TennoCon 2024: The Experience as a Warframe Fan and Media

TennoCon 2024 may have come and gone, but that Friday and Saturday created memories for everyone that will last a lifetime. Whether you were watching at home, or at the convention center with fellow Tenno from around the world who took time from work and family to be a part of the biggest day for Warframe, Soulframe, and Digital Extremes. There were a lot of meaningful showings for both games.

To those watching online, they were treated to a bombastic showing of Soulframe, and dedicated panels for art, and sounds of both games Digital Extremes is working on. As well as a whole presentation for mega-fans of the game to show off their cosplays. But what was it like for people that were at the convention center that day? Well, Lords of Gaming was invited to attend, and as the resident Warframe player who has dedicated years of coverage to the game, I can say that it was an experience I would not have traded for anything in the world. I am sure everyone who attended felt the same.

The Center of the Community

At the beginning of the day during the “Welcome to TennoCon 2024” presentation, Digital Extremes started by talking about where a lot of the money earned from TennoCon goes into. This year they were able to donate $200,000 CAD to both “The AbleGamers Charity” and “SickKids Foundation”. The donation will help bring the joy of gaming and inclusion to people with disabilities and help fund the ability to find illnesses before they start. For the full presentation of this to see the work these donations help bring to life, you can find the exact moment in the stream here.

TennoCon this year, like many other years, took place at the RBC Place convention center, and it was packed from wall to wall after each panel. Mainly from people needing to relieve themselves and grab some food that was oddly well-priced compared to what I experienced at PAX East this year. A plain hamburger and hot dog cost nearly half of what it did at PAX. At TennoCon, it is much more generous, especially given the conversion from USD to CAD. The food was also lovingly named after references in the game, like the aforementioned burger being a “meat mattress” which calls back to the flesh from within the walls of the tower in Cetus.

There was also a specific room in the convention center that, while themed around Soulframe, was dedicated to just chilling out. It was very quiet, everyone stayed at a low tone on beanbag chairs, and the room had excellent decor matching scenery from the game.

There was also so much going on outside the main venue. Including some pretty expansive sections that reference a lot of the game.

A Market, and a Club

Directly outside the TennoCon 2024 venue was a place called the Cetus Market, perfectly themed and presented like that of the one in Warframe. A wooden display of masks like the one near Nakak, and other areas dedicated to relaxing and drinking as well. It felt right at home, and you could tell all of the love that went into crafting this space, as well as the Vent Kids Club.

Right next to the Cetus Market was a tent themed around the Vent Kids in Fortuna of Warframe. A syndicate dedicated to the k-drives that enable traversal around open worlds like Tony Hawk Pro Skater. Inside the tent were a lot of cool arcade games you could earn tickets from tokens you were given at the door, as well as some unique stands. Such as the Necraloid trivia kiosk stand that I aced before anyone else could in the venue on the first day. Also, there were a lot of “Gacha” machines that had handcrafted relics from each variant that if you opened them up, you could get various prizes. Prizes included pins, extra tokens, or ticket-redeemable vouchers to earn exclusive rewards. There was even a space to sit down and trade amongst others if you wanted what they had.

On the first day, they also hosted a massive party where everyone gathered for karaoke, drinks, and snacks.

A Hall of Memories

Outside of the main theater on the second floor of the TennoCon 2024 venue, were three different areas for photo opportunities. One was for Arthur, the Excalibur Proto-frame from Warframe: 1999, and his Atomicycle from the PAX East trailer that revealed Aoi, the Mag Proto-frame. I was able to take a picture from behind the crowd as Ralf from Lightning Cosplay stood next to Arthur. The cosplay was so spectacular you could not really tell which was which in the picture on its own.

Right beyond this was a railway station, including free posters, and beyond that was a mini-museum of framed fan art and displays for replicas created by various creators. I am only able to show what could not be classified as general spoilers, but there were three rows with each side filled with various pieces of fan art with the creator’s names and social media links. I cannot even begin to imagine how it feels for those creators to have their work on display for thousands of fans to look at.

But I would be remiss not to show what the energy of the crowd was like in the main event theater before TennoLive began. Digital Extreme’s on-site team gave us various colors of glow-tubes to use to simulate the feeling of being in a concert. This was fitting considering how TennoLive itself felt like a concert thanks to the President of Digital Extremes, Sheldon Carter, who directed the crowd with lots of cheers before the presentation. If you go to the Associate PR Manager of Digital Extremes Tatum’s X page here, you can find a small taste of what that energy was like during one of the big reveals.

Savoring Every Moment

I have been playing Warframe for over eight years now, and one of my dreams was to be able to attend TennoCon 2024. Digital Extremes allowed us to be a part of the event as media. This meant that while one side of me was giddy to finally be at TennoCon, the other side of me always kept myself in check by focusing on work. From jotting down notes from every presentation before and during the event to being given the privilege and honor of interviewing Kevin Lim, I never stopped working. No doubt this made the trip even more unique. Plus, given that it was only a two-day event compared to something like PAX East, which was about a five-day event this year, meant that I had to make the most out of every moment.

But even more so as a fan, seeing in person, and on-site with thousands of fans everything Digital Extremes has coming to Warframe. Like The Lotus Eaters, the secretive unannounced update they will showcase at the Tokyo Game Show, and especially Warframe: 1999. I could not feel more fulfilled, and proud to have been a part of something so special to not only Digital Extremes but the entire fanbase that was in-person and watching from home.