“Warframe’s Techrot Encore Update: Get Ready for Boy Band Showdowns and Rainbow Avenue Racing This March!”

Warframe has been undergoing an increasingly bizarre evolution over the past couple of years, building up to last year’s time-traveling, NPC-romancing adventure that paid homage to 1999. And matters are poised to become even more outrageous as developer Digital Extremes invites players to start battling boy band bad guys in the new Techrot Encore update, which launches on March 19th.

Techrot Encore expands on last year’s 1999 update by introducing a range of new gameplay mechanics. This kicks off with the arrival of the Technocyte Coda – a corruption of Warframe’s in-game 90s boy band On-lyne, whose members (Harddrive, Zeke, Drillbit, Packet, and DJ RoM) will randomly appear in various stages until players manage to defeat them.

It is an adversary system – originally intended for last year, but it grew into something broader – that functions similarly to Warframe’s Kuva Lich and Sisters of Parvos. Therefore, players – who will need to complete The Hex quest first – cannot have a Lich or Sister linked to them if they are attempting to experience the Technocyte Coda. Also, be warned that you might have a progressively growing nuisance until you manage to conquer your annoying boy band enemy.

In addition, Techrot Encore introduces four new Protoframes within the extended Höllvania Mall from 1999, which now grants access to the gritty The Round Table tavern. Here, players will encounter Velimir (the Protoframe of Frost) and his former partner Minerva (Saryn), along with the clever young engineer Kaya Velasco, the Protoframe of Nova. Lastly, there is Flare, inspired by David Bowie – the only remaining member of a band called Temple, and the Protoframe of the musically inclined, guitar-wielding sixtieth Warframe, Temple.

All these characters can be found throughout the mall, meaning players can engage with them in the world or explore their backstories through dialogues using 1999’s AOL-inspired KIN system. However, you won’t be able to pursue romantic interactions with any of the new NPCs. Not even with the guitar.

Beyond the narrative elements, Kaya serves as your gateway to accessing Techrot Encore’s robust new Temporal Archimedea missions. These missions can be completed for various rewards and feature a stackable, sticker-inspired boost system that players can utilize for advantages while exploring the environment. Additionally, there are Flare’s new Stage Defence missions, which see players going out to Solstice Square. Here, they must protect Temple from incoming attackers over three waves (with all Defence missions now limited to a few waves in the latest update) while he performs on stage in remembrance of his bandmates.

Rewards for successfully completing a Stage Defence mission include Techrot Heartstrings. These can be presented to Flare at The Round Table to acquire Temple’s blueprints if you are not fortunate enough to receive them as a mission reward. Temple, by the way, is a heat-based Warframe with a unique musical angle, given that he – along with his sentient guitar Lizzy – receive an attack boost when players manage to cast his abilities successfully.