Warframe's latest update, Jade Shadows: Constellations, introduces two new Protoframes, Ryoku and Vena. Protoframes, which are essentially human iterations of the game's Warframes, were first integrated into the game with the Warframe: 1999 expansion and quickly gained a dedicated following, partly due to the accompanying in-game romance system.
However, the new Protoframes in Jade Shadows: Constellations are designed with a different narrative purpose. Community director and live ops lead Megan Everett explained that while players may desire romance options for every new Protoframe, it's not always feasible or narratively appropriate. "They can't all be romanceable," Everett stated, noting that Ryoku and Vena serve as mentors to the update's primary characters, Orion and Sirius. Players will instead align with one of the new Protoframes for a space battle that culminates in a boss fight against their chosen mentor.
This departure from the norm is a deliberate strategy to maintain the freshness of Protoframes. Everett acknowledged the consistent player demand for romanceable characters but emphasized the need to diversify their roles. "You have to branch out with Protoframes to make sure they still have that freshness, and dabble with what players like," she said. The decision to withhold romance options for Ryoku and Vena is tied to their specific role within the Constellations questline, explaining their strong connection to Sirius and Orion. She added, "if my favourite Warframe got a Protoframe, and I wasn't able to do anything like that, I'd be so upset. But if you play the Constellations quest, you'll understand why these characters are so linked to Sirius and Orion, and why they're not an option to be romanced."
The developers pointed out that romance has not been a mandatory feature for all Protoframe introductions. For instance, the Techrot Encore update last year introduced four characters, with romance not always fitting their established backstories, such as two characters being divorced.
Everett believes that the popularity of romance systems demonstrates that players are open to various gameplay avenues beyond just the core mechanics. "Our players love the romance systems - it shows our players can swing different types of ways," she commented. "They aren't all around the metagame; not just about the grind. They are open to different gameplay avenues. That's beneficial to us - the lore ones, romanceable ones, and now these mentors. We don't want to have this Protoframe burnout - if we did it for every one we released people would get annoyed."
Managing player attachment to existing characters also presents a challenge. "You can't make players care about a character so much, and then throw them another character they can date," Everett remarked, recalling the need to reassure players that they could still pursue relationships with characters from Warframe 1999 after the release of the Triad. The team aims to avoid player frustration stemming from an ever-growing cast of potential romantic interests.
Beyond romance, the concept of "Protoframe burnout" is a significant concern for the development team. To keep Protoframes feeling special, their introduction must be strategic and thematically coherent. "We do four new Warframes a year, plus Prime Warframes. Adding Protoframes into the mix in a consistent way would lead to burnout," Everett explained. "So we have to pick-and-choose, and have a strategy for where they go. They have to make sense thematically, and fit into the narrative. It's not to say that Protoframes in the future won't be datable, or some won't have a divorce arc or whatever, but things must stay fresh."