There is a hot topic going on in Warframe right now. Digital Extremes (DE) has proposed a change to the Daily Tribute System. Under the current system, players are rewarded with items that scale with their Mastery Rank, giving those with higher ranks a better chance at receiving higher-tier rewards. DE’s suggested change would shift the system to be based on login days, with the goal of scaling the rewards. The new system would offer a drop table of rewards ranging from credits and endo to boosters, materials, and platinum discounts. Specifically, for days 1-199 (excluding days 50, 100, and 150), players would receive a fixed resource such as 50 endo. This reward would increase by 25% every 50 days, so that days 201-399 (excluding 250, 300, and 350) would yield 150 endo when the reward drops.
The second part of DE’s proposed change concerns milestone rewards, which are currently granted on days 100, 150, 200, 250, etc. Under the new system, players would be able to choose their own rewards on these milestone days rather than being assigned specific rewards. For example, on day 100, players could select items from the login rewards table. This has caused frustration among long-term players, as it means that newcomers could potentially access the “best” items much earlier than they would have under the old system. Some players feel that DE is prioritizing the needs of new players over the recognition and achievements of long-term players, and that the change diminishes the value of their hard-earned progress.
From a financial perspective, it does not make sense for weapons and armor (excluding cosmetic items) to be locked behind a login-based reward system. The primary purpose of the game is for players to have fun. It is not a wise business decision to invest in the creation of weapons and armor that will be used by a small portion of the player base. Instead, it would be more effective to reward long-term players in other ways.
The appeal of the game should come from the enjoyment experienced while playing, rather than from login rewards. Players should be rewarded for their in-game progress, rather than for simply logging in. Boosters, materials, and platinum discounts are more appropriate rewards, as they benefit both long-term and short-term players.
Personally, I welcome the proposed changes. As someone who has already obtained the “best” login rewards, such as the Zenistar, I am glad that new players will have the opportunity to access these items sooner. The focus should be on ensuring that the game is enjoyable for all players, rather than on imposing arbitrary barriers to progress.
