Digital Extremes, the creators of Warframe, dropped exciting news for fantasy RPG fans at Gamescom 2026, pulling back the curtain on Soulframe’s next major update, officially titled Prelude 16: Of Hook & Hound. Speaking live with IGN, the team revealed a wave of player-requested features, mechanics updates, and lore teasers that prove just how much early feedback is steering the game’s direction.
For those new to Soulframe, “Preludes” is the studio’s name for its ongoing pre-alpha playtests. Instead of hiding the game until launch, Digital Extremes gives players hands-on access to test combat, explore the world, and try out fresh builds while the game is actively being made.
Each Prelude update works like a major patch to add content and tweak systems based on live community feedback. It is an open, collaborative development process that lets players help shape the final game every step of the way.
The headliner in Of Hook & Hound is a new wolf pup companion system. You get to raise your own pup, and how you interact with it shapes how it grows. Petting and cuddling the pup boosts its health, playing fetch helps it sniff out loot, and combat training eventually turns it into a fierce guard dog for battle. “The cool thing about raising the wolf puppy is the things you do affect the outcome,” explained Steve Sinclair, CEO of Digital Extremes.
Player demand also brought a full-fledged fishing mini-game to the world, alongside a dynamic weather system that directly impacts combat and exploration. Rain boosts resource harvesting yields, while lightning storms supercharge your voltaic damage output.
On top of the new activities, Digital Extremes is rebalancing the Temper system and rolling out a fresh set of weapons and armor. As Senior Community Manager Sarah Asselin put it, “This has been an opportunity to build Soulframe from the very beginning with the feedback of the Preludes players.”
Looking ahead, the studio also teased the War Songs update coming later this year, which will dig into the Envoy’s origin story and finally introduce mounts. With Of Hook & Hound landing soon and War Songs right behind it, Soulframe is rapidly picking up speed on its way to full release.
Soulframe is an upcoming free-to-play fantasy action-RPG built around nature themes and heavy, deliberate melee combat. While exact active player numbers remain unannounced since the game is still in pre-alpha, its closed Preludes playtests have already drawn millions of account sign-ups and tens of thousands of daily active testers across its community channels.
