Final Fantasy’s Ben Starr on joining Warframe, ’90s nostalgia and Tim Hortons

The past year has been huge for Ben Starr.

In June 2023, he won over millions of people worldwide with his powerful and award-winning turn as Clive Rosfield in Final Fantasy XVI, and it didn’t stop there. From viral funny videos about auditioning for Mario and cross-dressing as Final Fantasy VII‘s Tifa to becoming a literal meme and making a surprise appearance in one of Summer Game Fest’s standout games, Expedition 33, Starr has quickly become a fan-favourite in the gaming industry.

Given all of that, the announcement that he’d play the lead role in Warframe: 1999, the next big update for London, Ontario developer Digital Extremes’ Warframe, has garnered much attention. In the expansion, he plays Arthur, the exoskeleton-wearing leader of a Syndicate who must deal with a digital threat during Y2K.

MobileSyrup caught up with Starr last weekend at TennoCon 2024, the annual London-based Warframe convention, to discuss why he joined the game, his collaboration with Digital Extremes, ’90s nostalgia and the prevalence of Tim Hortons in Canada.

(Image credit: Ben Starr)

With Final Fantasy, you had a personal connection to the series going in. What was your history with Warframe, if any, and what drew you to play Arthur?

Ben Starr: I knew of Warframe through a lot of content creators who I really respect that spoke about it. I know [the YouTuber] Skill Up really well and how fondly he spoke of the series. And at the same time, I remember saying to Reb[ecca Ford, creative director of Warframe] — having been a big fan of video games, I watch a lot of NoClip stuff [crowdfunded video game documentaries]  — “I recognize you from a Warframe NoClip documentary about this being this heroic story of perseverance and listening to the community.”

So that’s what I knew of Warframe — it was incredibly popular, but I’d never played it. Then Rebb and I just started talking — we connected because we both love nerding out about video games, and we just struck up a friendship, really, over a month or so. And then she just said, ‘Mad idea: do you want to read for this character?’ And I went, ‘Yeah, okay.’

There was no pressure because we’re just talking about other stuff, really, and it just came about through that. And then I went ‘right, that’s pretty sick — I get to be a part of a community that is as passionate about the thing that they love as the franchise that I’ve just been spending however many years doing that myself, so it felt like a no-brainer.’

And I was attracted to the character. I thought the character was really cool. A Protoframe, the idea of humanity and fighting for… whatever the fuck humanity is when you’re not necessarily human yourself. It’s quite a cool concept. I thought it was a sick thing.

What did that collaboration look like between you and Rebb, especially since you’re both nerds, as you say? I know she’s a big Final Fantasy fan like you. What was it like working with her and the team?

Arthur (front) with his Hex squad. (Image credit: Digital Extremes)

Starr: It was awesome, absolutely awesome. It was announced that I was doing this back at the end of last year. Obviously, the quest and the character and the world had been written, but certainly, I feel like there’s been this real alchemy of deciding what version of Arthur we want to present, how we want him to sound. I think Rebb described him to me as we want it to sound like he’s like “grinding gears into the dirt.” And I think that’s kind of cool. He’s got that kind of “stuck together, boy scout nature” to him — he’s the squad leader. He has this quite direct way of talking, but it’s like, “Where can we inject personality into it?” And you can see it in the demo — it’s finding interesting ways of doing little quips that kind of humanize him a little bit. But it’s been great having long talks about what we want him to be, how we want him to sound… Because he’s the first introduction into this new chapter in the Warframe story, he needs to be approachable. And it’s a bit of a leap to add voices to something that was previously unvoiced. So how can we humanize him as much as possible?

And to that point, Warframe introduces romanceable characters. What was it like to bring that out with Arthur? Did you add a sort of “babygirl” [a recurring joke about Clive in Starr’s videos] element to it?

Thrilled to announce you’ll officially be able to “Romance” me as Arthur in Warframe 1999 this winter. ❤️‍🔥 pic.twitter.com/vWITwUJKNc

— Ben Starr (@The_Ben_Starr) July 20, 2024

Starr: [laughs] Thank you so much! You know what? I think the great thing about the romance options, which I can’t speak too much about at this point — you’ve got to be a character that people want to romance, and that’s fun. That’s really, really fun, and I look forward to seeing which players choose to romance Arthur and see if he is worthy of your New Year’s kiss. It’s going to be fun when people get to experience those scenes and see what it is that we’re making when it comes to that.

I was actually at DE’s Game Awards mixer with you when you were announced as being part of Warframe 1999, and there’s that amazing image of you wearing the pink fanny pack. Since then, we’ve learned how much more involved the ’90s setting is. What was it like to get into that?

Starr: So cool!

And did you do anything to immerse yourself in the ’90s and get into that space?

we’ve been very busy behind the scenes for Warframe! More news tomorrow at #TheGameAwards. the incredible @NeilNewbon and @The_Ben_Starr have joined the cast for this update and it’s been amazing to work together on new characters. Learn more about Fibonacci and Arthur soon 💜 pic.twitter.com/VVJfuHvsL2

— rebb ford (@rebbford) December 7, 2023

Starr: I didn’t need to do anything to get into that space because it was absolutely my jam. I was 11 years old in 1999 — I remember it — the most formative years of my life. Rebb talks about Y2K, the virus — I can’t tell you how that was just so prevalent, certainly in the UK. The UK was going under this real kind of sense of fear and renewal at the same time — like you had the London Eye popping up, the Millennium Dome. The sense of possibility at the same time, the fear that everything could kind of go to shit. And the music around that time was so evocative — it’s a beautiful kind of nostalgia hit, and I see the millennium was such an important point in my kind of formative years. So to get to revisit that as an adult and play in that sandbox has been super, super fun.

Since we’re talking late ’90s, did you fight for any sort of Final Fantasy VIII easter egg?

Starr: [laughs] I’m always going to fight for Final Fantasy VIII, but I know when to fight my battles, and this wasn’t one of them.

Warframe has really assembled this almost Avengers-level cast of so many big gaming names. People from Baldur’s Gate, Resident Evil, obviously you’re repping Final Fantasy… What’s it been like to connect with them all through Warframe?

some pre-tennocon scheming with a handful of our Warframe voice actors! @The_Ben_Starr @KevinLimOnAir @GetGianni @Nik_apostolides @AlphaTakahashi

some characters are yet to be revealed… and more to come! pic.twitter.com/JpGzqvBnKy

— rebb ford (@rebbford) July 18, 2024

Starr: I think Rebb — now that she’s at the helm of this amazing thing [after being promoted to creative director in February 2022] — is just kind of assembling actors that she really appreciates, who she wants to work with, and actors want to work with her and want to work with this team because they feel appreciated. The fact that we’ve been brought out here to celebrate this game is kind of not common in the games industry. I really shouldn’t be here. I’m not needed to be here, but the fact that they want to include us makes us feel wanted and liked. And it means that other actors want to be a part of it. It means that people like Nick [Apostolides, voice of Resident Evil‘s Leon S. Kennedy] and Neil [Newbon, voice of Baldur’s Gate 3‘s Astarion] want to work with Rebb because she absolutely gets it — that whole team gets it. And I can only see more and more actors wanting to work for Digital Extremes because of how supportive they are of us and how much they show that they value what we bring to the game.

You come from one big community and are joining another one. Warframe‘s, especially, has a reputation for being very positive. I know you haven’t been to TennoCon yet, but even early on, what’s it been like to be part of the Warframe community now?

A statue of Arthur that fans could pose with at TennoCon.

Starr: I’ve had so many people come up to me saying how excited they are to see what 1999 has to offer, and I’ve only received positivity so far. That’s not to say that people can’t have their opinions and express whatever they want and only have to be positive. But I was very lucky to be a part of a very passionate fanbase and kind of be the custodian of a character in the new iteration of that. And we’re doing something very similar with Warframe. And I so feel so fortunate that I get to, again, be a part of, and shape, the future of a game that has such a devoted group of people who play it constantly. I feel really lucky. And I hope people like it, people want it, because it’s going to be around for a while.

What excites you the most about getting to go to an event like TennoCon?

Starr: You get to meet the fans. You get to meet the people who’ve made this the huge success that it is. This doesn’t happen without the fans — it’s not possible. It costs a lot of money to make something like this, so it’s got to be worth it. And it just shows the relationship that Digital Extremes has with its fans is symbiotic. It goes, “You’ve given us so much, so we’re gonna give you so much.” And we constantly see that in the way that they’re constantly getting updates, the way they’re trying to bring really exciting actors, in the way that they create new ways of exploring similar ideas. It’s a really cool thing to happen, and the fact that you can do this year after year and have thousands of people descend in London, Ontario shows you that this franchise has just gone from strength to strength to strength.

Thousands of TennoCon attendees wait for a live presentation about the future of Warframe.

And it was one of the first things I said when Rebb cast me — can I come to TennoCon? Because I want to feel it — I want to feel the love. I love groups of people coming together to celebrate the things they love in the way that they want to celebrate it. That’s the beautiful thing about conventions. And when it’s about one particular thing — like, I’ve been to [Final Fantasy XIV‘s] Fan Fest — to see how much people love a thing, and they want to express it, and they want to celebrate it with other people who have like-minded ideas, is one of the most rewarding things in the world. Because to have that outlet to celebrate the things that you love should be celebrated, should be supported, and Digital Extremes knows that.

On that note, is there any sort of fun overlap that you find with Final Fantasy and Warframe communities, other than thirsting over your characters?

Starr: It’s that — it’s mainly the thirst. No, I’ve actually had a lot of people come up to me at conventions when I’m just talking about Clive like, “I also play Warframe.” There wasn’t a huge overlap, but there is an overlap. I’m excited to also meet people who don’t know my work. There are going to be thousands and thousands of people who have never played a game that was exclusive to PlayStation 5. They might know me from the stupid things I do on the internet, but they have never experienced anything I do, so I’m really excited to introduce myself to a whole new group of people who don’t know what I do.

So, London, Ontario. Whenever someone says “London,” you’ll naturally think about London in England, where you’re from. What do you think about this London and how it maybe compares or doesn’t compare to yours?

COME TO ME CANADA! 🔥

— Ben Starr (@The_Ben_Starr) July 3, 2023

Starr: There’s four Tim Hortonses in a five-minute walk. I’ve never seen such a density of Tim Hortons in one place. Considering I went to Tim Hortons for the first time in Toronto for [the Final Fantasy fan convention] KupoCon [in December], I’ve now been to a lot of Tim Hortons, and I’m trying to go to them all before I leave. It’s cool, it’s really cool. I haven’t had a huge amount of time to explore it, but so far, the experiences that I’ve had in Canada in general have been incredibly cool.

What was your favourite thing at Tim Hortons?

Starr: Oh, literally this morning, I had the sausage-egg-cheese biscuit. I was saying, “What do I want to get? Do I want to get the muffin? Do I want to get the bagel? Or do I want to get the biscuit? And we just don’t get biscuits in the UK — they’re scones for us. Shoved the hashbrown in there as well, and a double espresso, and it was great. It was really good!

On a larger level, other than working with DE, what has been your favourite thing about Canada so far? You can say maple syrup.

Starr: No! Can I just say your customs [at Toronto Pearson Airport] is one of the coolest things I’ve ever been through?

…Really?

Starr: It’s the coolest thing. It’s like playing a little game. [laughs] To get through customs, you get to a little booth that seems futuristic and then you get a little token with your picture on it — it feels like you’re going to the butcher’s with a number on it. And when you go, you have this little thing with your face on it. And then it says whether you go right or left and then you go through and then you have to hand this thing. And it seems so unnecessarily elaborate. I don’t know what’s going on, you get a certain letter on it. And it felt like a game and really exciting. I thought, “This is way more fun than being judged at customs.” You have to play a little computer game to get in your country — it’s great.

Would you say it’s better than how it is in the U.S. or other places you’ve been?

Arthur and his Atomicycle. (Image credit: Digital Extremes)

Starr: It’s different. [laughs] It’s me trying to change it up. In the UK, it’s very boring. You just put your passport down and it scans your face and you walk through. This has like little stages to it — you feel like you’re going through level after level. But no, in all seriousness, [it’s] the people. I’ve never been in a country where everyone’s just so incredibly friendly. Having lived in London, in the UK, people just don’t really want to talk to you. [laughs] So actually having people that want to converse with you, even people in the retail industry or service industry, that are just so nice. And I’ve been having incredible conversations with people. It’s been really cool.

To wrap it up, what are you most excited for players to experience with Arthur in Warframe 1999?

Starr: I’m excited to see how they customize him. I’m excited see what colour they put his hair and what colour they change his eyes to. I think that’s really cool.

Make him a full-on babygirl?

Starr: Yeah! Why not? Make him look really sassy. Make him the most brightly coloured Arthur you’ve ever seen. He’s very monotoned in what you see in the demo version. I think one of the great things about Warframe is you can customize. You can’t change the complexion of his face, but you can change everything else. Make him your own — see what jazzy things you can do to him!

This interview has been edited for language and clarity.

Warframe 1999 will launch sometime this fall. Warframe is free to download on PlayStation 4/5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC and iOS.

For more on TennoCon, check out our comprehensive breakdown of the event.

Header image credit: Digital Extremes