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Secret Ponchos Launch Date Confirmed

• Egon Kilin
• November 26th, 2014

Secret Ponchos, the first release by developer Switchblade Monkeys, will be available on PlayStation 4 beginning December 2nd. The Secret Ponchos launch will include five playable characters and a variety of player configurations, game modes and maps.

Secret Ponchos is a competitive online shooter set in the wild west that features a top down isometric view which changes the feel of combat from that of traditional fighting and team combat games. This heavily stylized title from Switchblade Monkeys draws much of its influence from graphic novels which results in its distinctive and appealing character design.

This spaghetti western combat game has been described as a mix of League of Legends and Team Fortress because of the style of combat, the unique camera angle and the environmental and skill utilization that’s required to succeed. Street Fighter II’s fingerprints are also all over the game because of the tactical thinking necessary to become a top level player. How? As Switchblade Monkeys’ creative director and president Yousuf Mapara explains, “A fight between Ryu and Chun-Li is a completely different fight from Ryu and Dhalsim because of the spacing. It’s up to the players to impose their spacing on their opponents.”

The Switchblade Monkeys team incorporates all of these eclectic influences into player configurations like 1v1, 4v4, 8 player free for all in game modes such as Deathmatch, Domination, and Free-for-All. All of these options are available to test the mettle of the five characters that will be available with the December 2nd PlayStation 4 launch of Secret Ponchos. The five outlaws you’ll get to meet next week are named Phantom Poncho, Killer, Kid Red, Deserter and Matador.

How much will Secret Ponchos cost? The PC version will be $15 on Steam Early Access and Switchblade Monkeys announced that it will be free for those that subscribe to PlayStation Plus for all of December. Beyond the PC version and PlayStation Plus cost, no official price tag has been announced.

With such unique influences combined with wonderfully stylized environments and characters, Switchblade Monkeys’ Secret Ponchos looks to be a fun and interesting first release. I don’t know about you, but I am looking forward to giving Secret Ponchos a shot.