PREVIEW- Pragmata is a bizarre new IP from Capcom, the developers of popular franchises such as Devil May Cry, Resident Evil and Monster Hunter. While not much is known about the game, it has been confirmed that it will be released relatively soon.

We got a teaser trailer for Pragmata back in June 2020, but we had more questions than answers about what was going on. What is clear is that Pragmata will be some kind of dystopian sci-fi adventure game. We’re still waiting for more information to come to light, but we already have a release window and some ideas of what’s going on in the trailer.

For now, here’s everything we know so far about Pragmata and some things we’d like to see in the first entry in the potentially new franchise.

Pragmata release date

Pragmata will be released sometime in 2023 for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.

According to Capcom’s blog, the company will share more information about Pragmata in 2022, but we’re more than halfway through the year and have yet to hear a word. This year has brought delays to several video games across the industry so that Pragmata may follow suit.

Strangely, according to Sony’s CES 2021 video, Pragmata has been given a 2023 release window. However, Capcom’s site and Twitter page still say that Pragmata will be released in 2022.

Pragmata’s story

Pragmata seems like a pretty weird story. From what can be gleaned from the first teaser trailer, this strange game revolves around a little girl and a man in a spacesuit. Said child doesn’t look human, as she can breathe in space and does strange things with her eyes. The Earth as we know it seems to have collapsed, and is surrounded by some kind of technology that encircles the sky above.

When the astronaut and the child escape from the planet and land on the moon, the child asks in a robotic voice: “What is this?”. The astronaut replies, “Freedom, our freedom”. Speaking of robots, we see a robot cat on the planet. Maybe some biological technology has taken over the world, at least that’s my guess.

Capcom’s press release says that Pragmata is set in a dystopian near future on Earth’s moon. So we may not actually be on Earth for very long in this game. And on the Xbox Store page, it says that “the company aims to make Pragmata one of its core brands”. So this sounds like a franchise in the making, which is exciting because we don’t get enough new IP these days.

Pragmata’s gameplay is still a big question mark

We have no idea what to expect from Pragmata’s gameplay. Capcom describes it as a sci-fi action-adventure game, but other than that, we don’t know anything. Nevertheless, we can glean a few things from the trailer.

It seems that the astronaut has configurable gadgets and weapons. One of the gadgets he uses can detect the presence of the little girl. Another gadget that he used, apparently with the help of the little girl, was a giant balloon that protected them from a crashing satellite. It almost looked as if he was carrying a sci-fi 3D printer on his back to make gadgets.

Pragmata doesn’t feel like a traditional action game, but perhaps a game with widgets that can be used to accomplish different things. It is conceivable that there will be enemies – perhaps some nasty robots – that you can use the widgets against. It’s also conceivable that there will be lots of traps and deterrents as opposed to full weapons. That would be interesting, but I’m not against traditional gunplay either.

In any case, during the trailer, the astronaut is never shown acting like a Space Marine or being a hero in games like DOOM Eternal or Halo. He doesn’t pull out an assault rifle and shoot at bug-eyed aliens or killer robots. Most of the equipment he uses seems to be scientific or survival-oriented: scanners and dust bombs for detecting hidden objects, rope bubbles for protecting against falling debris, etc. These two factors strongly suggest that in Pragmata, combat takes a back seat to exploration, survival and puzzle-solving.

Capcom’s Integrated Report 2021 states, “We will give new young hires the opportunity to gain skills and expertise through hands-on experience as we assign them to develop popular IPs and major titles. It’s quite exciting, as the professional blood refresh brings new ideas, which can make for a much more unique experience. Pragmata is just one such aspiration for our young staff.”

Pragmata PC minimum and recommended requirements

Not much is known other than that Pragmata will feature next-gen technology such as ray tracing, so it’s conceivable that the specs could be similar to Resident Evil Village.

The minimum requirements to run Resident Evil Village include an Intel Core i5-7500 or AMD Ryzen 3 1200 CPU, an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti or AMD Radeon RX 560 GPU and 8 GB of RAM. However, if you want to try ray tracing, the minimum requirements are an AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT or Nvidia GeForce RTX 2060 GPU.

And for the recommended specifications (1080p, 60 fps), you need an Intel Core i7-8700 or AMD Ryzen 5 3600 CPU, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 or AMD Radeon RX 5700 GPU and 16 GB RAM. You need an AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT or Nvidia GeForce RTX 2070 GPU for ray tracing.

What can we expect?

I love almost every game Capcom releases, and I’m excited to see what Pragmata is shaping up. I’m a big fan of weird sci-fi stuff, especially in video games, and if Capcom is really going for an “in-depth” story, I’m excited to see what that looks like.

Capcom games are fantastic, but many of them have cheesy stories, even the ones that are supposed to be serious. Hopefully, Capcom can move away from the B-movie style with realistic dialogue and character development. In any case, we look forward to it!

-theGeek-