Pragmata’s devs urge players to test out the demo beforehand to figure out whether controller or mouse and keyboard is best for them: ‘There are some people who find keyboard and mouse too tricky’

When I joined PC Gamer, my life changed significantly. I set fire to my PS5 and took an axe to my Switch, but one thing I couldn’t bear to get rid of were all of my controllers. I don’t often use them while playing on PC, but they sure do come in handy from time to time.

There are a few games where playing on a controller is a must for me: any FromSoft or Resident Evil game, cosy games like Cult of the Lamb, and even the odd deckbuilder like Bloodletter. I just find it to be more comfortable and intuitive, and now, after playing the preview and the demo, Pragmata has joined those ranks.

“We put work into the control scheme on both types of systems,” director Cho Yonghee tells me. “So whether it be the button, the key assignments for the keyboard itself, and the speed and sensitivity of the mouse and how that relates to the hacking controls, we’ve tried to make sure that it works as effectively as possible.”

Like I said in my Pragmata preview, the hacking element of this game, while very fun, feels infinitely more pleasant on a controller. Using the D-pad instead of holding down your side mouse button and moving your cursor across the screen is just faster and restricts your movement less. It’s certainly the most obvious divide between controller and keeb I’ve come across in a while.

“They are undeniably quite different experiences between keyboard and mouse and controller,” Yonghee continues. “I think that’s true for a lot of games, but particularly so in this case. If it’s possible for people to compare, I’d encourage them to do so. For example, if you’re able to play through the demo on a controller and then go through it again with a keyboard and mouse, I think you can find which one you prefer, and it is something of a personal preference.”

The free Pragmata sketchbook demo is still available, so if you’re gearing up for Pragmata’s release I’d highly recommend checking it out. Not only does it act like a tutorial and shows you how to do all the basics like shooting, hacking, and using your side arms/abilities, it’s only about 20 minutes long so you can easily play it a couple of times on keeb or controller to figure out which one you prefer.

“There are some people who find keyboard and mouse too tricky,” Yonghee says. “There are others who definitely prefer it, and that goes for us on the team as well. My son, in particular, prefers keyboard and mouse hands down. So I think it’s a bit of a personal choice, but we’ve tried to make sure that whichever one is your preference, that we’ve done our best to optimize the controls so that you get a great experience either way.”

Playing on mouse and keyboard certainly wasn’t a deal breaker for me, and I doubt anyone will find it so bad it puts them off the game, but it’s certainly worth a thought. Especially as Pragmata’s hacking is integral to not only the fights but also getting around the map as you use it to unlock doors and access terminals. Just do what works best for you, and you’ll quickly get the knack for ripping apart AI-controlled robots.