Warframe has some of the most fluid and fun movement out of any shooter I've ever played. I said as much in my review, but Digital Extremes is taking things in a decidedly more radical direction with the addition of 'Bondi K-Drive' hoverboards. Revealed during a special presentation live from Tennocon, Warframe's annual fan convention, these new hoverboards are going to be a key mode of travel in the new Venus open world zone that is five times larger than the Plains of Eidolon.
But who am I kidding, the real draw is that you can do tricks on these bad boys. While the live demo only showed off a 360 spin, I was told there will be plenty more stunts, like backflips, that players can perform as they jet through the gorgeous frozen mountains of Venus. Sadly, you won't be able to grind on anything because, uh, it's a hoverboard. You can jump on enemies' heads and bounce off of them, however.
Now, Warframe veterans will know that the Archwing jetpack is the defacto method for travelling Warframe's open worlds. Digital Extremes did confirm that those will be available in Venus too, but obviously the K-Drive has its own appeal. While I haven't had a chance to pilot one personally, they appeared to glide through the mountainous environment with relative ease and the sense of speed is great.
Unlike the Archwing, K-Drives don't have any real offensive weapons so they're purely used for zipping around. But creative director Steve Sinclair did say that it's something the team is still figuring out and there's a "heated debate" over whether players should be able to fire their guns while riding them. They will, like everything in Warframe, feature extensive customization options. Sinclair confirmed that there would be different models along with cosmetic upgrades that you can earn in various ways including cool graphics for the underside to show off how gnarly you are. We'll update this post with more details as they emerge.
I'm here at Tennocon in person and will continue to cover all of the exciting news and reveals as they happen. For now, check out our breakdown of Warframe's ambitious as hell expansion, Fortuna. You can also watch the full presentation from Tennocon live on Twitch.
