Desperados, Rough Riders: Secret Ponchos Is Out

My secret fashion shame is the conviction that I could pull off a poncho and cowboy hat. Clearly I couldn't. But... maybe I could, in some kind of Wild West cyberpunk sort of... it's a terrible idea. So I will continue to be fascinated by any game with a Wild West setting, and Secret Ponchos [official site] looks like it may be worth the attention.

Secret Ponchos is a 3v3 multiplayer top-down shooter of Wild West stereotypes throwing down, each with their own weapons and abilities. After a stretch on Steam Early Access, it's now properly out.

Its lineup of ten outlaws includes Western stereotypes such as the bow-wielding Wolf, swirling Matador, mad-eyed Trapper, and dual-wielding Kid Red, whose weapons and abilities give them a load of different sneaky tricks, optimal combat ranges, and playstyles in general. Action's real-time with line-of-sight, and developers Switchblade Monkeys are playing up influences from fighting games and MOBAs.

Along with online multiplayer, it does also have AI bots to duel against in a 1v1 mode or fill in spots on bigger games.

A launch discount brings Secret Ponchos to £8.24 on Steam, or it's £22.49 for four copies. User reviews from folks who've played across Early Access look pretty good! Indie multiplayer games can struggle to build a lasting playerbase, but being a good game's a fair start.

Here's the stylin' launch trailer:

As for how it actually plays, here are the developers scrapping in a recent livestream: