter had Thrax as a friend before they outgrew the secure fantasy that Duviri was meant to be. Now we see that the Operator had a close friend, too.”
One Story, Two Journeys
The Operator is the original point of view for the Warframe players ever since the Second Dream, but even though the Drifter has been introduced fairly recently, it quickly grew in popularity, and it’s fair to say that both characters share the spotlight. But what makes these two characters’ journeys so unique?
“Resilience, I think,” says Bott. “They have both been through so much, and time and again we see that the impact of what they’ve had to endure has been hidden from us - and from them.”
“One word? Trauma. Two words? Space Trauma. Three words? Healing space trauma,” jokingly explains Principal Writer Kat Kingsley. “But, in the stories, to me, the Drifter seems to be more focused on healing those around him, and the Operator is still on an internal journey at this point, discovering their past and trying to uncover the full scope of what happened to them.”
Before joining Warframe as a writer, Kingsley was also part of Volition Games, where she amassed vast experience in System and UX Design. In turn, she ended up using that experience for 1999 by designing the KIM relationship system, something that was well received by the audience; even now, she keeps using that knowledge to improve the game’s main scenario, ahead of this year’s big update release.
“I can’t really reveal quite yet, of course,” says Kingsley, “but a lot of my work in the first half of the year was employing my System & UX Design experience to smooth out some of the ’Critical Path’ design for the game. I grooved on that while Adrian, Ryan, and the rest of the team focused on the Old Peace and the upcoming October update with the upcoming ‘The Teacher’ quest and the other unannounced content teased during TennoCon.”
Sharing The Spotlight
Even though the Operator and Drifter are undoubtedly the protagonists, Warframe shows great respect for the cast of secondary characters throughout the game’s history, which speaks volumes about the dedication of the writing team behind it. From the moody Arthur Nightingale and the mischievous Little Duck to the killer-turned-father Stalker, fans of the game have their favorite characters, so it only makes sense that the people writing them have them as well.
“For the KIM System, I will always love writing Amir,” says Kingsley, “but I think Quincy stole my heart in a surprising way. He is such a joy, and he tends to ‘take over’ whenever I’m writing him. For the other cast of characters, Major Neci Rusalka is far and above my favorite. I love writing villains, which comes as a shock to no one.”
“I don’t like to pick favourites, but I’ve enjoyed writing Eleanor,” confesses Bott. “Given how much there is in the KIM system, I’ve written more for her than for any other character. Grandmother is also a favourite, and I had a blast writing Ordis’s dialogue with Ryan for Belly of the Beast; his clapbacks to Parvos were great fun.”
Bott has been called a Warframe Lore encyclopedia before; not only that, but he’s also been a bookstore manager for several years, so it makes complete sense that he can deal with such a massive amount of lore related to this 12-year-old game. However, his way of classifying information is far from being usual.
“I don’t think I have a specific system,” he says, “but I honestly have the community to thank for it, because they keep archives of every bit of information we put out there, which is always useful. For me, honestly, I play hours and hours to keep it all in my head as vividly as possible, for as long as I can.”
The Community Always Shows Up
In true Warframe fashion, the community always finds a way to get involved with what happens in-game, and the Writing Team is more than receptive to that. This leads to fun in-game tidbits that reference or pay homage to stuff that has happened either in virtual fan spaces or even to the actors of the game.
“There are definitely some easter eggs,” says Kingsley. “For example, there’s a KIM system dialogue telling a story of Amir and Quincy that’s based upon a real story from their voice actors, Kevin (Afghani) and Trieve (Blackwood-Cambridge), where Kevin revealed he was the voice actor for Mario and an incredulous Trieve freaked out after hearing him doing the voice.
We also added some dialog choices referencing some shenanigans of the Reddit community; we always attempt to add some fun nods here and there that the community can recall and feel seen in, and we love interacting with them like that.”
Tennocon 2025 is in the rearview mirror already, but fans can certainly stay excited for the upcoming 2025 content for Warframe and Soulframe, and talking to the people behind them only reinforces that excitement in me. From new Warframes and Protoframes to the new Bromius fable in Soulframe, Digital Extremes keeps delivering great experiences for their passionate fans, and the best is yet to come.
