Capcom has taken the curtain off a super mysterious sci-fi game Pragmata demo on Steam and they didn’t even show any regrets. The company’s claim about the demo being of a version that is on the verge of testing the compatibility of the full game with the most number of computers is very clear. They openly declared their position as being one of “comfort first, even if it entails the sacrifice of certain graphical aspects.” This is indeed a bold statement, especially for a title that was able to capture so much attention with its extravagant graphical aspects through the trailers.
Taking a minute to recall the past. Pragmata was the most discussed game and came to us years ago through a really weird trailer that showed an astronaut and a girl on the moon surface. Then silence, utter silence. After that, it was unexpectedly delayed to the far-off future. Therefore, the release of a demo now is an incredible opportunity for those players that have been waiting. It is not only a teaser; Capcom is using it as a large-scale public test. They want to gather statistics, monitor performance on different setups, and perhaps fix most of the problems before the actual release. It is a good strategy, to be honest. It is better to know in advance that your game is not for a mid-range GPU.
The issue with putting “comfort” before graphics is that it might suggest certain things. It is possible that the frame rates of the game will be very stable. It is also possible that the game will work on older machines. Or it could just mean that some of the eye-catching visuals from the announcement had to be reduced in order to make a playable version available. It is a give-and-take situation, and it is probably one that the majority of the PC gamers will accept enthusiastically as it minimizes the chances of stuttering and crashing.
Anyway, the demo is out now, and the gamers have already started to jump in and share their thoughts. What are the responses? They are mixed, which is exactly what you would expect from an early test build.
A user who goes by the name of medipax94 answered a question about the length of the demo and said it was “too short to say but it runs smooth but it is too easy on normal difficulty they need to work on that tbh.” Here’s the thing. First impression: good performance, little challenge. That is the kind of feedback the developers would love to get.
Then comes the usual Steam Deck question. Saloz94 was quick to ask: “How about the steam deck?” There has yet to be a response, but it is undeniably a significant part of the “wide range of PCs” that Capcom is talking about. If they can get the game to run nice and smooth on the Deck, that will be a major milestone.
On the other hand, all is not perfect. One user, who was known as goodbyekitty12, narrated his/her experience, and confessed that he/she had problems: “Still buggy, sometimes random textures disappear.” That’s probably the early demo experience right there. Textures ghosting out, pop-in, strange glitches. That’s exactly what they are doing this for! Finding these bugs now, with an audience, is definitely better than finding them later, after the game has gone gold.
In the meantime, there was a little side conversation in which a user called kissdatassakali talked about the RE Engine, which is the one used to build Pragmata. They complimented the game by saying its style “adds beauty to the RE Engine.” That’s a nice thought. Capcom’s engine provided for Resident Evil Village and Street Fighter 6 but with Pragmata, it seems that have made the most artistic, ethereal use of their engine even though the game is still in development and more graphical sacrifices may be required than just the one mentioned. The art direction is still very vibrant even if it is at times not so glossy.
So what’s the conclusion? Pragmata is now a reality, and more than that, it is being actively fine-tuned. Capcom has indeed placed themselves in a rather transparent spot in regard to their process. They are telling the gamers upfront: we give priority to you having a good and stable time over every pixel being squeezed to its max. In an age where some PC ports can be a whole mess at launch, that is quite a turn-around in attitude.
It is a very smart and community-focused strategy. Release a demo, allow people to push it to the limit, hear their feedback on the mainly two areas of difficulty and bugs and last but not the least; make an all-win final product. The fact that they are being this considering with regard the visuals and are willing to maybe even lower them for the sake of “comfort” is great. It proves they are focusing on the actual playing experience, not just how the game looks in a screenshot.
The definitive release date for the full Pragmata game on Xbox and other platforms is still to be announced.
