Capcom

Pragmata (2026)

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As I’ve gotten older and life has gotten busier, I’ve come to appreciate the importance of pacing in games. While many players may prefer hundred-hour-long RPGs, I would much rather play a compact experience that doesn’t pad out its length with sprawling open worlds or endless side quests. Pragmata is the perfect example of a game that masterfully paces out its content, and its unique spin on combat makes it one of my favorite modern third-person-shooters. 

Pragmata takes place in a future where the Moon has been industrialized. A corporation, Delphi, has built a complex that harvests Lunafilament, a unique resource with unparalleled utility in 3D printing technology. Hugh and a team of engineers have been dispatched to the Moon to investigate recent radio silence from the Moon base. Upon arrival, all humans seem to have mysteriously vanished. Hugh quickly discovers that a rogue AI has taken over the base and is manufacturing robots to dispatch his team. Hugh is only saved because he encounters Diana, a specialized robot that takes the form of a little girl.   

While we don’t know why Diana exists quite yet, or why the all-seeing security system has gone rogue, Hugh and Diana form an immediate bond as they set off to investigate. I was pleasantly surprised by the lack of the increasingly common “small child teaches gruff old man to love again” trope. There’s never tension or conflict between Hugh and Diana, just a wholesome father-daughter relationship as she learns what it means to be human. The writing can feel a bit stiff at times, Diana has natural dialogue for a 7-year-old, but I found that some of Hugh’s lines were a little cheesy.

The story itself I think is fine. Most of the plot happens towards the end as the truth of Diana’s origin is revealed, most of the game is just the journey to the finale. The narrative is more about Hugh and Diana and their relationship, which was pleasant, but their instant connection meant that there wasn’t a ton of character growth to fuel the plot. I wish the story explored its worldbuilding concepts a bit deeper. I would’ve loved seeing some commentary on the implications of Lunafilament, the material that can be used to clone anything. What would happen to industry and life on Earth if this was made readily available? The game very briefly touches on how AI displaces workers, which is definitely a poignant topic in today’s world. But it could’ve been far more interesting to explore how AI and the ability to manufacture everything with ease could lead to a post-scarcity society, or if the company in charge had more nefarious goals. As it stands, the story is alright, but it won’t blow anyone away. 

The combat is the highlight of Pragmata. It puts a unique spin on its third-person-shooter gameplay: dynamic hacking. You quickly discover that bullets do negligible damage to the reinforced exteriors of the robot enemies, but Diana can hack them to briefly separate their armor, allowing you to deal real damage. When hacking an enemy, a small grid appears, and navigating to the goal node exposes the robots. It starts simple, 4×4 grids with nothing but a start and end node. But as you progress the grids grow and block off tiles, forming mazes. There are other nodes that you can equip that have additional effects such as stuns, damage multipliers, or mind-control.

In isolation, hacking is a super simplistic mini-game. But the genius is that inserting it into the middle of combat makes the entire experience far more dynamic. Dodging attacks and hitting back is the basis of most action games, so throwing a wrench into that formula was a fantastic idea. My mental bandwidth could no longer only be concerned with dodging and shooting but now I had to contend with solving small mazes, deciding which nodes I wanted to use, and which enemies to hack. It feels a bit awkward at first, trying to teach your brain a new task, but the controls are seamless and the end result is both strategic and immensely satisfying.

Since you need to hack enemies to deal damage, the developers were smart in allowing the player to deal massive damage in the short openings that you get. There are four categories of weapons: primary, attack, tactical, and defense. Primary weapons have infinite regenerating ammo, but the others have limited capacity. Primary ammo regeneration is a bit slow and other weapons drop frequently, encouraging the player to actually use their other tools instead of holding onto them for a rainy day. The non-primary weapons all feel incredibly powerful and satisfying to use. A single shotgun blast or charged laser beam will eviscerate most enemies. That’s not to say that there isn’t a fair bit of challenge, having to juggle hacking, dodging, aiming at weak points, and ammo management makes those moments where you can just blast a robot to dust all the more satisfying.

Additionally, the tactical and defense weapons are fantastic as well. Electromagnetic nets that stop enemies in their tracks, decoys to distract foes, deployable shield zones, and grenade launchers to knock robots to the ground. Pragmata doles out all these tools at a fair pace, letting the player experiment and find out what you like best. Most of the weapons and tools are balanced well and they feel powerful, truly giving the player the choice to select what they like best. There’s also a progression system in which you can upgrade your preferred weapons, making them even more potent as you face tougher and tougher enemies.

What most impressed me about Pragmata was its pacing. I often find that many modern games drag out their campaigns and fill the world with fluff under the illusion of providing more “content”. I see all too often online discussions where players treat a lengthy run time as an objectively good thing. With a full time job, house projects, and now a kid, my gaming time is limited. I love when a game respects my time and doesn’t pad itself out with an unnecessary open world, mindless side quests, or a repetitive campaign. Pragmata briskly moves from zone to zone, each introducing new weapons and enemies. There are some hidden upgrades to find but they aren’t far off the beaten path.

There aren’t any side quests and each area is fairly linear. There is some incentive to explore but ultimately you could get through each main area in only an hour or two. I appreciated how quickly the game was willing to move on. Introduce some new enemies, give the player a couple new weapons to test out, a new biome to gaze on, and a boss at the end to cap it off. It doesn’t linger, and this is the kind of game that could easily overstay its welcome. Hacking enemies during combat is a unique twist, but it could’ve gotten stale and tedious in a poorly paced game. For people who want more out of the game, there is a set of 30 training missions that test your skills, as well as 10 post-game challenges. I enjoyed the game enough to do all of these, but I’m glad that the developers kept the main campaign so lithe and kept some content as an optional bonus. 

The thing that disappointed me the most about Pragmata was how it didn’t quite utilize its setting to its maximum potential. I was drawn in by the prospect of a sci-fi shooter taking place on the Moon, but it feels like so much of the game just takes place in sterile metal corridors. Each area that you progress to is its own biome, and the concepts behind the biomes are great. A neon metropolis showing off the industrial capabilities of the 3D printers, a more naturalistic area with trees showing that even organic material can be printed, and the Lunafilament mines on the surface of the Moon. There are unique ideas here, and when the game shows them off it’s great. But all too often those are just pretty exteriors while most of the actual action takes place inside of rectangular aluminum rooms. And outside of the mining operations biome, you could easily forget that the game takes place on the Moon at all. 

Overall, I had a fun time with Pragmata. I wasn’t blown away by it, but I appreciated its unique ideas and stellar pacing. I hope more developers take note of the niche of not overly long AAA games. I’m tired of 100 hour long monstrosities, unless they really are something special. The hacking during combat was a unique twist that made even simpler encounters feel intense. And even if the game’s setting and story weren’t fully realized, they were a decent hook that got me interested in the first place. It is for these reasons that I give Pragmata a 7.5/10. I can’t wait to revisit the satisfaction of hitting a hacked enemy with a fully charged laser piercer blast in the inevitable sequel.          

Resident Evil 3: Nemesis (1999)

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The first two Resident Evil games are known for their dense environments that function as puzzle boxes. In comparison, Resident Evil 3: Nemesis is a sprawling action game. The increase in scope leads to a bombastic finale for the original trilogy. It doesn’t just retread the same ideas from its predecessors; it escapes from the narrow hallways of the mansion and police station and sets the player loose in the chaotic ruins of Raccoon City. While I did prefer the tighter experiences of the first two games, I did appreciate how Resident Evil 3: Nemesis expanded the scope and scale of the series.

After returning to the city after escaping the mansion, Jill Valentine finds herself back in Raccoon City. But all of her rescue team colleagues have disappeared, and the city is aflame with zombies roaming the streets. A horrible mutant, Nemesis, is programmed to hunt down Jill as she is one of the remaining members of the team responsible for foiling Umbrella’s schemes.

From the outset, Resident Evil 3: Nemesis is far more open than its predecessors. You will be roaming the streets, ducking in and out of numerous buildings to acquire the resources needed to proceed. I appreciated the change in environment, and the expanded scope allowed for a variety of different scenarios. Instead of spending the whole game in a single building, you’ll be heading to workshops, a cozy restaurant, an ominous clocktower, a zombie-filled hospital, and a sinister park. The larger streets allow for hordes of zombies and more action-fueled gameplay. 

The main threat of Resident Evil 3: Nemesis is its namesake, the bioengineered mutant Nemesis. He roams the streets, hunting down Jill. There’re quite a few scripted chase sequences throughout the game in which the player can elect to run from Nemesis or fight him. Fighting him is risky and consumes a ton of ammunition, but rewards the player with weapon parts to upgrade your arsenal. And it is in this that the game’s key philosophy becomes clear: an emphasis on player choice.

The first two games in the series of course had some decision making around if and when to consume resources such as ammo, health packs, and save ribbons. But the primary driver of those games were its lock-and-key puzzles. Discovering objects and information to be used elsewhere in the world to unlock a previously blocked path. Of course, that still exists in Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, but to a lesser extent. Instead, this iteration of the series constantly wants the player to make choices to alter their experience.

There are the obvious choices like fighting or running from Nemesis, it presents an upfront risk and hefty cost to potentially become stronger later. There are also frequent binary choices presented in quicktime events that lead you down slightly different paths. But there are some more subtle decisions being made as well, none being as crucial as the ammo crafting system. Throughout the game gunpowder is scattered in two main types. Combining gunpowder in different quantities creates different types of ammo. Do you want to spend a ton of gunpowder to create immensely powerful freeze rounds? Or stockpile a few boxes of gunpowder type B to create extra shotgun ammo? Or do you desperately need ammo now so you spend a box of gunpowder type A for a handful of handgun bullets? The player has so many ways to tackle the game, showcasing the game’s strength of player choice.

Having so many possibilities makes Resident Evil 3: Nemesis a prime candidate for replaying, and this is further supported by the randomization aspect of the game. Items and enemies are partly randomized, making every play through a little different. While I think I prefer the multiple characters of Resident Evil 2 that change the route significantly, having randomized aspects and tons of decision making is hugely impressive for a horror game from 1999. 

The increased scope of Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, came at a cost. The dense environments of the first couple of games were deemphasized in favor of increased action. Truthfully, I kind of missed the tighter environments. Trying to figure out how to escape the cramped hallways of the mansion or the police station was somehow cozy. It sounds insane for a horror game, but becoming intimately familiar with the puzzle-box worlds was a comforting experience despite the threat of zombies lurking around every corner. While exploring the chaotic ruins of Raccoon City was a welcome change-of-pace, I miss the more atmospheric and oppressive corridors of the first two games.

Paradoxically, despite mixing up the formula, this entry also feels derivative of its predecessors when it comes to horror. While the series stories can often feel like schlock-horror, the real risk of unknown enemies makes traversing the world terrifying. You never know what dangers you will come across, threatening you to lose huge chunks of progress. Careful navigation is imperative, leading to a subconscious fear of any new enemies. The problem with Resident Evil 3: Nemesis is that there aren’t any new enemies. The first game obviously was novel and every enemy stoked fear, and the sequel introduced the hulking super-enemies like Mr. X who followed you around. This time around, you’ve seen all the basic enemies before, and Nemesis himself is a retread of the concept of Mr. X. There aren’t any new threats, and if you’ve played the first two games it’s unlikely that you will be scared by the retreaded ground of the third game. 

As a finale to the original trilogy, I think Resident Evil 3: Nemesis did an excellent job at escalation. The burning city and hordes of zombies make Spencer Mansion look downright calm in comparison. The introduction of ammo crafting as well as randomized enemy and item placement emphasizes the importance of decision making in this entry in the series. But despite these strengths, I missed the denser worlds and more novel experiences that the first two games provided. Resident Evil 3: Nemesis marks a clear shift towards more action and away from the escape rooms of the first games in the series. And even though I enjoy the former, I prefer the latter.

Resident Evil 2 (1998)

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It’s rare to find a sequel that is a complete and total improvement from the original. More often than not, I find that sequels often are weaker than their predecessors. It makes sense because for an original work to be successful enough to create demand for a sequel it has to have something special about it. But sequels often just ride on the success of their predecessors. That’s not the case with Resident Evil 2. Resident Evil 2 iterated on every aspect of the original, polishing and refining the bones of the iconic survival horror title as well as adding its own unique ideas. I encourage you to read my review of the original Resident Evil to better understand my perspective on its sequel.

Resident Evil 2 is the first game ever directed by Hideki Kamiya, who is now renowned in the industry for his work on Devil May Cry, Bayonetta, and Ōkami. Kamiya focused on the story, scraping and reworking the first drafts of the game. The main characters, Claire and Leon, end up in the zombie-infested Raccoon City. They get trapped in the sprawling police station, which owes its grandiose architecture and eclectic decoration to the fact that it was originally an art museum. The diverging paths of Claire and Leon are excellently interwoven to encourage the player to play both paths to see how they work together and how the events of the story unfold.

The writing and presentation of the story are definitely the biggest improvements from the first game. The voice acting, while still a little stilted, is so much better than the often comedic delivery in Resident Evil. Character models also got a glow-up, giving Claire and Leon more detail and fidelity. The writing in particular went from cheesy to actually thoughtful and character-driven.

While searching for her brother Claire quickly becomes an elder sister figure to Sherry, a young girl who is one of the lone survivors of the outbreak. Leon has a brief romantic relationship with the spy Ada Wong, who’s murky motivations leave you wondering if she is even on your side until the end. Even minor characters like the police chief are memorable. When you first meet him, you wonder how he survived, and something is very obviously off about him, but he gets more disturbing as you learn more about him. I wouldn’t say Resident Evil 2 is a masterpiece of storytelling, but the thriller plotlines and thoughtful characters are well-done, especially for a game of its age.

Resident Evil 2 is a survival-horror puzzle box. Like its predecessor, action takes a backseat to managing your resources and devising a strategy to escape the police station. With limited ammo, limited health-items, and limited saves, you have to think carefully about where to go next. While most enemies can be easily dispatched with the handgun, conserving ammo for the more challenging encounters is prudent. Both Claire and Leon have terrifying and monstrous entities that stalk them throughout the game, adding an additional element of tension as you never know when you’ll have to run for your life. You may think you can hold off on saving as you are only planning on going down the hall, but one of these bulky beasts could be waiting for you in a place you previously thought was safe.

The core gameplay remains largely the same from the game’s predecessor. Manage resources, solve some puzzles, navigate the zombie-filled halls of a creepy building, and occasionally shoot your way through tight spaces. While there are some new weapons, I think the most notable improvement is the diverging paths of Claire and Leon. Replaying the game is a whole new experience with new equipment, enemy placement, puzzles, and bosses. In some instances, you can even affect the world in the other character’s story. Playing both paths even unlocks the true ending and final boss fight. 

I loved the setting of Resident Evil 2. There are some brief urban sequences as you arrive in Raccoon City, running through the fires, wreckage, and hordes of zombies. There’s a sense of mayhem that is only calmed when you arrive in the police station. The police station being a repurposed art museum gives it a ton of character. From the floor layout, to the architecture, to the décor of paintings and busts, there’s a lot of charm. From there, the game descends further and further down into the grimy tunnels and secrets below the station.

My biggest problems with the game are a result of its age. Movement is still using tank-based controls, which can be supremely awkward to get used to. Especially because of the frequently-shifting camera angles. While I did get used to it after a while, more precise movement was challenging. It’s particularly frustrating when trying to run past zombies or turn during a boss fight. The dated graphics also lessens the horror and tension. The horrifying creatures just look like splotchy and blocky figures, and the fixed camera perspectives mean you rarely get surprised or snuck-up on. 

Overall, Resident Evil 2 is a shining achievement in sequel development. It improved on every aspect of the original: story, characters, setting, presentation, and gameplay. The inclusion of two separate characters with their own stories and remixed gameplay was brilliant and excellently executed. While there is no doubt that the game shows its age in a couple places, once you get adjusted to the control scheme it is still a joy to play. I can’t wait to continue through the series and see how it develops from here, and I am particularly excited to revisit the recent remake of this all-time classic game.