Since My Friend Pedro was announced at E3 2018, I found myself curious and enamored by the ridiculous premise. Devolver Digital has a way of picking unique and sometimes strange games to publish, so this seemed perfect for their brand. My instinct was seemingly spot on, as My Friend Pedro is a bizarre, yet wonderful side-scrolling shooter.

The premise is simple. You wake up in a room alone, or so you think. Immediately, a sentient Banana named Pedro appears, mentioning that you are their friend, and he can help you escape. This leads to a surprising “buddy-cop” team up. The question that immediately came to my mind was “are we hallucinating?” and the answer is, I have no idea.

My Friend Pedro is a game that definitely fits the Devolver brand because you find yourself not only taking on mobsters and foes with stylish gunplay, but you also find yourself in bizarre landscapes. The gameplay feels like a combination of Max Payne, Hotline Miami, and an acrobatic John Wick. You traverse each platforming level, busting down doors, shooting enemies, and performing stylish moves.

Your unnamed protagonist has a variety of moves at his disposal. You can shoot in two different directions at once, dodge bullets, wall jump, kick enemies or obstacles, and pull off a variety of stylish acrobatic tricks. For example, he can swing on ropes, then wall jump, all while raining bullets on enemies.

The most interesting mechanic I discovered while playing My Friend Pedro though, was the mechanic that allows you to kick objects into the air, or at enemies. The most hilarious example of this was when I kicked a skillet into the air, then shot it, in order for the ricochet to hit enemies above me. You can also kick body parts, basketballs, barrels, and other environmental elements for a variety of effects.

More importantly, though, your protagonist has the ability to use “focus” which slows down time for a limited duration; this is where the meat of your strategy lies. If you’re taking on a group of enemies, all it takes is for you to hit the focus button, and time immediately slows down, giving you the chance to plan and pull off impressive tricks.

This is where the Hotline Miami/Max Payne duality comes into play. Without using Focus to slow down time, your chances of success drop significantly. My Friend Pedro isn’t an easy game, though it is an incredibly fun and addictive experience. Pulling off crazy stunts and tricks in each level feels very satisfying, and I found myself wanting to play levels, again and again, just to get a higher score.

Each level gives you a grade at the end, based on a few factors. Depending on how long you took to complete the level, your grade changes. The game also factors in whether you died or not, and the multipliers that you gain for killing enemies and pulling off stylish tricks. Full disclosure, I am not very good at the game, so I kept getting C ranks on the levels. However, I still had a blast, enjoying every crazy minute.

My Friend Pedro isn’t a very complex game in terms of the variety of mechanics. Despite this, there is a lot of fun to be had. The characters are quirky, the gameplay evolves regularly, and there is a lot of charm in this difficult shooter. The soundtrack is fun and will get you moving, and the controls are solid and smooth, so there are very few problems with My Friend Pedro.

In fact, the only major problem I ran into with it, was that I am terrible at playing games like this quickly, so my score was usually lower due to me taking my time. Obviously, not everyone will see this as a problem, but for people that aren’t skilled in games like this, there will be a difficulty curve for you to overcome.

This game feels like a fever dream in the best way possible. Every movement makes you feel like a skilled warrior, even when you aren’t a very skilled player. The gameplay is always adding new things to do or try as well, so nothing ever gets stale.

If you’re a Devolver Digital fan, or you want to be a stylish assassin (that doesn’t need stealth) then My Friend Pedro is for you. It is a difficult game that is easy to learn but hard to master, and I would greatly recommend it on Switch. Whether you are playing on the go, or on your television, there is lots of blood, bullets, and bananas to be found in My Friend Pedro.

A Nintendo Switch review copy of My Friend Pedro was provided by Devolver Digital for this review.

Phenixx Gaming is everywhere you are. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

My Friend Pedro

$19.99 USD

9

Score

9.0/10

Pros

• Stylish, Acrobatic Combat
• Great Aesthetic
• Interesting Mechanics Such as Focus
• Silly Dialogue and Story
• Play on the Go on Switch

Cons

• Difficulty is High for Lesser Skilled Players

Buy My Friend Pedro for Nintendo Switch on our Amazon affiliate and help Phenixx Gaming grow!