On October 15, Michael “Mynki” James Brennen passed away after a difficult battle with cancer. He is best known for his work on Digital Extremes and Warframe, for which he was the first art director. Even after leaving the company in 2017, he stayed in touch with the team and contributed to the game's art direction and overall style. Warframe, for all its strengths, has never been lacking in this department.
Video games are often the combined efforts of hundreds or even thousands of people. But there are also those who manage to leave a visible mark on passion projects to which they have dedicated part of their lives. Not a director, but an essential voice providing insight, wisdom, inspiration, and support as solid as the foundation upon which the office is built. Judging from Digital Extreme's sad yet celebratory portion of their recent Devstream, Mynki is exactly that.
Late last month, I sat down with game directors Rebecca Ford and Kat Kingsley to discuss the future of Warframe, specifically the relationship system in the game. But I also wanted to sit down and talk about what it's been like working with Mynki over the years, and how the team will move forward in his absence. Hopefully Ford's answer will help paint a picture of the impact an independent developer has on one of the most popular MMO developers in the industry right now.
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Ford: “I think one thing that everyone keeps coming back to is how humble and gracious he was. I can start with my first day at Digital Extremes and my experience watching him work at his craft . This was really the first visual moment I've seen of a very capable and friendly guy who was always writing with a pen on a tablet, or writing on paper, like he was always doodling.”
“I had that experience at DE, and we were really a traditional games studio at the time. We hadn't released Darkness 2, or any other games. And then Warframe, a Hail Mary, was cooking. I remember talking to Steve. , Geoff and trying to understand how this happened, they always say, “Oh Mynki will make some Warframe” but the name of the game is Warframe, what does that mean of course it's a blueprint but I've seen the team work on a few Following Mynki’s vision for Warframe within a month […] He just delivered. ”
“Watching him interact with the world and react to his work, I can't put into words, it allowed me to understand the meaning of gratitude. It's irreplaceable for the rest of my life. Nothing can compare.”
What some may not know is how Mynki, who left the company after 14 years, continued to influence the design and direction of the games you see today. Usually when you leave a company, that's it. The door is closed. Of course, the friendship will last. But the inner workings are beyond your reach. That's clearly not the case with Mynki, according to Ford, who said he had influence over upcoming content, even some seven years after leaving.
Ford: “We stayed in touch, and when new leadership took over, it did become an interesting choice to check in with Mynki again and find out what he thought of the Men in the Wall faction? What did he think of Warframe 1999? Reason for 1999's existence – Mine Meaning, in every believable sense, it was because of the conversation with Mynki.”
“He's been away from Warframe for so long that I wonder what he's been thinking – we all do! I've still had monthly or bi-monthly calls with him for the last 2-3 years of my career. A phone call to get an update on what he was doing? What were his thoughts on the Infested boy band? Every time, he would say “yeah, let's see” but the loss still wasn't really resolved. , because if I hadn't had that call with him, I don't think I would be sitting here as creative director, and I can't stress enough what a loss he has been throughout Warframe.”
One quote from Rebecca sums up the overwhelming sentiment about Mynki's approach to art in Warframe: “Sometimes people think it's too weird – that's fine! Mynki never does that”.
As far as Mynki's involvement is concerned, it seems that it's not over yet, thanks to a separate document he wrote filled with the late artist's thoughts. According to Ford, this will likely be a source of guidance for the rest of Warframe's life.
“When we have our bi-monthly calls with Kary Black, our current art director, one of them ends with Mynki writing a document. I've bookmarked the document. If all goes well with Warframe, we'll still be making it here next year. Gaming wise, I don't think this document will be bookmarked for the rest of Warframe's life, as it only took one word to make an impact, and I can still say that without it, this wouldn't have happened. Think that’s where the truth lies.”
It's hard to understand the human element when it comes to enjoying video games. As a player, you interact with systems, fictional characters, and distant worlds. Longtime Warframe players will know Mynki, but how could they possibly know how deeply his work ingrained themselves into the game they have today, and how important his own actions were to those who made the game? Only those who worked with him and talked to him regularly could do that.
“I think one story even mentioned adding a romance system, and it even made me feel like we were just scratching the surface of Warframe,” recalls Ford. “When I was 23 and working on Warframe, I was a young female community manager who couldn't draw. All I knew was Warframe. I remember my desk being very far away from him for the first 4-5 years As I turned around and walked past four desks, I remember thinking I had to talk to him about fashion and femininity, and wondering if he would be willing to discuss bringing high… from fashion to Warframe in some way.
I think I was holding an Alexander McQueen book and hoped I hadn't disturbed Mynki – he was too busy! I remember how serious he was about the idea of haute couture, and of course he was already thinking about these things! He knew this and was inspired by these things. The fact that he gave me time when it came to very passionate topics about Warframe that tended toward this stuff… I remember what was in it and what we ended up with, and I felt like I was heard and seen. He didn't reject me just because I wanted to talk about fashion as inspiration, and that meant something to me. I must tell him.
