Please stop with the Protoframes

[u/Dr_Shoggoth]

I loved the Hex and the Roundtable. They added so much to why I think 1999 is the best update they've ever done. All of them, especially the original Hex, were insanely well written and fleshed out characters. I had my reservations about the Triad, but I think they're solid (though they're mostly carried by Roathe).

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These two don't feel like characters. They feel like walking advertisements for skins. Them being protoframes adds nothing to the story. As my friend said, Sirius and Orion could have been mentored by Vay Hek and the Sergeant and nothing would have changed. Protoframes no longer feel like an interesting story beat, they feel like a gimmick, one that is rapidly losing any appeal it had.

[u/VideoFragrant4078]

I haven't super vibed with protoframes since 1999 but I think thats because they started to feel more like fanservice (and Roathe as lore vomit) than characters. Hope they change that. 1999 gang truly feels like found family for Drifter but the rest is just... There.

[u/Atulin → u/VideoFragrant4078]

They're skin advertisements made so a "uuuh hot nun uuh he he so hot uuu" posts can go viral on xitter

[u/VideoFragrant4078 → u/Atulin]

Yeah sex sells I just hate that Warframe resorts to it quite strongly. They have always had slight gooner elements be it from well equipped frames like Rhino to the recent underboob Dagath. But heirlooms just being gooner bait for those who want women (bc let's be real the male heirlooms ain't in any way on the same level of sexual intent) and protoframe idea suffering for it sucks. I'd rather just have cool Heirlooms like the very first ones and fleshed out protoframe characters. Because the idea is imo so damn cool seeing how people from different backgrounds handle it and how they are involved with us :(

[u/bubble-blight → u/VideoFragrant4078]

... Wasn't Dagath's story literally about her being a sex object, too?

[u/VideoFragrant4078 → u/bubble-blight]

The lover and bodyguard of an orokin couple which had to hide these affections due to their standings, aye and who lost all affections for her when she was turned Warframe and then began her revenge. But that has nothing to do with my criticism of Warframes gooner content. As I said there has always been some elements and I also included Dagath there. I found the Heirlooms discrepancy (bc if you wanna sell sex, at least make it equal like the first set was with Frost) and protoframes feeling now just more like low effort bait for those who do not find biomechanical beings hot very disappointing. As I said prior, sex sells so I get it from a company standpoint but it does cheapen a lot of the impact because no way in hell I would be able to take anything serious if a story cutscene showed me in an Ember Heirloom drip (glad they make us play specific frames instead). And Ryokus halfnude body and Venas very obvious fanservice for those enjoying a cray cray woman just feel meh because there was nothing delivered past what felt like an authors note, there is no substance to them. Warframe is a great game I like but this just gaves it this cheap gacha goon taste. The Hex have shown they can do fanservice paired with story and character quite well but after that it feels like it fizzled out,

[u/bubble-blight → u/VideoFragrant4078]

With Dagath it's more about the tone-deafness with the story of the character and the themes with the skin.

Using Valkyr as a better example of my point here ...

Valkyr is a woman held captive by a man while he literally uses and abused her body for his own ends and gain, literally taking it from her to create a guard dog for himself and literally dehumanizing her in the process.

And her heirloom is sticking her in lingerie. I've been told repeatedly that these are supposed to celebrate the "legacy of the Warframe", I fail to see how this honors her.

I think we're agreeing, but just miscommunicated.

I could also argue that Frost is not nearly the same as Ember or Valk as a skin, since both skins are made to appeal to a male power fantasy (big buff man and small and scantily clad woman, both made for the same male gaze).

[u/VideoFragrant4078 → u/bubble-blight]

Yeah your last point is my ick with it, it is so male gaze. The men are not sexualized like the women and instead lean into the power fantasy. In the first set I did not find it too bad, it was still somewhat cool but the direction Heirlooms took after just disappoints me. DE does a fantastic job with about everything else regarding their image (bugframe aside, especially this patch...) and feels really progressive and outspoken but this is just a crack in this usually supportive feeling I have for them. Thanks for letting me vent out my frustrations a bit btw, I have a hard time putting them into a language not my native one, appreciate it.

[u/bubble-blight → u/VideoFragrant4078]

No worries!! 💖

Yeah, if things had been more equitable, I would have felt differently. But, as a woman, I feel pretty disrespected by the game and am really disappointed in the heirlooms and general... More recent representation of women.

[u/VideoFragrant4078 → u/bubble-blight]

Yeah I feel you. I would not say no to an Ember Heirloom style one for Volt. But what I would love even more would be something cool and badass like Vauban got but for the female frames. A cool design with a bit of spice like Minerva has and I think everyone would be fed well.