The beauty of uber-promising PS5 shooter Pragmata is its “rub your tummy pat your head” gameplay gimmick, featuring dual protagonists Hugh and Diana.
For those who don’t know – and you really should by now – this is a largely traditional sci-fi third-person shooter with a twist: each time you aim your weapon over an enemy, you’ll need to complete a simple puzzle to “hack” them, lowering their defences.
It’s a system that could, in fairness, work in a two-player environment. And it’s actually something Capcom considered, according to a report by Automaton.
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Speaking at a media event in Japan, producer Naoto Oyama explained:
“We did consider the idea [of a two-player system], but our primary goal with Pragmata was to deliver a new kind of gameplay experience. We leaned fully into the ‘busy-ness’ and fun that comes from one player simultaneously dealing with both the action and the puzzles, and that led us to the game’s current form.”
We tend to agree that the fun comes from the multi-tasking, so we’re glad the developer ultimately decided to abandon its two-player plans. We suppose it could always add it as a bonus mode, though?
We’ve played Pragmata several times now, and we come away impressed every single time.
Our most recent demo at the Tokyo Game Show introduced us to the Shelter, which is where you’re able to upgrade your characters and craft new items. It’s really starting to come together now.
We reckon this is going to be one of the better releases of 2026, so make sure it’s planted firmly on your wishlist.