An enjoyably straightforward game-ass game. That blunt simplicity does mean that this does better in small doses, though—I frequently find myself taking breaks between levels. But if you're looking for an enjoyable over-the-top shooter with some fun movement mechanics, I wholeheartedly recommend this.
The one real gripe I have with My Friend Pedro is that I don't get how its scoring system works or why it's even in the game. A big part of the reason I still haven't beaten this despite putting well over ten hours into it is that I'm a little perfectionist sometimes; it took me hours to beat Ultrakill's first stage, and that's only because I kept trying to get an S on it with the starting weapons. In Ultrakill, you're rewarded for speed, combos, and absurd kills. In My Friend Pedro, I've beaten stages where I have a firm grasp on all three, but I finish with a C because? Because I don't know. I know there's a bonus for playing on harder difficulties and another bonus for not dying. But other than that, how well you're actually doing on a level is poorly telegraphed. To bring up Ultrakill again, another thing that I like about that game's scoring system is that it takes into account kills that aren't just shooting guys very fast. There's a bonus for shooting at a coin and getting a ricochet shot to land, one for blowing up groups of enemies, one for jumping on the heads of your enemies, and so on. Although it's fun to jump off of an enemy while dual wielding pistols, split my aim mid-air, and kill two guys at once in slow-motion... I don't feel like the game ever adequately rewards me for doing it. I know exactly how this is going to be misconstrued; "skill issue!" Counterpoint: Hotline Miami 2. I suck ass at that game, but I feel content about it. Something about My Friend Pedro's mix of score-centric systems and movement-based shooting mechanics just don't click in the way they should for me, and while I'm usually okay with a B or a C, I find that to be disappointing.
Edit: beat the game. The scoring system never makes more sense, and I actually think it's a creative decision that sets this back in the long haul. Otherwise, this is a solid three stars!
The one real gripe I have with My Friend Pedro is that I don't get how its scoring system works or why it's even in the game. A big part of the reason I still haven't beaten this despite putting well over ten hours into it is that I'm a little perfectionist sometimes; it took me hours to beat Ultrakill's first stage, and that's only because I kept trying to get an S on it with the starting weapons. In Ultrakill, you're rewarded for speed, combos, and absurd kills. In My Friend Pedro, I've beaten stages where I have a firm grasp on all three, but I finish with a C because? Because I don't know. I know there's a bonus for playing on harder difficulties and another bonus for not dying. But other than that, how well you're actually doing on a level is poorly telegraphed. To bring up Ultrakill again, another thing that I like about that game's scoring system is that it takes into account kills that aren't just shooting guys very fast. There's a bonus for shooting at a coin and getting a ricochet shot to land, one for blowing up groups of enemies, one for jumping on the heads of your enemies, and so on. Although it's fun to jump off of an enemy while dual wielding pistols, split my aim mid-air, and kill two guys at once in slow-motion... I don't feel like the game ever adequately rewards me for doing it. I know exactly how this is going to be misconstrued; "skill issue!" Counterpoint: Hotline Miami 2. I suck ass at that game, but I feel content about it. Something about My Friend Pedro's mix of score-centric systems and movement-based shooting mechanics just don't click in the way they should for me, and while I'm usually okay with a B or a C, I find that to be disappointing.
Edit: beat the game. The scoring system never makes more sense, and I actually think it's a creative decision that sets this back in the long haul. Otherwise, this is a solid three stars!
Lollycakeman
10 months ago