Fragpunk Comments are in progress – IGN
Blog Andrew Joseph 11 Mar , 2025 0
With all the trailers, presentations and development diaries that often lead to the release of the game, which is more difficult than ever, it's a real surprise – when in a multiplayer first-person shooter, when in a multiplayer first-person shooter like me, you're a certified old gamer™ who has been playing the game since they started playing it. However, fragpunk does that. What I was worried about might end up being a Valort Clone with a card header, and a list of some other buzzword features impressed me. It's still early and I'm not ready to say it's a clear winner, but so far it's been hard for me to let go of fragpunk.
In many ways, Fragpunk reminds me of a reverse ship from Theseus. If every component of the game comes from somewhere else, will it end up being the original? It's hard to say, but the result is at least interesting. Like Overwatch, it has very different characters, with a larger personality and unique tools to match them. Like Valort or Counterattack, the main game mode, called Shard Clash, competes around a team of five or changes converters (aka bombs) or eliminates each other over multiple rounds. Like Fortnite, it also has a bag of cosmetics such as clothing, weapon skins, stickers and emotions to attract you to spend some money on this otherwise free shooting game.
Fragpunk's playable character is called the Lancer, and so far it's an interesting group. Some are relatively typical prototypes, such as a sniper named Hollowpoint, whose abilities help reveal enemies. Others are there, like the punk rock musician hand-axe, who shoots lightning with a guitar. Unlike Valort, abilities can give you an advantage, but rarely win battles, Fragpunk places more emphasis on using them to dominate the map, which I like. When a capability like the broker's rocket launcher can instantly eliminate enemies, you can use it yourself or design the counter in real time if you see it coming, like throwing a fungus wall as a Pathojen's wall to provide cover and then returning to the fire from a remotely controlled combat drone.
Naturally, Fragpunk is not all lightning guitars and rockets. Your standard shotgun, SMG, assault rifle, etc. form the backbone of the battle. I don't mind guns are indeed not the star of the show here, but I do wish there were more options. There are two options in each category that you can choose as the main weapon, and they almost all capture what you expect. Most maps seem to prefer medium range engagement, so I've been leaning towards SMG. The gunfight is smooth and responsive, and the time for quick kills is well emphasized on the importance of positioning on the original gun skills.
Another aspect of shooting stands out from the bottom of the day, sports have little impact on your goals. Unlike Valort, stopping and popping are usually essential if you want to stay accurate, Fragpunk completely embraces running and shooting. I found myself lagging behind the kills repeatedly until my teammates pointed out that I better call the gunfights like the gunfight, which makes me the top of the next game rankings. This shooting style is not necessarily better than other games' more intentional action, but for objective-based tactical shooters, it does exactly match the Fragpunk atmosphere in general.
However, the star of the show is the fragment card system. Before each round, each team has three random cards and can throw players into fragment points, effectively voting through which will be active. The cost of the effects varies, and you can earn more shard points by killing or picking up the kill from the ground in the middle. Some fragment cards are simple, such as increasing your movement speed, while others are very powerful, such as forcing the next round as a melee battle or a big head called Big Head, which (as in the ad) makes the entire enemy team messy, easy to hit the skull. The Egg King (e.g., the Egg King) is even thorough, which will allow you to lay eggs after squatting for ten seconds, and you can eat to get back to health. It's fun, very strange, and unlike anything I've seen in Sagittarius before.
I was amazed at how much enjoyable Fragpunk's card collection aspect was. You start with one third of the 169 fragment cards in stock and earn more after completing the game. Get more questions because the randomly selected cards before each turn are unlocked based on each team member. It's really exciting to get a new card and read the weirdness that will be introduced. I also appreciate you for being able to easily see your collection, read the effects, and in some cases watch quick videos to show you what it does.
A round of fragment conflicts is fast – probably too fast. In theory, one team tries to plant the converter on one of two target points, and then another team needs to change that… But, in reality, when one team wipes off another team, it is usually wiped off another team in just a few minutes. This means a strategic backslide that rarely has the same, which makes the hard game so engaging. This also means that lancers with more nuances, tactical focus capabilities seem unlikely to be feasible in general so far. I would love to knock it out with Nito's turret and drone, but that's just the secret to making all the action happen elsewhere. Hopefully, some balance adjustments can be achieved to make the goal a more relevant part of the action.
The game ends when one team wins four rounds in total, but if both teams win three before that, it activates one of my favorite twists: the final. This has left each team in a series of 1V1 battles in a small arena, and those who survived perseveringly face the next championship of another team until they were eliminated. Health and ability do not regenerate into a round, which makes it difficult for a great player to run the table. The action is exciting, it's nervous, when you root your teammates and wait for your own rounds, especially when you get a win and expand the entire game.
So far, I really like Fragpunk, although there are still some unresolved issues before I make the final ruling. I still have several levels of competition and can’t compete in rankings, which is an important mode for this kind of game. Again, while I love both action and crazy fragment cards, I wonder if this novelty will wear out sooner or later. There are more games to fight, the lancers to unlock, the cards to collect, and there are many currencies to figure out in the game. For now, I can say Fragpunk is very interesting, and while it draws a lot from previous games, it runs against the grain and mixes the twists and turns in a way that feels primitive, which makes me expect to play more.
