Warframe Devstream 113: Switch account migration, Railjack details, Venus wanted levels and more

After the awesomeness that was Tennocon just over a week ago, Warframe developers Digital Extremes were back with their regular Devstream live stream this weekend past after a lengthy pre-Tennocon hiatus. And Devstream 113 was a big one! Community Director Rebecca Ford led the team through a series of major reveals about upcoming content and big changes on the way as well, which included, among many other things, more info on Warframe’s port to Nintendo switch, the new Railjack game mode, and the upcoming Venus open-world update.

If you don’t want to or can’t watch the hour-plus long Devstream in full above, then have no fear, Tenno, as DE’s Devstream overview is here to sort it all out. First off the bat for me is something small, but which was one of my biggest questions after Tennocon: Would we need to create a brand new account for the game – and thus lose all progress/items – when it gets ported over to Nintendo Switch?

We’re hoping to have a PC to Switch account migration upon launch, but details are still TBD.

Damn it. No mention of console in that, but I can’t see how they would just ignore a large portion of the player base. It was also mentioned that the goal is to have the two platforms in sync so that you can swap seamlessly between the two. Next up, more details were revealed about the epic-looking new co-op space combat game mode, Railjack, which was debuted in that jaw-dropping demo at Tennocon.

• The ship is much bigger than what was shown in the Demo. There is an entire lower level, in addition to extra side-rooms that Meg, Reb and Danielle didn’t explore. You will have a cargo bay, access to your Arsenal, Market, and Codex (and more?).
• There will be a personalization and upgrade path, including software upgrades and the ability to mount different weapons.
• Ideally designed to be a co-op experience, but our Solo Tenno can earn ship modules to help Ordis pick up the slack, like auto-targeting upgrades for side cannons for example.
• This is not a singular trial, this is a new system with different missions. You’ll be able to take down capital ships, but also explore a Derelict Vessel, for example.

The team also indicated that they are aware that the flashy Railjack has attracted the attention of tonnes of outsiders who have never played Warframe before. As such, DE want to make sure that they get every aspect of it right before releasing, which is why they haven’t given a set release date, however we could see it before the end of the year.

Onto the upcoming Fortuna update, which will bring with it the new open-world area set on Venus. A lot was discussed about this area, which will be coming with its own GTA-like wanted level that will see your actions earn you notoriety and pursuit from the local law. DE also detailed how they’re handling gameplay grind, explained that the massive spider-like Orb Mothers are not the same as the Eidolons on Cetus, and that there’s a whole sub-culture to explore around the K-Drive hoverboards.

Progression System

• Supply and demand will dictate the price of things.
• Looking at Cetus grind numbers. Unhappy with how grindy and isolated Plains of Eidolon was. Learning from our mistakes.
• A Quill Syndicate will be present on Venus as well!
• There will be cross-over with Plains of Eidolon progression, and new aspects to the systems we introduced in Plains of Eidolon.

Orb Mothers

• A different boss fight than what you’re used to with the Eidolon. A player new to Fortuna can’t just walk in and take one down – some investment is required.
• Will not be time-gated by time of day like the Eidolons in Plains of Eidolon. Instead, players will have to figure out how each one is summoned.

Alert Level

• Orb Vallis has an alert level indicator in the upper left-hand corner of the UI. If it is at full alert level, Corpus will seek you out across the Landscape, potentially culminating in uncomfortable situations for our Tenno.
• If you’re a stealth player or you simply want to play with your Echolure in peace, being mindful of this Alert Level is very important!

K-Drive

• Added to be the most efficient way to traverse Venus. With the storm clouds, Archwing is not always the best route for our adventurous Tenno.
• You will be able to also use your K-Drive in the Plains of Eidolon (but not regular missions, sorry! Testing proved that this was a bad idea)
• Comes with its own Lore: the Vent Kids, who are a counterpart to the Solaris United. We don’t want to spoil too much, so that’s all we’ll share!
• Will come with more tricks – the more tricks you do, the more the Vent Kids will like you.
• Customizable and Moddable!
• Will not be charge-based, like the Archwing on the Plains. In fact, we will be revisiting the Archwing Launchers to move away from the charge-based system as well, and reflect the existing Gear system.

Echolure

• Will be modular, upgrades available to let players imitate various creature calls
• Fun fact: The base sound of the echo lure is a moose – staying true to our Canadian roots!

Along with the Venus info, we got some concept art for the new alien animals you can find on the planet and will be tracking and trapping as part of the new conservation game mode that was shown off in the Tennocon Fortuna gameplay.

DE also revealed that since they first showed him off in the previous Devstream, the team has made several changes to the upcoming revenant\vampire themed Warframe, still codenamed Vlad for now.

First Ability: Enemies are fully afflicted on initial cast now. When they attack other foes, they also afflict them. There will be a cap on afflicted enemies, we’re currently working with the number 20.

• Upon death, afflicted enemies leave damage traps that are similar to the pillars of light left by Eidolons.

Second Ability: Nothing has changed, but now the number of charges you have are visually represented by energy armor that slowly deplete upon use.

Fourth Ability: This ability now emits powerful beams of light from your hands, turning you into a deadly laser light show. Similar to Mesa’s Peacemaker, holding the M1 or M2 button will cause you to focus more damage on where you aim.

Vlad sits in a very intriguing space at the moment, as his ability to mind-control enemies seems to indicate that he could be putting Nyx out of a job. His new abilities certainly do appear to give him more utility as you can see in the gameplay below.

 

Besides for the above, DE also showed off the first look at the incredible Steampunk-inspired deluxe skin for Vauban (the final skin will feature all the pistons on his chest moving independently of each other) as well as the long-teased Nidus deluxe skin with the energy arms.

 

 

Also revealed was that some “Relay Reconstruction” mini-event was on the way, and the team will slowly be rolling out the Pets 2.0 changes instead of just one big rework. Finally, while Devstream 114 doesn’t have a confirmed date yet (although it will probably be in two weeks time), you should definitely keep an eye out for it as DE will be doing a “deep dive” on the upcoming Melee 3.0 rework.

Last Updated: July 23, 2018