The first game that comes to mind for me is Civilizations 4. I’ve probably spent hundreds of hours playing but after getting used to 5 and 6 I have a really hard time going back. Going back and forth between 5 and 6 I need to rethink some strategies but with 4 I feel like I need to rethink everything. I don’t know if it’s because of the tech tree layout in combination with the civics system, things like unit stacking, or maybe just a bunch of little things but it takes me a while to readjust.
Warframe. I spent 2 years around 2020 farming up every frame, every item, every pet, every everything – without spending a dime. I was so grateful for the experience I spent nearly $300 in cosmetics when I finished the game.
They’re always adding more stuff, but I consider Warframe “beat”. It was a killer experience, I had a lot of fun with all the different builds and overpowered shit you could pull off if you were smart. Along with Path of Exile, Warframe stands a pinnacle of how to do Free to Play correctly.
I also did a “No Engram” run on ARK: Survival Ascended – You’re not allowed to learn any of the things you can build; you HAVE to find the items naturally in the world. That was a nightmare, but I managed it – and will NEVER do it again. It gave me new appreciation for specific aspects of the game.
I was considering playing Warframe a while back because I was a fan of Dark Sector but the reviews I saw online mentioned an incredible amount of grinding. Do you think it’s worth picking up for someone who isn’t into that kind of thing?
If you’re impatient, no. Most of the “grind” was starting a crafting job, and waiting 72 hours for it to complete.
Unfortunately everyone wants instant gratification and Warframe is not an instant-gratification game.
What I did was work on things bit by bit, and when I started crafting it - I moved onto farming something else.
Some of the worst items to get in the game, I had to wait a year before they ‘unvaulted’ the relics for. Other things, I had to log in daily for over a year before they would become available as login rewards.
So – I repeat – If all you care about is instant gratification, Warframe is not for you. Unless you have deep pockets. Their monetization scheme is “If you don’t want to wait on this thing, pay up”. For people who are patient, this is wonderful.
Warframe has gotten so much better since 2020. I highly recommend coming back for a bit just to do the new quests. All your stuff will still work great in the new content. In fact, it’ll work better now that other damage types are way more viable. No longer have to mod everything viral/slash/heat.
Played from 2020 to around the end of 2022, already did all of the rebalance stuff since Rebecca became design lead. I really cannot go back. I beat it. It’s done. Regardless of the new frames, etc – I’m out of that “cycle” now. I’m mastery rank L2 if I am remembering correctly. No matter how much content they release - they’ll never release enough of it for me to want to return. I conquered Warframe. Legendary 2 rank. Most people don’t even reach MR15 before they crash out. Once I had everything in the game, it was done for me. Permanently.
Man warframe is such an interesting game. I bounced off it twice. When it first released and then again in like '17, but not long ago I fell into it hard for 3 months. So much so it was my #1 played game for my steam recap lol.