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The popular online game known as Warframe, a title where you can feed yourself to a giant mouth and pilot futuristic vehicles, has released a new update. The Vallis Undermind highlights the distinctive charm that has become synonymous with Warframe in the past few seasons.

This expansion, released on Wednesday, introduces a new mushroom-themed warframe that performs a unique animation, along with a brand-new biome to discover. But it’s also going back to basics, with a new mission aimed at making sure this complicated, expansive 12-year-old MMO makes sense to new players.

A Quest Called "The Teacher"

Called “The Teacher,” this is the highly anticipated mission that instructs 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 added to your character or your weapons to improve their stats. These can be simple (increase damage or speed up reload rate) to the devastatingly complex. Content creators often craft hour-long videos about idealized builds that use synergistic enhancements to create overwhelming power.

“I think a lot of people were maybe getting into the early game, seeing mods, not really understanding it,” said a lead narrative designer. “We believed it was crucial, at the end of the quest, for players to think, ‘Hey, modding is cool. I'd like to experiment further.’”

A Collaborative Effort

“The Teacher” was created through a partnership between the core team, who provided the narrative sauce, and a supporting studio, who crafted the gameplay, which will be introduced to new players.

In the quest, the player is tasked with obtaining a new segment for their spaceship, but they’re confronted by a formidable foe called Teshin, who removes the player's powers and close-combat arms, and forces them to engage with the mod system to effectively show its potential.

Many of the external team were longtime players, but some were newcomers, according to a principal games designer. It was this outside perspective that proved critical.

“Our initial step involved observing new players and have them experience the introduction and take prodigious notes on all points of confusion,” the designer said. Early-game menu pop-ups presented the mod system. But the team noted that they didn’t work on everyone.

“Some people didn't see basic instructions where the game highlights it saying equip the modification,” 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" isn’t really about that. Veteran users who desire more advanced content, like optimizing for endgame challenges. But it became clear that the mission addresses a genuine oversight for newcomers — and that executing this is quite complex.

“Numerous subtle adjustments and background details there to just sort of show you what it can do rather than explain it outright,” the designer said. For example, one of the mission's objectives is to show how mods can create elemental damage types; 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. “But you don’t want to say to people, 'oh yeah, actually on a base level mod, you only got a low probability to trigger a special damage type.' So how do you tutorialize that without changing it?”

Veterans will naturally recognize these mechanics and understand how it works, 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 that hasn't been our focus,” said a narrative lead. “But part of it not being our focus that we never really told people how to use mods.”

A Labor of Love

“A tremendous amount of work is required for just making a seemingly straightforward quest that — honestly — you can complete quickly,” said the designer. “Yet it represents extensive development for loads of people.”

The designer was visibly glowing with excitement over being able to work on a game that he loves — and to design content featuring a preferred figure.

“I'm a huge fan of Teshin,” he said. “He embodies everything my younger self found awesome.”

An Evolving Onboarding Process

In the decade-plus since launch, Warframe has been in a ongoing struggle with its own new user introduction. There are many intricate mechanics that players can ignore initially — and won’t even have access to until much later. And others, like modding, that increase in depth depending on how much time you want to invest. An update earlier this year improved the introductory experience 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 initial hours doesn’t stay locked in 2013. Beginners can find their way — regardless of overlooking tutorials.