FragPunk Beta Impressions: Punk With Potential

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FragPunk explodes onto the scene in colorful 5v5 fashion, offering unique twists to the hero shooter genre. We’ve managed to play several hours of the new first-person shooter on the Xbox Series X to gain a good impression of the game’s mechanics, graphics, and performance.

The FragPunk beta has a lot of flair and boasts a unique gameplay system to make itself stand out amidst the competition. But if it ever hopes to survive in this highly competitive genre, it needs to finetune some of its systems and hash out its many bugs and glitches before it can truly frag out.

Key Takeaways

  • FragPunk is a tactical first-person hero shooter.
  • The closed beta can be accessed on Steam and on Xbox until October 21, 2024.
  • The Shard Card system allows players to add unique effects to matches.
  • There are 12 lancers available to choose from, each with a unique set of abilities
  • The game is currently in the development stages and as such, has bugs and glitches.

FragPunk Beta

FragPunk combines fast-paced gunplay with chaotic party-like mechanics
FragPunk combines fast-paced gunplay with chaotic party-like mechanics. Source: Joey Morris via Techopedia

The FragPunk beta offers a small glimpse into what we can expect in the full release, with access to several modes, maps, and Lancers.

There are six maps available in the closed beta at the time of writing this article. The majority of these maps follow a universal three-lane format, but have enough unique mechanics and intricacies to them to feel different. Some lanes are a little bit narrow, meaning it’s very easy for some teams to completely block off certain parts of the map by hard scoping or deploying traps.

Gunplay feels solid, combining fast-paced movement with robust aim-down-sight FragPunk gameplay. Controls always felt responsive to the Xbox controller, and the settings menus allowed for extensive customization of button layout and aim sensitivity.

There are 17 weapons in total, plus one dagger, that function distinctly from one another; some weapons were much more powerful than others — particularly the assault rifles, which were by far the most commonly picked weapon type.

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Shard Clash is the highlight game mode and by far the most popular. It is essentially the attack vs. defense bomb defuse mode found in the best FPS games like CS2 or Valorant, where the first to win four rounds is victorious. Shard Clash features both a standard and ranked mode.

The attacking team needs to plant a Converter in one of two sites and win by eliminating the team or successfully detonating the Converter. The defending team wins by eliminating the opposition, preventing the plant, or defusing the Converter before time runs out.

Full List of Modes Available

Team Deathmatch: Earn Shard cards throughout the match; the first team to reach the target score wins.

Capture The Core: Capture cores scattered throughout the map and bring them back to a base.

Scrimmage: A mode that lets you fight without restraints, with no end goal.

Duel Master: 8 players take turns in 1v1 showdowns and lose a life with every loss; the last to be eliminated wins.

Shard Clash and Duel Master were my favorite modes, and I spent the majority of my time in the FragPunk closed beta. Though this is a preview, I am hopeful that there will be more modes available when the game fully launches in the future, for example, a Domination or Infected equivalent mode from Call of Duty and the upcoming Black Ops 6 title.

Shard of the Cards

Shard Cards alter or add new rules to matches
Shard Cards alter or add new rules to matches. Source: Joey Morris via Techopedia

The main selling point of the game is its Shard Cards system, which allows players to add or modify rules in every match they play. You accumulate points through eliminations or winning/losing matches which you can then spend on cards in the next round. There are 111 Shard Cards available to unlock at the time of writing this article.

The effects of these cards can vary, and grow increasingly expensive the more potent the effects are. Cards can range from minor boosts, such as increased critical damage with Headshot Master, to environmental changes, like Cloaking Plant, which covers the map in tall grass to hide in.

There’s a wide selection of cards to choose from, which add variety to the games you play to ensure matches don’t quickly become stale. Whilst these mechanics won’t completely change how you play the game, these fun additions will force you to stay on your toes. In one match, the enemy has two drones on their team, the next minute, eliminated foes are coming back as zombies, and before you know it, your team suddenly has inflated heads!

This does add a level of RNG to the game. Cards are always drawn at random, so the effects you bring into battle are entirely based on luck, with cheaper cards near the beginning and the more expensive ones available later in the game. Cards are unlocked as you play more matches, and whilst it doesn’t take too long to unlock a good majority of them, newer players will be put at a significant disadvantage as they will not have access to the more powerful cards. This is less of a problem in ranked matches, which allows you to ban certain cards.

Actually, They’re Called ‘Lancers’

There are 12 lancers available to choose from in the closed Beta
There are 12 lancers available to choose from in the closed Beta. Source: Joey Morris via Techopedia

Lancers are your equivalent to heroes or agents in FragPunk that bring a unique set of abilities to help eliminate foes and encourage players to lean into certain playstyles.

Every Lancer Available in the FragPunk Closed Beta
  • Broker: Demolitionist with explosive damage.
  • Nitro: Engineer that deploys gadgets to fortify defenses.
  • Hollowpoint: Sniper that can obscure vision to hold sightlines.
  • Jaguar: Deploys traps to catch enemies off guard.
  • Pathojen: Supports allies by healing and controlling space.
  • Zephyr: Assassin that can go invisible to ambush foes.
  • Kismet: Tracker that hunts down and reveals enemies.
  • Corona: Skirmisher that outmaneuvers foes and deals fire damage.
  • Serket: Controller that delays an enemy’s advance.
  • Axon: Assault with high damage output.
  • Spider: Defender that can teleport allies to reposition.
  • Sonar: Recon that reveals nearby enemies to defend points.

More Lancers may be launched in the full release or in future updates.

The lancers feel unique to one another and certainly encapsulate the punk vibe and aesthetic that the game is aiming toward. Each lancer has three abilities that bring unique effects to fights; for example, Hollowpoint can equip a custom railgun to fulfill a sniper role, and Zephyr can go invisible for players who enjoy ambushing or flanking enemies.

Outside of gameplay, none of them are particularly interesting design or personality wise. They don’t leave as big of an impression as other hero shooters do, like Tracer in Overwatch or Jett in Valorant. This is due to the low number of voice lines that these lancers have and the complete absence of any lore or story connecting these FragPunk characters.

Another trouble I have, and this is more related to hero shooters in general, is that gunfights are often filled with visual clutter caused by abilities from Lancers. This problem is only worsened by how narrow some of the maps are, meaning an enclosed room can quickly become a visual effect nightmare.

Glitch Has Been Planted

FragPunk is in closed beta and is still a work in progress
FragPunk is in closed beta and is still a work in progress. Source: Joey Morris via Techopedia

FragPunk is in closed beta, meaning the game is still in development stages. Many of the problems outlined will undoubtedly be fixed in future updates and builds. Nevertheless, I still encountered various performance problems with my game that soured the experience. All of these problems took place on an Xbox Series X console via Xbox Insider, and so problems may differ on a PC.

Minor problems include consistent frame rate drops in the opening sequence showcasing the Converter and the Shard Cards, which were rigid and choppy in animation. While my game was mostly smooth, I saw it drop down to 30 frames per second on occasion.

Major problems include several instances of crashes occurring during matches and even before the game began. The first few hours of Fragpunk gameplay were marred by being consistently kicked out of games and back onto the main home screen and sometimes not being able to access the game at all.

A key design flaw to highlight is how the game responds to players who leave in the middle of matches. Even when all of the enemy team was eliminated and the last player had left the game, we were forced to sit through another 30 seconds waiting for the game to end instead of immediately moving on to the next round.

Certain Shard Cards also saw game-breaking glitches. I remember one of my first games saw the enemy team activate the Frozen Wasteland card, which covers the floor in ice to allow sliding, and the screen became filled with broken ice effects that completely blocked my vision and put me at a significant disadvantage. It’s clear that some Shard Cards, especially environmental ones, still need refining before release.

How to Get a FragPunk Closed Beta Access Code

The best way to get a FragPunk beta code is to sign up to the game’s official Discord server. Additionally, watching livestreams of the game can offer codes through Twitch Drops. The closed beta runs until October 21, 2024.

The Bottom Line

FragPunk is a rough game but a fun one nonetheless, and its Shard Cards mechanic means it has a leg to stand on amidst the shooter competition. Its solid gunplay, fast-paced movement, and Shard Clash mode elevate the experience, and I look forward to seeing what lies ahead.

On the other hand, its limited number of modes, several performance issues, and, quite frankly, an uninspired roster of Lancers means the full release will need to go above and beyond if it hopes to successfully establish its place in a genre dominated by giants.

The FragPunk release date has yet to be announced; however, you can wishlist the game on Steam and Xbox. We’ll update you with more on the pricing and news as soon as this information is revealed by Bad Guitar Studio.

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Joey Morris
Gaming Writer
Joey Morris
Gaming Writer

Joey Morris is a Gaming Writer for Techopedia. He has spent several years writing on his own blog site and for other creative publications. He has written reviews, features, and even a digital magazine. He has also produced podcasts, video essays, and held interviews with various experts in the gaming industry. He enjoys playing video games as both a profession and passion.