Digital Extremes just officially launched the Soulframe Founders Program alongside Preludes 12, giving players immediate access to the fantasy MMO’s ongoing pre-alpha testing. After being revealed back at TennoCon 2022 and spending years in closed development, Soulframe is finally opening its doors wider with founder packs priced at $29.99 each or $99.99 for the complete Paragon bundle.
Four Paths Into Soulframe
The Founders Program offers four different purchasing paths, three themed around Soulframe’s core virtues and one mega bundle that includes everything. Each of the three standard paths costs $29.99 and centers on a specific playstyle with its own unique Wyld Pact character, weapons, and cosmetics.
Wyld Tethren represents the courageous fighter path, Wyld Oscelda embodies the willful mage, and Wyld Sirin channels the rogue archer. Each pack includes a unique Wyld Pact, a main weapon and sidearm, an armor set, a talisman, dye colors, bird cosmetics (called Sparrow skins), premium Arcs currency, armor transmog consumables called Bestitching items, and two extra Preludes invite codes to bring friends into the test.
The Path of the Wyld Paragon bundles all three standard packs together for $99.99 and adds an exclusive Paragon Greatsword that you can’t get any other way. This version also comes with additional Arcs, more Bestitching items, and ten invite codes instead of six. The Paragon Greatsword will have the founder’s in-game name etched directly into the weapon itself, and founders can eventually craft schematics to gift copies to other players down the line.
What You Actually Get
Beyond the digital goods, all founders gain instant access to Soulframe Preludes, skipping the weekly invite queue that regular players have to wait through. You also get a crossover Envoy’s Sphere Longsword Skin that works in Warframe, connecting Digital Extremes’ two fantasy-themed universes.
One of the more interesting perks is having your name permanently engraved in the Eternium Garden, a shared hub area where exclusive flora blooms based on which founder path you chose. It’s a small touch, but it gives early supporters a permanent mark on the game world that future players will see.
Founders also unlock access to an exclusive physical merch store selling Soulframe founder t-shirts, pins, and art cards that aren’t available anywhere else. The merch isn’t included in the pack price, but having the option to buy founder-exclusive physical items is a nice bonus for collectors.
Preludes 12 Brings Real Content
The Founders Program launch coincides with Preludes 12, the biggest update to Soulframe’s pre-alpha yet. The headliner is the new Greatsword weapon class, a heavy two-handed grip type with sweeping attacks and unique Combat Arts built for devastating area damage. This expands the combat options significantly and gives players who want to hit hard and slow a proper weapon to build around.
Preludes 12 also introduces the Koga difficulty system, an optional elixir you drink to make the game significantly harder. When active, enemies become stronger and higher level, your ability cooldowns get longer, healing gets reduced, and your health becomes more fragile. It’s designed for hardcore players who found the base difficulty too easy and want a genuine challenge.
The update includes combat refinements, enemy behavior improvements with more complex phasing patterns, new totem types, and upcoming changes to the rune system. Digital Extremes revealed that future rune updates will make certain runes exclusive to specific weapon types, so daggers, swords, and greatswords will each have their own specialized rune pools. This should create more distinct build identities rather than having every weapon use the same generic runes.
From Warframe to Soulframe
Soulframe is Digital Extremes’ spiritual successor to Warframe, trading sci-fi space ninjas for a fantasy world inspired by Studio Ghibli films like Princess Mononoke and classic 80s fantasy like The NeverEnding Story. Creative Director Geoff Crookes describes the game as exploring themes of nature versus humanity, restoration, and exploration through a lens that focuses on redemption and hope.
The game takes place on the northern isle of Midrath, where players become Envoys tasked with finding the souls of legendary ancestors and rebuilding a village on the Silvern Sea. The inhabitants of Alca have had their memories, culture, and history stripped away by a mysterious force, and it’s your job to remind them of who they were by seeking out ancestral spirits that become the basis for your character customization and skill progression.
Unlike many MMOs where progression is purely mechanical, Soulframe ties your abilities directly to the ancestors you discover and bring back to your village. Each ancestor represents different ways to customize your skills, creating a progression system that’s both narratively meaningful and mechanically deep.
Development Philosophy
Digital Extremes is taking the same transparent, iterative development approach with Soulframe that made Warframe successful over its 12-year lifespan. Preludes functions as an extended pre-alpha specifically designed to gather community feedback and refine the game before any official launch. The team has been clear that this is real early access testing, the game is nowhere near finished, and development will continue for years.
Geoff Crookes emphasized that Warframe wouldn’t still be thriving without the founders who supported it from the beginning, and that philosophy carries directly into Soulframe. The Founders Program represents the team planting their biggest roots yet for a game they plan to support as long as the community permits them to, just like they’ve done with Warframe since 2013.
How to Join
Soulframe Preludes remains a free closed pre-alpha test on PC for Windows. Players can register through the official Soulframe website and join the weekly invite queue to eventually get access without paying. If you want immediate access, purchasing any Founder Path instantly grants you entry along with invite codes to bring friends.
The game is currently PC-only with no announced plans for console versions yet, though given Digital Extremes’ history of bringing Warframe to every platform imaginable, console ports will likely come once the PC version is more polished. You can wishlist Soulframe on Steam to get notified when it eventually launches there.
FAQs
How much do Soulframe Founder Packs cost?
The three standard founder packs (Tethren, Oscelda, Sirin) each cost $29.99 USD. The Path of the Wyld Paragon mega bundle that includes all three packs plus the exclusive Paragon Greatsword costs $99.99 USD.
Do I get instant access to Soulframe with a Founder Pack?
Yes, purchasing any Founder Pack gives you immediate access to Soulframe Preludes, the ongoing pre-alpha test. You also get invite codes to bring friends (2 codes for standard packs, 10 codes for Paragon).
What is the Paragon Greatsword and can I get it separately?
The Paragon Greatsword is an exclusive weapon only available in the $99.99 Paragon bundle. It will have your in-game name etched into the weapon. While you can’t buy it separately, founders will eventually be able to craft schematics to gift copies to other players.
Can I play Soulframe for free without buying a Founder Pack?
Yes, you can register on the official Soulframe website and join the weekly invite queue for free access to the Preludes pre-alpha. Founder Packs just give you instant access instead of waiting, plus all the exclusive cosmetics and items.
What platforms is Soulframe available on?
Soulframe Preludes is currently only available on PC for Windows. There are no announced plans for console versions yet, though they’ll likely come once the game is further along in development.
What is Preludes 12 and what does it add?
Preludes 12 is the latest major update to Soulframe’s pre-alpha. It adds the new Greatsword weapon class, the Koga difficulty system for hardcore players, combat refinements, enemy behavior improvements, and various system updates. It launched alongside the Founders Program on November 25, 2025.
How is Soulframe different from Warframe?
Soulframe is Digital Extremes’ fantasy-themed spiritual successor to Warframe. Instead of sci-fi space ninjas, it focuses on nature-versus-humanity themes inspired by Studio Ghibli and 80s fantasy films. Gameplay is slower and more deliberate, with an emphasis on exploration, restoration, and rebuilding rather than Warframe’s fast-paced horde combat.
Will my Founder Pack items carry over to the full release?
Yes, Digital Extremes has stated that Founder Pack items are permanent. Your cosmetics, weapons, premium currency, and exclusive perks like the Eternium Garden engraving will carry through development into the full launch.
Conclusion
The launch of Soulframe’s Founders Program marks a significant milestone for Digital Extremes’ ambitious fantasy project. After three years of mostly closed development since the 2022 reveal, opening the gates wider with reasonably priced founder packs shows confidence in what the team has built so far. The $29.99 entry point is fair compared to many early access programs, and the $99.99 Paragon bundle offers genuine value for players who want everything without feeling exploitative. Preludes 12 brings meaningful content additions like greatswords and the Koga difficulty system that show the game is evolving beyond basic proof-of-concept. Whether Soulframe can capture the same lightning-in-a-bottle success as Warframe remains to be seen, but Digital Extremes has earned enough goodwill over the years to deserve the benefit of the doubt. For fantasy MMO fans who’ve been looking for something that prioritizes atmosphere and exploration over endless gear treadmills, Soulframe’s pre-alpha might be worth jumping into now rather than waiting years for a finished product that may never feel truly complete anyway.