It’s hard to imagine that there is ever a “right time” for a game. If you would have told me 10 years ago that the slice-and-shoot space ninja game Warframe would have turned into the almost unrecognizable, multi-generational epic it is today, I would have scoffed.
Now, here we stand on the precipice of another unique title from Digital Extremes with their fantasy multiplayer action title Soulframe. A game that means to do more than just be another action fantasy, but rather a game that heals the soul. A game meant to push away the cynicism that gamers have been bombarded with. And it couldn't have come at a better time.
Heal the World, Heal the Soul
Perhaps, as important as anything else, Soulframe is a game with thematic undertones that cuts to the heart of issues that affect us in the real world. It’s no secret that there has been a rise in comfort games, conveniently packaged as cozy titles. We live in a harsh world out there, which is why an escape into an online fantasy can often act as a refresh from the toils of modern-day. The muck that builds within our own world feels almost like a parallel to the world of Soulframe, where the corruption can take hold of even the most beautiful of creatures.
Unfortunately for me, few fantasy games have caught my interest lately, and even fewer have had a narrative with a soul of its own. The premise of healing a world that may feel as if it's too far gone, and the redemption of evils that feel almost irredeemable resonates with me, and I don't think I'm the only one that feels that way. This is why I feel like Soulframe is a game that could appear at just the “right time” for a new generation of gamers that are looking for something different. After spending some time with the team of Soulframe during Tennocon, I think they are close to crafting something fundamentally unique.
“We wanted something optimistic, something that has lots of themes of redemption,” said Creative Director for Soulframe Geoff Crookes during the first developer livestream for the game during Tennocon. As the intro faded from black to a spritely bird weaving its way through a grim and ghastly warzone, before settling on a scene of a mother embracing a newborn child, it wasn’t difficult to perceive the emotions of hope and love. However, Soulframe’s aim is more than that.
“I don’t know how you guys are all feeling these days,” CEO Steve Sinclair said as he addressed the crowd at Tennocon. “But the world’s kind of a cynical place and you can’t really like things without being made fun of. There’s a lot of cynicism around, and I think, for me personally, this is kind of like – what if there was a place where everyone gets a second chance? And there’s a Redemption arc for everyone. It doesn’t all have to be dark and gloomy and bitter.”
I think that the gaming and social environment of today has veered monumentally from where it started, even if we go back 10 years ago. As a lifelong gamer, I’ve personally seen a shift from excitement, to skepticism, to cynicism, and it seems to me that the result is settling on exhaustion. There was a time that online games could combat that, and we still get a glimpse of that positivity in the worlds we inhabit and the right fandom. It’s one of several significant things that Digital Extremes has inarguably done well with Warframe.
Yet Soulframe’s themes of redemption and healing a world ravaged by its inhabitants are more than just narrative window dressing. “We do want people to just have that immersive feel when you're playing the game and just feel that you're also healing with the game,” Art Director Rosa Lee told me during an interview. From the moment you login, the game engulfs you in lush greenery, warm sunlight, and a host of fellow furry friends, which seems deceptively cozy for a title that teases horrific, slimy creatures that you’ll inevitably have to deal with.
The Importance of Being Connected
Connections play a huge role in the narrative and progression of Soulframe. Development is still plodding along in a “preludes” state, meaning that the team is far from naming a particular Alpha or Beta status, but ancestry is a primary pillar of the game, even at this early stage. There are family trees in the game and players will be tasked with finding ancestors to progress integral systems like crafting. Digital Extremes is focusing on using these familial connections to tell a story that roots you to the world.
But connections with other players in online games have always had the potential to entrench gamers in their online worlds in ways narratives rarely have. The multiplayer aspects of Soulframe have yet to be fully revealed, but it seems their philosophy is to foster a sense of community. To do that, they want to negotiate ways to entice players to play together, but there are a lot of hurdles the prevent players from finding a cohesive group.
One example that I heard during an interview with Soulframe Community Manager Sarah Asselin, was that characters can feel too similar. When you’re constantly grouping with characters that share many of the same strengths, that identity of being needed and useful can sometimes get lost.
“Sometimes playing multiplayer just feels like you’re a copy of each other,” she said. “We want to build out more pacts so there’s more of a focus on multiplayer mechanics and how we build out squads, so it doesn’t feel like you all have the same packaging, all the same weapons,” she continued. “Our multiplayer experience has always been so important to the core design of Warframe, and it’s definitely in our minds for Soulframe to flesh out and create, but it’s still so early that we can see where it’s lacking, but there’s lots of room to grow.”
The lofty ideals of Digital Extremes aren’t unique in the industry. A lot of companies build games with the best intentions of finding a way to create a grassroots community. The major difference with Digital Extremes here is that they’ve already done it, and the continued success of Warframe is a testament to their ability to find ways to engage gamers. Whether we’ll see a repeat with Soulframe, it’s still too early to tell.
However, I will take a page out of the Soulframe book and push away the skepticism and cynicism, and freely admit that my excitement for the game has hit a fever pitch. As Soulframe’s preludes look to open to everyone in just a few short months, I can’t wait to see how the community builds once they have the game in their hands. Cleansing the cynicism from a weathered gamer’s soul can’t come soon enough, and even if there may never be a “right time” for a game release, there’s no better time than now.
