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Warframe is shrinking its install size by a respectable 15GB

Starting with a little update next week

If you're finding your PC has become overloaded with gigantic game files, the Warframe devs have a nice plan in store for you to free up some space on your hard drives. Next week, Digital Extremes are kicking off a series of updates for the spacefaring shoot-em-up that will eventually reduce the size of Warframe by a very polite 15GB.

Ah, I don't even need to say it, do I? We're all thinking it. If only Call Of Duty: Warzone and its monstrous drive space demands would follow suit.

In a forum post excellently titled "The Great Ensmallening", the devs say they've "found some new technology" that will allow them to make the game smaller and load faster. The catch is that players will need to download some remastered content over the course of three smaller updates in the next couple of months. Each of these little "mini-remasters" will make quality and performance optimisations as well.

The first update is coming at you next week. It'll be around a 6.5GB download, but when it's done it should free up about 6.6GB of space. They're starting out by applying the new compression tech to lightmaps.

"We spent a lot of time carefully analysing the quality of the results and we doubt anyone will even notice anywhere but the harshest of tests," says Digital Extremes' Glen Miner. Here's a before and after example, if you fancy playing spot the difference.

Before on the left, after on the right.

"My memory is hazy about those early days back in 2012 when we launched our Closed Beta but I distinctly remember the entire download being small enough to fit on a CD-ROM," writes Miner. "I know the download will be inconvenient but getting 15GB of storage back and doubling my effective texture load-bandwidth is going to be awesome!"

It'll be nice to have a game as big as Warframe all tightly packed in and optimised. There really is a heck of a lot of content in it now. Just last month, its Heart Of Deimos expansion introduced a dense new open world area filled to the brim with gross Infected aliens.

In case you missed it, VidBud Matthew had a chat with the game's studio manager, Sheldon Carter, all about Heart Of Deimos. He also made a video showing off some cool new mechs and insect surfboards:

Cover image for YouTube video

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Warframe

PS4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch

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About the Author
Imogen Beckhelling avatar

Imogen Beckhelling

Former News Reporter

Imogen is a lore enthusiast and lover of all the fun shenanigans game communities get up to. She spends too much time playing Overwatch, and not enough time having interests that aren't to do with video games.

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