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The space ninja adventure known as Warframe, an experience where you might encounter bizarre cosmic entities and pilot futuristic vehicles, has unveiled a new update. The Vallis Undermind highlights the unique whimsy that has become synonymous with Warframe in more recent times.

The new content, released on Wednesday, introduces a fungus-inspired character that performs a unique animation, along with a whole new explorable fungal area. But it’s also going back to basics, with a new mission designed to making sure this complicated, expansive long-running online game is understandable by new players.

Introducing "The Teacher"

Called “The Teacher,” this is the long-awaited quest that trains Warframe players on how to use one of the game's most basic — yet most intricate systems: modding.

In Warframe, mods are augments that can be equipped on your warframe or arsenal to enhance their abilities. These can be simple (increase damage or speed up reload rate) to the devastatingly complex. Content creators often craft hour-long videos about optimized loadouts that use powerful mods in combination to create devastating effects.

“Many players likely started their journey, encountering mods without grasping their purpose,” explained a lead narrative designer. “I think it was really important, at the end of the quest, for players to think, ‘Wow, modding is interesting. I'd like to experiment further.’”

A Collaborative Effort

“The Teacher” was developed in a collaboration between the original developers, who handled the story elements, and a supporting studio, who crafted the gameplay, which will be introduced to new players.

In the quest, the player is asked to retrieve a new segment for their spaceship, but they’re confronted by a formidable foe called Teshin, who takes away the player’s abilities and close-combat arms, and forces them to engage with the mod system to handily demonstrate its power.

Several developers were longtime players, but others had never played before, according to a lead designer. It was this outside perspective that proved critical.

“The first thing we did was basically sit behind them and have them experience the introduction and take prodigious notes on everywhere they fell out,” the designer said. Introductory tutorials presented the mod system. But the team noted that they didn’t work on everyone.

“Certain players missed fundamental guidance where it's flashing on the screen saying put the mod in the slot,” he said.

Filling a Significant Gap

Warframe’s mods allow players to create incredibly strong combinations that turn the screen into a blitz of numbers. But "The Teacher" focuses on different aspects. There will be some long-time players who wish the quest was geared more towards their needs, like creating powerful and specific builds. But it became clear that “The Teacher” is filling a real and significant gap for newcomers — and that doing so isn’t as simple as it looks.

“Numerous subtle adjustments and little subtle things in the background there to just demonstrate the possibilities rather than tell you,” the designer said. For example, one of the mission's objectives is to show how mods can create powerful elemental status effects; in this case, a magnetic effect that depletes protective barriers.

“We had to change the weapon to be a rapid-fire gun, because it shows off the proc rate more,” the designer said. “However, the goal isn't to explicitly tell players, 'with a basic modification, you only got a few percentage chance to trigger a special damage type.' How can you teach this mechanic effectively?”

Experienced players will naturally recognize these mechanics and grasp their function, but new players have to be taught to pay attention to these things.

“This type of design work that we've had to worry about as much just because our priorities lay elsewhere,” said a narrative lead. “However, this oversight meant that we never really told people how to use mods.”

Significant Investment

“A tremendous amount of work is required for just making a really simple mission that — honestly — you can complete quickly,” said the designer. “But it's months and months of work for loads of people.”

The designer was visibly glowing with excitement over contributing to a beloved title — and to craft a mission for one of his favorite characters.

“I love Teshin,” he said. “He embodies everything my younger self found awesome.”

Streamlining the Beginning

In the 12 years since its release, Warframe has been in a ongoing struggle with its own player onboarding process. There are many intricate mechanics that players can ignore initially — and won’t even have access to until hours into the game. And others, like modding, that increase in depth depending on how much time you want to invest. An update earlier this year streamlined the early game so that players could reach Warframe’s mind-bending plot developments with reduced repetitive play up front.

With “The Teacher,” it’s clear that the developers are doubling down on a commitment to make sure Warframe’s early game experience evolves beyond its origins. New players can get their foot in the door — even if they miss the menu prompts.