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The popular online game known as Warframe, a title where you might encounter bizarre cosmic entities and pilot futuristic vehicles, has released a significant update. The Vallis Undermind highlights the creative flair that has become synonymous with Warframe in recent years.

This expansion, made available this week, introduces a new mushroom-themed warframe that does a little dance, along with a brand-new biome to discover. But it’s also going back to basics, with another quest geared at making sure this complex, vast long-running online game is understandable by new players.

The Arrival of "The Teacher"

Called “The Teacher,” this is the long-awaited quest that instructs Warframe players on how to use one of the game's most basic — yet most intricate systems: modding.

In Warframe, modifications are enhancements that can be equipped on your warframe or arsenal to boost their performance. These can be simple (increase damage or speed up reload rate) to the incredibly intricate. Content creators often craft hour-long videos about optimized loadouts that use powerful mods in combination to create overwhelming power.

“I think a lot of people were maybe getting into the early game, encountering mods without grasping their purpose,” explained a lead narrative designer. “I think it was really important, at the end of the quest, for players to think, ‘Wow, modding is interesting. I'd like to experiment further.’”

A Joint Development

“The Teacher” was developed in a collaboration between the core team, who handled the story elements, and an external team, who designed the mission, which will appear early in the game.

In the quest, the player is asked to retrieve a new segment for their spaceship, but they’re confronted by a formidable foe called Teshin, who takes away the player’s abilities and close-combat arms, and forces them to engage with the mod system to handily demonstrate its power.

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

“The first thing we did was basically sit behind them and have them experience the introduction and document extensively on everywhere they fell out,” 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 it's flashing on the screen saying put the mod in the slot,” he said.

Filling a Significant Gap

Warframe’s mods allow players to create stupidly powerful synergies that turn the screen into a blitz of numbers. But "The Teacher" focuses on different aspects. Veteran users who wish the quest was geared more towards their needs, like optimizing for endgame challenges. But it became clear that the mission addresses a genuine oversight for early players — and that doing so isn’t as simple as it looks.

“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 goals of “The Teacher” is to show how mods can create elemental damage types; in this case, Magnetic damage that eats chunks out of enemy shields.

“Adjustments to the armament to be a rapid-fire gun, because it shows off the proc rate more,” the designer said. “However, the goal isn't to say to people, 'with a basic modification, you only got a few percentage chance to proc an elemental effect.' How can you teach this mechanic effectively?”

Experienced players will naturally recognize these mechanics and understand how it works, but beginners require instruction to pay attention to these things.

“It’s not a kind of game development that we've had to worry about as much just because our priorities lay elsewhere,” said a narrative lead. “However, this oversight meant 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 really simple mission that — honestly — you can complete quickly,” said the designer. “But it's months and months of work for loads of people.”

The designer was clearly enthusiastic over contributing to a beloved title — and to craft a mission for one of his favorite characters.

“I love 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 player onboarding process. There are lots of complex systems that players don’t need to worry about — and won't encounter until much later. And others, like modding, that scale in complexity depending on your level of engagement. A previous patch 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 reinforcing their dedication to make sure Warframe’s early game experience evolves beyond its origins. New players can get their foot in the door — regardless of overlooking tutorials.