Soulframe - What We Know So Far
If you're a fan of free-to-play looter shooters, it's likely the game "Warframe" at least sounds familiar. Predating even more popular games within its genre, such as "Destiny," the Digital Extremes-developed and self-published "Warframe" is a great example of a studio sticking with an idea and eventually receiving the fruits that come with persistence. After a polarizing initial release, "Warframe" received a steady influx of new content before finally clicking in the public eye. After nearly a decade of working on "Warframe," Digital Extremes has its eye on its next big IP: "Soulframe."
Described as taking place in an alternate universe of "Warframe," "Soulframe" recently received a teaser trailer showcasing the direction Digital Extremes is taking the new IP. But even though prospective fans of this new game have already been treated to a visual representation of the hypothetical product, not much is known about "Soulframe," how it will play, and when players can expect to see it fully fleshed out for the first time. If you're one of those gamers excited for "Soulframe," here's everything we currently know about the sister game to "Warframe."
Soulframe will be melee-based
The foremost characteristic of "Warframe" is that it's a third-person shooter. However, "Soulframe" will be an entirely different experience and will feature a completely new type of combat than Digital Extremes' past effort. "Where 'Warframe' is focused on shooting, this one's focused on melee," Warframe director Steve Sinclair told The Washington Post in an interview about the game. "Where 'Warframe' is super fast and crazy high-speed, this one's going to be a lot more slow and heavy. But it still has a lot of similarities to the genre that we have experience in."
Because of the title and change of direction, many have already compared "Warframe" to the highly successful "Elden Ring," another melee combat-focused title that took the gaming world by storm in February of 2022. However, according to Sinclair, "Soulframe" was not at all influenced by "Elden Ring" or the huge popularity it was flooded with upon release. "I think it certainly isn't an inspiration for the initial ideas or what we wanted to do," Sinclair said to the Post regarding the "Elden Ring" comparison. "Ironically, other titles that were maybe borrowing from Warframe might have been some sort of reverse influence."
Soulframe is still in early development
"Soulframe" looks to be an ambitious and fun title with an intriguing premise and an interesting gameplay loop, but if you're a fan of Digital Extremes' past exploits and are chomping at the bit to give this new IP a spin, it might be a while before a final product is ready. According to The Washington Post's interview with Sinclair, "Soulframe" is still in early development and isn't anywhere close to ready.
When addressing why Digital Extremes would announce a title so early into development without having anything of real substance to show prospective buyers, Sinclair said it was more about being forthcoming with the studio's supporters and fans about what was next for it. "Our work has been extremely community driven," Sinclair told the Post. "It feels disingenuous not to tell [players] about changes and who's leading 'Warframe.' It's way too early to announce 'Soulframe,' actually! But in terms of transparency and making sure they understand how we think, we tend to be a lot more open ... than most studios."
According to Sinclair, development on "Soulframe" will begin "ASAP" and, assuming all goes well, fans of past Digital Extremes titles could play a build of the game "within a year."