- Mycopunk all upgrades total 587 modules across weapons, grenades, and characters, placed on a shared grid system.
- Grid shapes matter: module footprint and socket limits decide how many upgrades a loadout can hold.
- Best strategy: commit early points to one branch that reinforces your main combat role.
- Critical tip: never spend heavily on upgrades for weapons you rarely use.
- Co-op value: support and control upgrades scale sharply in four-player missions.
How the Mycopunk Upgrade System Works
Mycopunk is a 4-player co-op biopunk looter shooter from Pigeons at Play and Devolver Digital, and its progression is built around a grid-based upgrade system. Instead of a flat skill tree, each piece of equipment — 12 weapons, 3 grenades, and 4 characters — accepts upgrade modules whose shapes occupy space on a grid. How efficiently you fill that grid defines the power of your build.
The scale is significant: the Steam store page currently lists 587 upgrades, alongside 35 achievements, 4 regions, and 9 missions. That volume means planning matters more than raw collection. A scattered grid produces a mediocre loadout; a focused one turns an ordinary weapon into a mission-carrying tool.
Video Highlights:
- Official gameplay overview of the co-op FPS loop
- Weapon customization and module visuals in action
- Squad combat against fungal alien enemies
Upgrade modules have fixed shapes and socket costs. Before locking anything in, sketch how the pieces tile together — a compact, gap-free grid almost always outperforms a grid filled with impressive-looking but poorly fitted modules.
| System Element | What It Does | Planning Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Upgrade grid | Defines total module capacity per equipment piece | Shapes how many upgrades you can fit |
| Module shapes | Footprint each upgrade occupies on the grid | Rewards spatial planning and tiling |
| Socket limits | Caps how many modules of a type can slot in | Prevents stacking one effect endlessly |
| Rarity tiers | Rarer modules offer stronger or broader effects | Guides which drops to keep versus scrap |
| Synergy rules | Some modules boost effects of neighbors or matching types | Encourages themed clusters |
Upgrade Categories Compared
All 587 upgrades serve one of four practical purposes. Understanding the category a module belongs to tells you immediately whether it belongs in your build.
Damage Upgrades
- Raises output consistency and ammunition efficiency
- Best for primary weapons in a damage role
- Scales with accuracy-focused playstyles
Control Upgrades
- Improves radius, duration, and recharge of area tools
- Ideal for grenades and control weapons
- Strongest in objective defense
Support Upgrades
- Boosts team uptime, safety, and revive windows
- Pairs with support characters and utility modules
- Highest value in 4-player squads
Survival Upgrades
- Enhances mobility, escape options, and recovery
- Fits mobile and solo-oriented builds
- Forgives aggressive repositioning
| Category | Best Equipment | Solo Value | Co-op Value | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Damage | Primary weapons | ★★★★★ | ★★★★☆ | High early |
| Control | Grenades, area weapons | ★★★☆☆ | ★★★★★ | High for teams |
| Support | Utility modules, characters | ★★☆☆☆ | ★★★★★ | Medium early, high later |
| Survival | Mobility and recovery modules | ★★★★★ | ★★★☆☆ | Situational |
Do not split early upgrade materials between unrelated playstyles. A half-damage, half-support grid performs neither role well. Pick one combat purpose per loadout and reinforce it before diversifying.
Step-by-Step: Planning Your Upgrade Grid
Follow this workflow between missions to convert raw materials into a coherent build without wasted spending.
Define one combat role
Choose damage, control, support, or survival as the loadout's single purpose. Every upgrade decision after this point either reinforces that role or gets skipped.
Map the grid before placing modules
Review module shapes and socket limits first. Identify which large or awkward pieces must be placed early, then fill the remaining gaps with compact general upgrades.
Upgrade your main damage or utility source first
Spend materials on the weapon, grenade, or module that defines the role. Minor improvements to secondary equipment come only after the core is solid.
Check synergies between neighbors
Place modules so that synergy effects link matching types or adjacent pieces. Cluster themed upgrades instead of scattering them across the grid.
Review after each mission and adjust one thing at a time
If a run exposed a weakness — positioning, ammo, target priority — change one upgrade or placement, then test. Single-variable changes make improvements easy to evaluate.
Protect your extraction. Mission rewards fund upgrades, and losing the extraction phase can erase the value of an entire deployment. Bank the run before chasing optional loot.
High-Value Upgrade Priorities by Build Type
Not all of the 587 upgrades deserve early investment. These priority picks deliver returns across multiple mission types.
| Build Type | First Priority | Second Priority | Skip Early |
|---|---|---|---|
| General-purpose damage | Damage consistency modules | Ammo efficiency upgrades | Niche elemental effects |
| Crowd control | Radius and duration upgrades | Recharge reduction | Single-target damage boosts |
| Support utility | Team uptime modules | Revive-safety tools | Personal damage stacking |
| Mobile survivor | Movement and recovery modules | Forgiving handling upgrades | Setup-dependent heavy effects |
| Specialist setup | High-impact core modules | Coordinated timing effects | General filler upgrades |
Mycopunk receives ongoing updates from the developer. Module values, shapes, and socket costs can shift with official balance patches — recheck your grid priorities after each patch and consult the Steam announcements page for patch details.
Upgrade System Milestones:
- Lock one combat role and map the full grid plan
- Fully upgrade your primary damage or utility source
- Establish at least one synergy cluster on the grid
- Build a balanced secondary loadout for team flexibility
- Re-audit all grids after each official balance patch
FAQ
Q: How many total upgrades are in Mycopunk?
The Steam store page currently lists 587 upgrades, spread across the weapon, grenade, and character progression systems. That number can change as the developer adds content, so check the official Steam page for the latest count.
Q: Can I respec or remove upgrades from the grid?
Treat grid placement as a meaningful commitment. The safest approach is to plan the full layout before spending materials, and to test changes one upgrade at a time between missions so you can judge each adjustment on its own merits.
Q: Which upgrades should I get first as a new player?
Start with upgrades that improve damage consistency and ammunition efficiency on your primary weapon. These increase performance across every mission type, unlike narrow specialist modules that only help in specific situations.
Q: Do support and control upgrades matter in solo play?
They matter less solo but scale sharply in four-player squads. Control upgrades that group enemies create openings for teammates, and support upgrades extend team uptime during objective defense — both rise in value as mission pressure increases.