Warframe is something of a hybrid between an MMORPG and a co-op third person shooter. The game has stunning visuals, versatile gameplay, and so much content. Thankfully it does a great job directing you through most of the main quests, but you may find the gameplay a bit overwhelming at first, especially if you play with people online.
Choosing your first Warframe
The very first thing you’ll do when you open Warframe is to pick your starting frame. Your choices are Excalibur, Mag, and Volt. Each of them has their own unique benefits and downsides, so think carefully before making your decision. Here is how each of them work:
Excalibur
Excalibur is the most common choice, since the game itself recommends him to you. He is the more melee-focused choice, being a bit tankier than the other two and focusing on close range combat. He has good crowd control, and AOE damage, so he’s never a bad choice. Some people consider him to be a bit boring compared to the others, but if you like to play warrior-type characters then he is the perfect pick for you.
Mag
Mag is definitely the most complicated of the three, which is why she is typically less recommended for beginners. However, she can be just as good as the other two, and a great choice for those who like utility castors. She has amazing crowd control and debuffs, allowing her to take on large amounts of enemies by magnetizing them and making them easier for her to kill. Besides her Ultimate, her damage is a bit less than the other two choices, but she is still a great choice if you prefer offensive utility characters. She is especially good if you plan to play with your friends.
Volt
Volt is all about speed and damage. Like Mag, he is an offensive utility castor. Unlike Mag, who is focused mostly around debuffing and heavily crowd controlling her enemies, Volt is more focused on buffing and heavy AOE damage. His main benefit is his speed. Not only does he have a huge speed boost, but the longer he runs, the more damage his attacks do. He’s great if you prefer fast characters, or characters with high AOE damage. You will probably be doing more damage with his passive than with his abilities, however, since his starting energy total is pretty low. Definitely the best pick for those who want to go fast.
Note that all of these starting Warframes are pretty easy to get early in the game, with the possible exception of Volt. Excalibur can be obtained on Mars (he used to be on Pluto, which is why a lot of older guides claim he is hard to get, but this is no longer the case), with Mag being obtainable right after on Phobos. Volt is obtainable through clans, so if you plan to join a big clan early, then he’s the easiest to get. If you plan to join a small one or not join one at all, however, then he is going to be much harder. Either way, you will be playing with your starter frame for a good portion of the early game, so be sure to choose someone who seems like your playstyle.
Choosing your starting weapons
Most people think of the frames as main classes in Warframe, but the weapons are just as important as well! They each have their own stats and unique traits that set them apart from each other. You have three types of weapons: melee, secondary (ranged), and primary (ranged).
For melee weapons, you have the choice between the Skana and the MK1-Bo. This choice is basically fast medium damage attacks vs slow heavy AOE damage. Either is good; it is mostly based on which playstyle you prefer.
For secondary weapons, you have the Lato and the MK1-Kunai. The Lato is a standard pistol with high accuracy and decent damage. The Kunai features an arcing projectile, so you can kill enemies who are hiding from you. The Kunai is also a silent weapon, which means you can use it without worrying about the enemies sounding an alarm.
For primary weapons, you have the MK-1 Braton and the MK1-Paris. The MK-1 Braton is an assault rifle that has a decent rate of fire and is pretty accurate. It’s the standard gun option. The MK1-Paris is a bow, which has a low rate of fire, but is excellent for stealthier playstyles since it does high damage and is completely silent. If you don’t choose the Kunai as your secondary weapon, then you should probably take the bow as your primary, so you have a silent option for stealth-based missions.
Thankfully, this choice isn’t as daunting as choosing your Warframe. Not only are weapons easier to build, but you can immediately buy the weapons you didn’t choose once you have enough credits. So don’t worry too much about this choice.
Bullet jumping and parkour
If you play on public with random players online (which you can shut off by pressing the globe next to your profile icon in the top left corner), you’ll probably notice how quickly they move. In fact, a common complaint from new characters is feeling like they aren’t able to play with everyone else because everyone travels so much faster than them, Warframe is one of the highest mobility shooters around, and this is usually surprising for new players since it doesn’t seem like a high mobility game at the start. However, you can continually slide, jump, roll, wall dash, and bullet jump (which you can do by pressing space while sliding), so you are rarely touching the ground. It will take you a bit to get used to this speed, but after a while, you will be moving just as fast as everyone else. Also note that you can glide in the air by holding right-click, and you can wall cling by doing this also. These can be very useful tools to have early in the game!
Gears and mods
This is probably where the most confusion happens for new players, since the game does not explain mods or gears very well on its own. Basically, mods are upgrades to your Warframe and weapons that allow them to gain additional strength and abilities. You usually pick them up from enemies or by completing missions. You can equip them in the arsenal by pressing “Upgrade” next to a Warframe or weapon.
As you rank up your equipment, you’ll be able to equip more powerful mods. You can also upgrade the mods themselves by going to the mod station across from the foundry. Mods are incredibly powerful for customizing your character, so be sure to use them frequently. Some universally useful mods are Vitality, Redirection, and Flow, which increase your Health, Shields, and Energy respectively.
While gears are not always necessary, there are times where they are useful or even needed to progress through the game. The first time you encounter this will be on Mars, and it can be very frustrating to complete this early quest without understanding how the gear wheel works. You can make different tools and accessories and equip them to your gear wheel by going to the arsenal. You can access this gear wheel by holding Q while on missions.
Be sure to equip Codex Scanners as soon as you get them. They are necessary for progressing past Mars, a very early planet, and it can be frustrating for new players when they are trying to complete this quest, since the game doesn’t explain anything about gears. Ciphers are also useful tools to bring on your spy missions, just as a safety net for hacking quickly.
Don’t skip the story
Not only do you have to play through the main story quests to get to continue unlocking new planets, but they are completely worth paying attention to. Frequent MMO players may feel the urge to skip dialogue, but this game isn’t like other MMOs. Most MMOs have the best parts of the game and story as endgame content. Because of this, players typically go through the rest of the story quickly, and don’t get a real feel for what’s going on until late in the game. Warframe takes a completely different approach to its storytelling. The story progresses as you do and it feels much more natural than other MMOs. Also, it’s beautifully written, and definitely worth listening to.
Choose your own adventure
The best thing about Warframe is how many options you have available to you. If you see a Warframe or weapon in the market that looks good, look up how to get it and go hunting for it! If you want to have a more MMO-type experience, then go to Cetus and try out fishing. Or any central hub. The options are unlimited with Warframe, so once you have the basics down feel free to do what you want! Experience the game the way you like it.
