Pragmata - Promising Demo shows Capcom's new IP is worth checking out

Since its announcement in 2020 and subsequent delay in 2022, Pragmata became one of those titles nobody was really sure when — or if — it would ever come out, or if it would just end up another name on the long list of promising games that never make it into players' hands. Now, with a release date set for April 24, 2026, Capcom has finally dropped a demo for the PlayStation 5. Even though it's short, it shows enough to reignite interest from those who had already written it off.

Pragmata feels like a fresh breath of air coming from an entirely new dev team within the studio. It's refreshing to see Capcom betting on an original IP when the safer play over the last decade has been leaning on established franchises and nostalgia.

The demo is a sample in the most literal sense. It took me twenty minutes to get through my first run and twelve on the second — motivated by two new pieces of gear and an alternate outfit for Hugh. If you ignore the scenery, know where you're going, and know how to deal with enemies, you can breeze through the demo in ten minutes. Maybe less.

Is it short? Yeah. But it's enough to get what Capcom is going for with its new IP.

We follow Hugh and the little android Diana as they try to reach the communication hub of a lunar station. An AI sees them as intruders and unleashes robots and automated systems to stop them. We're introduced to the characters with Diana playing the role of a kid — she draws while Hugh tries to handle the robots swarming them alone. But the little android is a core part of the gameplay.

The visuals are top-notch: the limited scope we get of the environment does a great job conveying danger without making the mood too heavy. Part of that lightness comes from the protagonists too — despite the sparse dialogue, the banter between Hugh and Diana helps keep things light during the adventure. These are quick exchanges, almost casual, reacting to bits of info found around the station about the former crew.

They're not too heavy, but they also don't feel like forced quips. Plus, the game seems to have its share of silliness — in a good way. For example, finishing the demo gets you an alternate outfit for Hugh covered in marker drawings and stickers.

You're in control of both characters at once. Diana rides on Hugh's back and can hack terminals while he moves, jumps, floats, and interacts with stuff. For navigation, it seems simple enough, but combat turns the multitasking with both characters into Pragmata's biggest selling point so far.

Getting used to the combat — a third-person shooter — means keeping an eye on your surroundings while using the buttons to hack enemies. Other times, you're solving more complex puzzles during firefights and avoiding "traps" in the enemy grid; aiming, moving, and solving a mini-hacking puzzle all at once while dodging attacks takes focus and challenges a pretty ingrained concept of how people handle tasks day-to-day.

With Diana handling the hacking, you always have a choice between the easy or hard route: go straight for the quick hack to weaken an enemy for a few seconds, or reach one of the grids that offer consumable bonuses, like Multihack or Defense Reduction.

With Hugh, you've got the actual combat. There are four different weapon types in the demo: a pistol Hugh reloads after each shot with a cooldown after six rounds, and more powerful weapons with specific functions found throughout the environment. Some immobilize enemies; others deal more damage up close. After finishing the demo once, another weapon unlocks, designed for charged shots at long range.

Hugh's movement speed while aiming can be an issue in tighter spaces. The camera "zooms in" on whatever's in front of you, leaving enemies to the side or behind you free to attack, sometimes without you even noticing them first.

On the flip side, that's part of the charm. Having to stop aiming, losing a damage window after a hack because there's a laser sight on Hugh, using the environment for cover against long-range attacks or to break the enemy line of sight — all of it makes the gameplay less trivial.

The accessibility options generally help you keep track of your surroundings and make Pragmata an experience for everyone, but some of them take a bit away from the multitasking immersion. If your aim isn't great or you're not used to shooters, there's an option to automatically "lock on" to enemies.

But for all its potential, it lacks depth. The demo focuses too much on combat and doesn't show off other important elements Pragmata promises. There are no meaningful puzzles, enemies aren't challenging, and fights are a walk in the park.

Maybe that's the experience Capcom wants to convey with this demo, to make Pragmata seem super accessible, or to stick to the original product, but the complete lack of any real challenge also raises the question of whether the final game will deliver enough for those looking for a less laid-back experience.

Maybe because of Death Stranding 2's release in 2025, comments on social media comparing Pragmata to Kojima's title have grown over the last year. While some aesthetic elements seem shared between them, Pragmata seems to offer a significantly different experience from Hideo Kojima's work.

Its core appeal — at least in these first impressions — seems to lie in the challenge of multitasking. Story details are still pretty vague, but the sparse dialogue and plot hints in the demo reaffirm that Hugh isn't an attempt to copy Sam Porter Bridges, and Diana is far from being Lou.

The setting, both in the demo and the trailers, also doesn't seem to fit the Death Stranding comparisons that well. Sure, both have desolate worlds and an adult with navigation gear and gadgets accompanied by a kid with some sort of special powers as main characters, but the similarities might end there — Pragmata, for starters, feels much more lighthearted.

Pragmata: The Sketchbook is a promising demo that works as an appetizer, leaves you wanting more, but shows off very little variety. The multitasking combat concept is the big draw, and there's an interesting balance between action and problem-solving that could pay off if explored well in the final product. Plus, the visuals are on par with other A-list Capcom titles.

However, you can't ignore that the demo is shallow. Puzzles are nonexistent, combat is far too easy, and we still don't know if Capcom can sustain this formula for a whole game without it getting repetitive or tedious.

It's one of the most interesting titles on the horizon. A risky bet on something new, made by a fresh team within one of the industry's most renowned studios, is worth paying attention to. Either due to the various trailers and the four-year wait since the original release date or only out of curiosity to see if they can deliver on what they promised back in 2022.

Pragmata launches on April 24th for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch 2, and PC via Steam.

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