Warframe is about to step into one of its most ambitious story moments in years. Digital Extremes has confirmed that The Old Peace, a major cinematic chapter, arrives on December 10 across all platforms. For a game that’s been building its mythology for more than a decade, this update feels less like another seasonal drop and more like a real shift in where the universe is heading.
A Story Chapter That Finally Opens the Door to Tau
The Old Peace picks up after the events of Lotus Eaters and dives into the long-teased Tau conflict — a part of the lore players have heard about in fragments but never truly experienced firsthand. The quest is said to run for over an hour, and everything about its framing suggests a more direct, emotionally heavy look at the Tenno’s past.
The creative pitch reportedly started with a simple internal idea: “Trench Warframe.” That World War I-inspired tone shows in the new footage — bleak battlefields, a fragile ceasefire, and a sense of doomed hope hanging over the setting. The update is positioned as a story about a failed peace negotiation and the trauma that followed, told through the Operators’ memories and the scars they still carry. If you’ve been waiting for Warframe to do more with the Operator side of its narrative, The Old Peace looks like the kind of chapter designed to deliver.
Uriel Arrives as Warframe #63
The update also introduces the 63rd playable Warframe, Uriel. He’s being presented as a demon-themed embodiment of war’s uglier truths, and from what’s been shown, his kit seems built around brutal frontline pressure rather than flashy spectacle. Uriel comes alongside a brand-new weapon class: bayonets that function as both ranged tools and melee finishers, leaning into the “rifle-and-steel” vibe of the update’s trench-war aesthetic.
Even for veterans with dozens of frames in the arsenal, a new Warframe and a fresh weapon category is always a meaningful shake-up. It’s not just more gear; it’s a new style lane opening up inside the sandbox.
Two Big Modes and a Major Focus Rework
While the story is the headline, The Old Peace isn’t a one-track update. Digital Extremes is rolling in two major game modes tied to the narrative arc, with The Perita Rebellion leading the charge as a large-scale, cinematic battle experience. It’s explicitly connected to a sweeping expansion of the Focus School system, bringing new progression routes and high-impact classroom-style ultimates called Tauron Strikes. Each Focus School gets its own cinematic super move, unlocked through new collectibles earned in these battles.
Importantly, the update also changes how players access new content. New and returning Tenno can jump straight into the two modes through an optional skip, letting friends squad up without forcing anyone to grind through a wall of prerequisites first. The story quest still matters — but Warframe is finally acknowledging that adoption is smoother when you don’t make players climb ten years of stairs just to join the party.
Operators Get a Visual and Narrative Upgrade
Another quiet-but-huge part of The Old Peace is the Operator overhaul. Digital Extremes is updating Operator visuals and expressiveness to better support cinematic storytelling, and this chapter is the first designed to really take advantage of that. In a narrative built around memory, flashbacks, and the cost of war, that upgrade isn’t cosmetic fluff — it’s core to how the story wants to land.
There’s also a companion side thread called The Devil’s Triad, adding new Protoframes and thematic skins that echo the update’s darker tone. Think of it as extra narrative seasoning for players who like their lore served with style.
Why This Update Feels Special
A lot of Warframe updates are good. Some are even great. But The Old Peace carries the vibe of a “remember where you were when this dropped” moment. It’s bringing a mythic part of the setting into view, adding a new frame and weapons that fit the theme, and reworking a foundational system in a way that could ripple through builds for the next year.
If Digital Extremes sticks the landing, this could be the chapter that reframes Warframe’s future — not just mechanically, but emotionally. And with the update hitting December 10, we won’t have to wait long to find out.