Heartipedia

Soulframe

Soulframe is a free-to-play fantasy action role-playing game by Digital Extremes, the studio behind Warframe, in which a character called an Envoy fights a corruption called the Ode to heal the land of Alca.[^4][^8] Revealed in July 2022 and tested on PC in Preludes since December 2023, it opened to every PC player without an invitation in Open Preludes on November 6, 2026.[^5][^9][^3] As of November 7, 2026, it has no release date, cannot be played through Steam and has no console version.[^2][^4]

The TennoCon 2026 demo: an Envoy storms a camp In the live demo played at TennoCon 2026, an Envoy seen from behind charges a camp of armored foes in a misty pine forest, cutting through them with a blade and bursts of green and blue magic among tents, campfires and a heavy wagon.

Overview

Soulframe is a free-to-play fantasy action role-playing game that Digital Extremes, the studio behind Warframe, both develops and publishes.[4][8] The player is an Envoy, a character of ancient Fey blood, who fights a conquering, corrupting power called the Ode, beginning on the island of Midrath in the world of Alca.[4] Digital Extremes revealed the game at TennoCon on July 16, 2022, and it has been playable on Windows PC since December 2023 in Preludes, a phase in which the studio ships numbered updates and reworks the game in response to its players.[5][9][20] On November 6, 2026, the studio began Open Preludes, which lets anyone on PC sign up at soulframe.com and play without waiting for an invitation.[3][1] As of November 7, 2026, the game has no release date and no console version, and its Steam page, which lists single-player and online co-op for up to four players, is for wishlists only.[2][4]

The TennoCon 2026 demo: an Envoy storms a camp In the live demo played at TennoCon 2026, an Envoy seen from behind charges a camp of armored foes in a misty pine forest, cutting through them with a blade and bursts of green and blue magic among tents, campfires and a heavy wagon.

Origins and reveal

Soulframe began as a hedge against the decline of Warframe that never came. Steve Sinclair told Game Informer in April 2026 that a member of the studio's statistics department had forecast in 2016 that Warframe was declining, a forecast the team later found wrong when Warframe reached new highs.[6] Digital Extremes committed to the new game before asking its parent company, Tencent, an approach Sinclair called the "beg forgiveness" route.[6] Tencent had become the parent in December 2020 by acquiring Leyou, Digital Extremes' majority owner since 2014, and the studio said then that it would remain creatively independent.[7] Digital Extremes revealed Soulframe with a cinematic trailer at TennoCon 2022 on July 16, 2022, called it a free-to-play "action hybrid-MMORPG" in early development, and opened registration for Envoy names.[5] Geoff Crookes was named creative director, citing The NeverEnding Story and Princess Mononoke as influences.[5] In October 2023 the founder, James Schmalz, stepped down as chief executive and Sinclair, who had directed Warframe and was directing Soulframe, took over.[8]

Early builds and delays

In August 2023 Digital Extremes posted a half-hour gameplay video of an early build, and the first closed tests followed in December 2023 on PC with about 100 players, invited by email from those who had signed up on the website.[32][9] At TennoCon 2024 the studio said Soulframe Preludes would open to the public in fall 2024, so that anyone signing up could play almost at once.[10] That slipped: in October 2024 community director Megan Everett called the wider opening "a 2025 endeavor," saying the push to release Warframe 1999 had pulled resources, while Sinclair said the long-term progression was not ready.[11] The studio instead sent out about 2,000 Preludes keys a week.[11] The early combat was poorly received. Sarah Asselin, the game's senior community manager, told AUTOMATON in October 2026 that the 2024 demo's movement felt stiff, its animation rough and its characters' feet slid over the ground, that the team treated this as a turning point and changed direction, and that by 2025 players were reporting large improvements.[26]

The 2023 build: a lone Envoy in the forest Digital Extremes' 2023 gameplay video shows how early the game was: a hooded Envoy walks alone through a misty, sunlit forest in a build that has since been reworked many times.

Preludes in public, 2025 to 2026

Digital Extremes closed 2024 with a trailer titled "Coming in 2025," but by July 2025 PC Gamer reported that a 2025 launch had become an aspirational goal, and the game did not launch that year.[31][13][2] At TennoCon 2025 the studio let in everyone who had signed up on the website by July 20, 2025, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time.[12] On November 25, 2025, it began selling Founders bundles alongside Preludes 12: Wylds, which added greatswords, clearer guidance for new players and named roaming bosses called the Agari.[14] Updates came faster in 2026. Preludes 14.5 in May introduced Tempers, random extra properties on weapons, and a shared inventory; Preludes 15: Gods & Ghosts in June made defeated enemies drop finished weapons and added trading and in-game mail; and Preludes 16: Of Hook & Hound in September added fishing, a wolf pup companion and dynamic weather.[17][16][18] In March 2026 Game Informer put Soulframe on the cover of issue 377, with a 14-page story written after a visit to the studio in London, Ontario.[23]

The trailer that promised 2025 The December 2024 trailer titled Coming in 2025: an armored Envoy walks a forest beside a giant white wolf, fights red-armored foes with green magic and stands with the wolf on a cliff.

Setting and story

The Envoy's journey begins on Midrath, an island of Alca, a land conquered by the Ode, whose corruption spreads across it.[4] According to the Steam description, an Ode song called the Spellsong made Alca's people forget their rites and their Omen Beasts, the divine creatures they once worshipped, and the Envoy sets out to free those corrupted beasts and heal the land.[4] The places it names include the Dermak Undercity, the Glades of Anduin and the Neath'uns, a shifting maze underground.[4] The developers set the tone against the bleakness common in fantasy: Sinclair told Game Informer that the game is partly a response to the cynicism of the present day and that he wanted "a little Disney Princess spin" on the genre, while Crookes called its themes a reflection of how fractured people have become.[24] At TennoCon 2026 the studio announced a new story quest, the Warsongs Fable, with a corrupted progression path and a rival Envoy, Tempest Bayor, who sides with the Ode and is voiced by Ben Starr; it described the quest as coming later that fall.[19]

The Warsongs trailer The close of the TennoCon 2026 Warsongs trailer: Envoys cross a rain-soaked camp, one draws a bow and another casts green magic, a gauntleted hand lifts a white rabbit from a cage, and the end card reads Together, set them free.

Gameplay

Soulframe is played in the third person, alone or in a party of up to four.[4] A build rests on three Virtues: Courage favors charging into melee, Grace favors stealth and marksmanship, and Spirit favors magic.[4] Weapons, runes and armor combine into custom builds.[4] Since Preludes 15 most weapons drop from defeated enemies already made, carrying random Tempers, and since Preludes 16 players can dismantle old weapons to reclaim their Tempers and have the blacksmith Tuvalkane retune them.[16][18] Asselin said that the move to random drops found in the field drew mixed reactions, with some players welcoming it and others preferring the old crafting.[26]

Blade, magic and bow The June 2026 gameplay trailer cuts between the parts of combat: two fighters clash in a ruined courtyard in a shower of sparks, green magic bursts in a meadow, an archer draws in a teal swamp and a huge beast charges.

Bonds with Omen Beasts grant Pacts, sets of abilities the game calls Arcanics.[4] One of the first was the Pact of Bromius, the Waste Bear, which the developers showed in a work-in-progress form in a September 2025 developer stream.[29] Preludes 17 added an Ode'n Pact, the Ode Shrike, built around traps and chains that restrict an enemy's movement.[21]

A first look at the Waste Bear's Pact In Devstream 9 the developers show a work-in-progress look at the Pact of Bromius, the Waste Bear, and name one of its abilities.

Business model and Founders

Soulframe is free to play.[4] Its paid offer so far is Founders, bundles sold at soulframe.com since November 25, 2025, which also gave instant access to Preludes while it still needed an invitation.[14][18] The three Wyld bundles, Tethren, Oscelda and Sirin, each include 1,000 Arcs, an in-game currency, ten Moonsteel Threads and a code for an Envoy-themed longsword skin in Warframe; the Paragon bundle includes 3,500 Arcs and three skin codes.[15] Digital Extremes has set no end date for Founders and promises at least 30 days' notice before closing it.[15] In a video released on November 19, 2025, Sinclair said the studio would stop resetting accounts, though a reworked system might refund the points spent in it or swap items like for like.[28] He told Game Informer in April 2026 that the studio's method is to keep the team as small as possible and public scrutiny as high as possible.[25]

Sinclair on when Founders goes on sale In the Founders FAQ video, Sinclair says the bundles go on sale at soulframe.com on the 25th, will stay available for many months, and will end only with plenty of warning.

Open Preludes and Preludes 17

On October 15, 2026, after 16 Preludes updates, Digital Extremes announced Open Preludes, calling it its next major development milestone and saying more players would mean more voices helping to build Alca.[20] At its eighteenth developer stream on October 30 it set the start for Friday, November 6, 2026, describing an early alpha playtest open to PC players worldwide and downloaded through its own launcher; Crookes said it felt "a little scary" to open the gates.[1] Preludes 17: Verse of the Veilands came first, with patch notes posted on November 5, 2026.[22] It adds the Veilands, regions the Ode drain of life and players purify, in what the studio called the largest shift yet in how Midrath is explored.[21] Clearing them earns a Bairnsday Biscuit that grows a trained wolf pup into an adult Omen Wolf, the game's first mount.[21][1] Open Preludes went live on November 6, and the official FAQ now says no invite key is needed.[3][2]

The wolf pup arrives The Preludes 16 teaser shows a white pup bounding through tall grass under the caption Puppy Interactions, then the Envoy casting into a green lake beside it under the caption Fishing.

Release plans and platforms

Digital Extremes has given no release date: its FAQ says there is no firm date yet, that Preludes is PC-only for now and that consoles are planned eventually.[2] Asselin told AUTOMATON that the team was not ready to commit to a release timeline and that consoles were a later goal with no schedule.[26] The Steam page says the game is not yet available there, and Digital Extremes presents Steam wishlists as a way to follow the game toward a broader PC release.[4][1] The studio's label for the genre has shifted: it called Soulframe an "action hybrid-MMORPG" in 2022, Steam describes it as a fantasy action RPG, and Asselin told MeinMMO in July 2026 that the team used "MMO Lite" for part of its identity but expected that to change.[5][4][27] Steam's user tags include Souls-like.[4] The Warsongs Fable had not been released as of November 7, 2026, and an October 30 report still placed it later in fall 2026.[22][30]

Developer and publisher
Digital Extremes[4]
Genre
Free-to-play fantasy action RPG with online co-op for up to four[4]
Revealed
Jul 16, 2022, at TennoCon 2022[5]
Creative director
Geoff Crookes[5]
Status
Open Preludes, an early alpha open to all PC players since Nov 6, 2026[3][1]
Current update
Preludes 17: Verse of the Veilands (Nov 5, 2026)[22]
Platforms
Windows PC through soulframe.com; consoles planned, none named[2]
Release date
None announced[2]
  1. Tencent becomes Digital Extremes' parent company by acquiring Leyou.[7]
  2. Soulframe is revealed at TennoCon 2022 with a cinematic trailer.[5]
  3. James Schmalz steps down as chief executive and Steve Sinclair takes over.[8]
  4. The first closed tests begin on PC with about 100 invited players.[9]
  5. The public opening promised for fall 2024 is put back to 2025.[11]
  6. TennoCon 2025 lets in everyone who signed up by July 20, 2025.[12]
  7. Founders bundles go on sale with Preludes 12: Wylds.[14]
  8. Preludes 15: Gods & Ghosts reworks loot and adds trading.[16]
  9. Preludes 16: Of Hook & Hound adds fishing and the wolf pup.[18]
  10. Preludes 17: Verse of the Veilands adds the Veilands and the Omen Wolf mount.[22][21]
  11. Open Preludes begins, open to every PC player without an invitation.[3]

What we think

This section is Heartipedia’s own opinion, not sourced fact. Each view is reasoned from the facts cited above and from trends we see; it may turn out wrong. A prediction’s words are never changed once made: when the facts are known we add the result under it, right or wrong. Every prediction we have made.

Mounted combat from the Omen Wolf's back

We expect Soulframe to let Envoys fight from the back of the Omen Wolf before the end of 2027. We think it arrives as a Preludes update of its own, with attacks built for the mount rather than ordinary weapons used from the saddle.

Why: The wolf has been at the center of Soulframe's pitch since the December 2024 trailer showed an Envoy fighting beside a giant white wolf, and Digital Extremes said the pup would eventually become the player's mount. Preludes 17 made the wolf rideable but the studio's own overview says nothing about fighting from it, and it says the mount will keep developing. Each step so far, companion in Preludes 16 and then mount in Preludes 17, has come one update after the last.

Prediction Confidence: Likely Check by: Dec 2027 Made

Tempest Bayor's corrupted path becomes playable with Warsongs

We think the Warsongs Fable reaches players by the end of June 2027, and that it lets every Envoy take up the corrupted path Tempest Bayor follows, as a Pact of its own, not only face it in an enemy.

Why: Digital Extremes announced Warsongs at TennoCon 2026 for the fall, with a darker, corrupted progression path, and it had not shipped by Nov 7, 2026, after Preludes 17 came first. The studio has already shown it will hand players an Ode'n Pact: Preludes 17's Ode Shrike is one. Big Preludes updates have arrived about three months apart in 2026 (June, September, November), which puts two more inside the first half of 2027.

Prediction Confidence: Likely Check by: Jun 2027 Made

Playable on Steam in 2027, announced at TennoCon

We expect Soulframe to become playable through Steam during 2027, and we think Digital Extremes announces it on stage at TennoCon 2027.

Why: Open Preludes removed the invitation, the last gate that kept the game off a store front, and the studio now calls Steam wishlists the way to follow Soulframe toward a broader PC release. The 2025 and 2026 TennoCons both opened Preludes wider to everyone who had signed up, so the studio uses that stage for access news.

Prediction Confidence: Possible Check by: Dec 2027 Made

No console version before 2028

We think Soulframe will not be playable on any PlayStation, Xbox or Nintendo console before Jan 1, 2028. Our prediction is that the first console version is announced together with a full release, not as part of Preludes.

Why: The FAQ says Preludes is PC-only for now with consoles "eventually", and Sarah Asselin told AUTOMATON in October 2026 that consoles were a later goal with no schedule. Preludes still changes core systems from update to update, from loot in Preludes 15 to the Veilands in Preludes 17, and a console build would need certification for every one of those changes.

Prediction Confidence: Likely Check by: Jan 2028 Made

The name is the game's biggest handicap

We think "Soulframe" is the wrong name for this game, and that it costs Digital Extremes more players than any system the studio has reworked. Our view is that a game about healing a land and freeing its spirits is being shelved by players next to punishing Soulslikes it does not resemble.

Why: The game's own theme, by its developers' account, is a response to cynicism with "a little Disney Princess spin", and the influences Crookes named were The NeverEnding Story and Princess Mononoke. Yet Steam's users have tagged it Souls-like, a label the studio never gave it, and its first word ties it to that genre before anyone reads the description.

Opinion Made

Moments

  1. The TennoCon 2026 demo: an Envoy storms a camp In the live demo played at TennoCon 2026, an Envoy seen from behind charges a camp of armored foes in a misty pine forest, cutting through them with a blade and bursts of green and blue magic among tents, campfires and a heavy wagon.
  2. The 2023 build: a lone Envoy in the forest Digital Extremes' 2023 gameplay video shows how early the game was: a hooded Envoy walks alone through a misty, sunlit forest in a build that has since been reworked many times.
  3. The trailer that promised 2025 The December 2024 trailer titled Coming in 2025: an armored Envoy walks a forest beside a giant white wolf, fights red-armored foes with green magic and stands with the wolf on a cliff.
  4. The Warsongs trailer The close of the TennoCon 2026 Warsongs trailer: Envoys cross a rain-soaked camp, one draws a bow and another casts green magic, a gauntleted hand lifts a white rabbit from a cage, and the end card reads Together, set them free.
  5. Blade, magic and bow The June 2026 gameplay trailer cuts between the parts of combat: two fighters clash in a ruined courtyard in a shower of sparks, green magic bursts in a meadow, an archer draws in a teal swamp and a huge beast charges.
  6. A first look at the Waste Bear's Pact In Devstream 9 the developers show a work-in-progress look at the Pact of Bromius, the Waste Bear, and name one of its abilities.
  7. Sinclair on when Founders goes on sale In the Founders FAQ video, Sinclair says the bundles go on sale at soulframe.com on the 25th, will stay available for many months, and will end only with plenty of warning.
  8. The wolf pup arrives The Preludes 16 teaser shows a white pup bounding through tall grass under the caption Puppy Interactions, then the Envoy casting into a green lake beside it under the caption Fishing.

References

  1. Digital Extremes Invites All Players to Join Soulframe Open Preludes Starting Nov. 6, Digital Extremes, 2026-10-30primary
  2. Soulframe FAQ, Digital Extremes, 2026-11-07primary
  3. Open Preludes Begins, Digital Extremes, 2026-11-06primary
  4. Soulframe on Steam, Valve, 2026-11-07primary
  5. TennoCon 2022: Digital Extremes Unveils New Game Soulframe in Beautiful Cinematic Reveal Trailer and Launches Envoy Name Registration for Players, Digital Extremes, 2022-07-16primary
  6. With Soulframe, Digital Extremes Didn't Ask for Permission but Instead Begged Forgiveness, Game Informer, 2026-04-09press
  7. Digital Extremes Partners with Tencent, Digital Extremes, 2020-12-22primary
  8. Digital Extremes CEO James Schmalz resigns, Shacknews, 2023-10-25press
  9. Soulframe Very Early Alpha Tests Begin December, Here's What You Can Expect, MP1st, 2023-11-24press
  10. Soulframe Preludes opens for everyone later this year, Destructoid, 2024-07-20press
  11. Soulframe Preludes delayed, PCGamesN, 2024-10-25press
  12. Soulframe Preludes Opens Up to Public Access For Everyone Who Signs Up by July 20, Wccftech, 2025-07-19press
  13. Soulframe dev says launching in 2025 is now an 'aspirational goal', PC Gamer, 2025-07-20press
  14. Preludes 12: Wylds, Digital Extremes, 2025-11-26primary
  15. Soulframe Founders, Digital Extremes, 2026-11-07primary
  16. Soulframe Preludes 15 update available now, Digital Extremes, 2026-06-10primary
  17. Preludes 14.5: Ode'n Tempers, Digital Extremes, 2026-05-12primary
  18. Soulframe Preludes 16 update available now, Digital Extremes, 2026-09-18primary
  19. TennoCon 2026: Soulframe, Digital Extremes, 2026-07-14primary
  20. Open Preludes Coming Soon, Digital Extremes, 2026-10-15primary
  21. Soulframe Devstream 18 Overview, Digital Extremes, 2026-11-03primary
  22. Soulframe patch notes, Digital Extremes, 2026-11-07primary
  23. Cover Reveal: Soulframe, Game Informer, 2026-03-27press
  24. Soulframe Is A Response To The Cynicism Of The World, According To Digital Extremes, Game Informer, 2026-04-13press
  25. Soulframe: The Secret To Digital Extremes' Live-Service Success Is Keeping The Team Small, Game Informer, 2026-04-17press
  26. Interview with Soulframe senior community manager Sarah Asselin (in Japanese), AUTOMATON, 2026-10-07press
  27. Soulframe will not be a simple fantasy Warframe, MeinMMO, 2026-07-03press
  28. Soulframe | Founders FAQ with Steve and Sarah - Available November 25, Soulframe (YouTube), 2025-11-19primary
  29. Soulframe | Devstream 9, Soulframe (YouTube), 2025-09-12primary
  30. Soulframe Open Preludes Launches on November 6, Final Weapon, 2026-10-30press
  31. Soulframe | Soulframe: Preludes Official Trailer - Coming in 2025, Soulframe (YouTube), 2024-12-06primary
  32. Soulframe | Preludes: Gameplay, Soulframe (YouTube), 2023-08-27primary

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About this page

Drafted by
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Reviewed by
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Status
Published and revised continuously; this version is the one described here.
Published
7 November 2026
Last updated
7 November 2026, see what changed
Sources
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License
Text CC BY-SA 4.0; embedded videos and thumbnails remain their uploaders’ property, shown under YouTube’s Terms of Service; quotations excluded. Details

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