Airframe Ultra Progression and Unlocks: How to Earn New Gear
Learn how progression works in Airframe Ultra, from surviving your first race and earning infamy to buying parts, building a new frame, and unlocking helmets and clothes.
How do you progress and unlock new gear in Airframe Ultra?
You progress by racing: crossing finish lines and racking up kills builds the infamy and winnings that pay for new parts, frames, helmets and clothes. The official Steam store page describes surviving your first race as just the beginning, and everything after that — new gear included — grows out of how you perform on the track.
What does the core progression loop actually look like?
It starts with a second-hand Airframe and a big heavy baseball bat. From there, the store description frames the whole arc as climbing from nobody to legend: one circuit becomes two, two becomes ten, and eventually street rats across Megacity West are chanting your name.
According to the Airframe Ultra Wiki on Miraheze, most movement actions are not explained in-game, so it is worth knowing that your on-foot and on-Airframe movement toolkit also feeds into how well you place. That page is marked as under construction, so treat its details as community documentation rather than official confirmation.
How do you earn parts and build a new Airframe?
Win enough parts and you can make a new Airframe. The store description states this plainly, tying parts to race performance rather than to a separate currency screen.
Beta 5: Desperada, announced in the official Steam update, introduced a progression system, shops and bike building to the playtest. Those systems are the clearest official look at how upgrading and assembling a ride is meant to work.
- Progression system — added in the Beta 5 playtest
- Shops — added in the Beta 5 playtest
- Bike building — added in the Beta 5 playtest
The store description also mentions custom mods, but it does not spell out a mod list or stat breakdown. The patch notes do not list a full parts catalogue yet.
Can you unlock new helmets, clothes and outfits?
Yes. The store description says you will pick up new helmets and new clothes, and describes using them to make a statement — a uniform. Win enough and you can also make a new frame.
Some of this is tied to achievements. The Steam store page lists 21 achievements in total, with highlighted ones including Fashionista, Welcome to Airframe Ultra!, Get Rekt, Baby Steps, You're Supposed to Go Straight!, Taking the Scenic Route, Focus on the Road!, "Just One more Game" and Road Rage. Fashionista is the obvious costume-related one, though the store page does not state its exact unlock condition. Some highlighted achievements are hidden, and their names are not listed.
What should you expect from post-launch progression?
Expect more, but not all at once. Videocult's launch message, posted as an official Steam announcement, says this initial Airframe 1.0 focuses on establishing the fundamentals in a way that breaks in the fewest possible ways, and that after the initial release bugs are worked out the team intends to roll out new content roughly every quarter.
The same message notes that some veteran players may notice certain elements are curiously absent from this release. The developers say those are coming, but the announcement does not name them, so anyone hoping for a specific cut feature should wait for a confirmed update rather than assume a date.
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