[PAX East 14] Secret Ponchos Preview: Gunslingers Dual

Switchblade Monkeys took to PAX East to reveal some of the secrets of Secret Ponchos. This western-inspired competitive shooter is more in line with a fighter, requiring players to react quickly to opponents’ strengths and weaknesses. The PAX demo of the game had five different characters to try out, each feeling varied and unique. Kid Red, a fast shooter with dynamite and the ability to stun, was able to maneuver around opponents and get out of bad situations quickly, while The Deserter is a beefy but slow shooter who can brutally lunge at opponents and skewer them on the end of his gun and then shoot them off for a lot of damage. Every character has a first and secondary fire, some sort of throw-able weapon or support item and a dodge that’s tied to limited stamina.

The game features several modes not found in our initial look at the game at E3, including death match and capture the flag, but the team was showing off an eight player free-for-all mode on the show floor. The mode felt frantic but satisfying. It seemed like every character was a good choice and at least stood a chance at winning if the player was able to out maneuver others.

Switchblade Monkeys is currently looking into adding some sort of single player content but wasn’t sure if it would be in the final version. The team also plans on supporting the game post launch with more characters, maps and possibly modes, depending on what the community wants after they have some time with the game. Secret Ponchos features two players locally and up to eight online. The team is hoping to have the game out this fall for PS4 (free for PS+ members) and will soon release a version of the game on Steam through Early Access.