Warframe: Our Journey

2012

The Beginning

Warframe enters early access on PC! During these very early days, Excalibur is the sole Warframe that players wield against a single enemy faction: the Grineer.

2013

Launch

Warframe launches into open beta on March 25, 2013. New Warframes, Weapons, and enemy factions join the Origin System as its lore expands. The “Founders Program” is introduced, allowing players to directly support this new world, and the Community grows exponentially as Warframe continues to evolve.

Darvo

The ever-scrupulous ex-Corpus merchant Darvo makes his debut and becomes a reliable seller of “100% legit” items for the Tenno.

Community

In pursuit of open, honest communication with players and to nurture Warframe’s burgeoning popularity on YouTube and Twitch, the Community and Development teams begin a regular series of Devstreams filmed directly in-studio, giving fans an intimate look at the development process behind-the-scenes.

Conventions

The Warframe team takes its first big international trip to Gamescom 2013 to meet players in person and spread the word about Warframe. This will become the first of many trips around the world for Digital Extremes team members as Warframe’s Community continues to grow.

Pink Shorts

What began as a joke eventually evolves into a tradition after Creative Director Steve Sinclair surprises fans for the first time with a bold (yet questionable) choice of wardrobe.

Greedy Milk

During the Gradivus Dilemma, Grineer General Sargas Ruk vows to crush the “greedy milk” from the skulls of his Corpus adversaries. Naturally, the Warframe community conceptualizes “greedy milk” as a real-life dairy product, and a meme for the ages is born.

2014

Giving Back

Digital Extremes and the Warframe community begin what will become a hallmark of their ongoing relationship: giving back to the community by facilitating charitable donations while encouraging social awareness on a wide range of issues. The Community Team goes on to develop and support recurring campaigns such as TennoBaum, Movember, and the Quest to Conquer Cancer. At the time of this writing, the Warframe community and DE have contributed over $2,500,000 CAD to those in need.

TennoGen

The TennoGen program is born, giving talented Tenno artists the opportunity to see their submissions implemented in Warframe for all to purchase, download, and enjoy.

2015

Narrative

Warframe’s first Cinematic Quest leaves a mark that the Community and Development teams will not soon forget. As The Second Dream solidifies the game’s narrative potential, the community’s response is not only enthusiastic, but also surprisingly emotional.

Clem

Born from a wildly adorable series of webcomics by Community artist DataReaper, the Origin System’s most intrepid Grineer begins assisting Tenno on a new set of weekly Missions.

2016

TennoCon

DE invites Tenno from around the world to join them in the company’s hometown of London, Ontario, Canada for the very first TennoCon live event. Over 1,100 members of the community answer the call and descend on London’s RBC Place for a full day of panels, activities, and tournaments. New Warframes, including Nekros Prime and the pixie-inspired, Titania are announced, but the highlight of the show is the surprise reveal of another Cinematic Quest: The War Within. The convention is a resounding success and TennoCon becomes a hotly-anticipated yearly event.

The Man In The Wall

Appearing as a doppelganger of the Tenno, the Void-borne Man in the Wall makes his first appearance in The War Within as a surprising – and beguiling – new antagonist.

2017

Plains of Eidolon

The second coming of TennoCon sees double the attendance over the previous year, with fans lined up around the block and eagerly awaiting a plethora of activities including workshops, meet-and-greets, and other novel attractions such as archery and escape rooms. But the highlight of the show is the live reveal of Warframe’s very first open world: the Plains of Eidolon.

2018

We All Lift Together

DE reveals Warframe’s second open world hub – Fortuna – at TennoCon 2018 with an elaborate musical number that leaves players absolutely floored (and humming the catchy tune to themselves for years after the fact). The song’s lyrics emphasizing solidarity and togetherness gel nicely with the crowd of Tenno who have come together themselves to celebrate Warframe, and “We All Lift Together” becomes an unofficial slogan for the game’s wider community. The archived music video goes on to receive millions of views on YouTube.

Early Lunch For Konzu

Clearing out Grineer from the Plains of Eidolon leaves the friendly Ostron patriarch with plenty of time to consume lunch at his leisure… Just don’t expect easy answers if you ask the community what that means, exactly.

2019

Empyrean

Tenno take to the stars in their Railjacks and Archwings for intense ship-to-ship combat in a new game mode that complements Warframe's traditional ground-based running and gunning.

Dog Days

When the heat of summer hits, there’s no better way for Warframes to cool down than by soaking each other with squirt guns at the beach. It might not be logical, but it’s undeniably refreshing!

Nightwave

Nora Night first activates her Nightwave pirate radio broadcast for defiant “Dreamers” throughout the Origin System. These daily and weekly challenges become a new pillar of Warframe activity.

2020

At Home, Together

Like many during the onset of the global COVID-19 pandemic, DE is forced to begin working from home. While many worry this will negatively impact TennoCon 2020, the convention's temporary transformation into a fully-digital live event actually helps Tenno connect better than ever before. Tenno from across the world join together in-game to experience the reveal of Deimos and Warframe’s third open world, the Cambion Drift.

Popcorn

Originally crushed under the weight of the Jackal, an unfortunate robot servitor named Popcorn finds new life as Clem’s best friend thanks to the community and their noble #SavePopcorn hashtag.

2021

The New War

DE releases Warframe’s biggest Cinematic Quest to date with The New War, bringing the story of the Origin System full circle when hostile Sentient forces make their long-awaited return. Tenno step into the shoes of new playable characters for the first time, including enemies-turned-allies from the Grineer and Corpus factions, as well as the enigmatic warrior Teshin. Crucially, players are introduced to the custom character known as the Drifter and their reality-bending connections to the Tenno, setting the stage for future updates to come…

Kahl-175

Kahl-175 cements his reputation as the Origin System’s newest savior when he abandons the Twin Queens in favor of his Grineer brothers and embarks on a series of daring adventures – empowered by his new best friend, a.k.a. “Blue Girl.”

2022

Angels Of The Zariman ARG

An Alternate Reality Game introduces Tenno to some of the lost souls they come to meet aboard the fabled Zariman Ten Zero. Through a mix of daily puzzles and audio diaries, the community comes together via Discord to unlock the Zariman’s secrets in anticipation of the 2022 update: Angels of the Zariman.

Styanax Anime

The 50th Warframe makes his jaw-dropping debut via an anime short shown at TennoCon 2022 dubbed “Ascension Day.” Styanax is given away as a free login Reward during his release window to commemorate the occasion.

2023

The Duviri Paradox

Tenno once again assume the role of the Drifter and guide them through a color-shifting unreality under the dominion of the villainous Dominus Thrax. The Duviri Paradox introduces an entirely new kind of play space in Warframe, alongside fresh game modes, novel new systems, and the horse-like Kaithe mounts.

Cross Platform Save

Digital Extremes realizes its years-long ambition to unite all Tenno within the Origin System, regardless of their preferred platform.

2024

Exploring the Stalker

With the release of Jade Shadows, Warframe's narrative finally sheds a (jade) light on the enigmatic assassin who has hunted Tenno in The Second Dream and all across the Origin System for a decade. The Stalker makes his climactic return to seek the Tenno's help with a matter of new life and death, answering old mysteries while raising even more for the future…

Warframe: 1999 ARG

A new Alternate Reality Game set in the past of 1999 debuts with a mysterious broadcast at the end of a Devstream. An assortment of strange puzzles, messages from a mysterious benefactor, and even authentically styled 90s PC programs lead a group of players — calling themselves The Drip Squad — to uncover what happened to an alternate version of "Digital Extremes" in Höllvania.

The Hex

Before their journey to the past in-game, the Tenno are introduced to The Hex: a Syndicate of hybrid human Warframes embroiled in the battle between Albrecht Entrati and The Man in the Wall. The animated prologue — simply called "The Hex" — provides a glimpse of the team's ongoing tensions to come.

Back to 1999

In Warframe: 1999, Tenno journeyed to the past to uncover the aftermath of the Techrot outbreak in Höllvania, which led to martial law and widespread Infestation. "Doktor" Albrecht Entrati created the Protoframes — human and Warframe hybrids. Amid the chaos, the elite fighting unit known as The Hex battled to contain the Infestation. Along the way, unexpected bonds formed between the Drifter and The Hex, introducing an element of romance and personal connection to the story.

2025

The Future - TennoCon 2025

Celebrate a decade of TennoCon this year! The event brings exclusive reveals and exciting updates, including a glimpse into the future of Warframe. Join us as we honor 10 years of TennoCon and look toward what's next.