Recent reviews by Acranti

- Rampant cheating (mostly Chinese players on EU. Go figure)
- Horrible matchmaking
- Same bugs in the game since beta
- Unstable, laggy servers
- Crashes and performance issues
- Anti-cheat(s?) that'll stop anything but actual cheats

+ Frequent balance patches and updates
+ Free cosmetics through fairly frequent LTMs
+ Fantastic character customisation
+ More unique playstyles and tactics than most shooters

I love this game and will still be playing it but they need to work on the fundamentals and fix underlying issues before just piling more on top.

The game has crazy potential and I would hate to see it go to waste.

Oh, a new expansion for Warframe? I guess I'll reinstall it once again and see what it's about!

The opening cutscene for The Duviri Paradox felt like it was mocking the player experience over the past few years of:
grind > new content releases > back to square one > grind again, repeat.
I clearly wasn't on enough substances at the time to extract any other sort of meaning from what I had just witnessed but whatever, I'll probably get a few hours of fun out of it at the least.

There was an audible groan upon seeing I was playing as the operator but hey, it hopefully wouldn't be for too long. So anyways, I started blasting with the weapon I had just picked up and running around. Most enemies besides the one encountered immediately after picking up the gun were inexplicably immune to damage. "Not again" I thought to myself before being choked out by some random weirdo and getting sent back to the beginning of the mission.
Cool. So it's forced stealth on top of utilizing one of the least fun ways to play the game as the introduction mission?

"Begin again."
No.. no, I don't think I will.

This game certainly has an absurd amount of content for being free and, imo, has one of the best F2P monetization models, especially these days. The problem is, I don't think even the devs know what they want their game to be at this point.

I can't begin to imagine how overwhelming this game must feel for a new player. Many a time I have come back to Warframe and been at a complete loss for what I should be working towards. The content is definitely there but it often feels like a loosely connected, patchwork monstrosity of different grinds, mechanics and stories with very little indication of what would be most beneficial for you to sink your time into.

I would recommend this game if you like long grinds, have ample amounts of free time and don't mind spending a lot of time reading a wiki. Otherwise, there are more enjoyable, rewarding and less frustrating time sinks out there.

The Arsenal Update review edit:

I'll preface this by saying that the game is free and is still an absolutely unique experience. You've got nothing to lose by trying it out except your time and, if you enjoy it, probably some sanity further down the road.

This update is huge and adds unprecedented levels of character customisation to the game through new weapon attachments, as well as allowing you to stick more of them on guns that you previously couldn't (directive weapons). I can honestly say that my character has never felt more hand-tailored to be decimated by a NS Baron /w slugs from the opposite side of a room in all of my time playing.
Jokes aside, I really hate that amid all of these new possibilities opened up by balance and attachments changes, I feel like I'm putting myself at a disadvantage by not using a shotgun with slugs at ranges where I'd say a good majority of infantry combat takes place.
The update also seems to come with free 1 second stutters every few minutes, so that's always a fun thing to add into the mix.

I won't pretend like I know anything about the game design process but what do test servers exist for? Obviously some bugs and mistakes are bound to slip through the cracks sometimes but it's not even a meme that every update breaks something else at this point. It's just the truth.

I would love to ♥♥♥♥ on the update some more but I genuinely can't be bothered playing and I'm probably just jaded. Although to me it feels like the devs are just throwing ♥♥♥♥ at the wall and seeing what sticks, I do respect them for still throwing.
These are a LOT of changes and as harsh as I am, I will still be watching where this update leads for the game and I hope the devs continue trying things like this. I am optimistic and think that a few patches down the road, it will ultimately be a good thing for the health of Planetside 2 but currently, I still wouldn't feel comfortable recommending it.