My Friendly Neighborhood: Everything We Know

It appears the folks on Sesame Street are about to have their sock puppet-filled heads rearranged with a pump-action shotgun, thanks to DreadXP’s unruly survival horror My Friendly Neighborhood. Turns out, everything isn’t A-OK, and knock-off Ernie is about to introduce us to a whole new world of wonders. And honestly, I can’t for the life of me figure out whether I’m supposed to be thrilled by that, or quaking in my boots at the thought of pummelling a puppet with a socket wrench. I’m split between the two, if anything.

Fortunately, none of us will have to wait all that long to have those cumbersome feelings tapped into. With the so-called My Friendly Neighborhood on the verge of hitting consoles and PC, we’ll have a definitive answer by the end of the month. But until that time comes, here’s everything else you’ll need to know before diving into the neighborhood and seeing it firsthand. Let’s talk puppets, people.

What Is My Friendly Neighborhood?

Let’s get right down to it. What is this…thing, and how exactly will such a visually harmless world pay tribute to the world of survival horror? Well, to put it short, My Friendly Neighborhood is a first-person survival horror game, and one that’ll seemingly merge the likes of Poppy Playtime and High on Life into one quirky, albeit oddly creepy adventure.

“For years, the colorful cast of The Friendly Neighborhood delighted audiences across the globe with their cooky capers and educational adventures,” the blurb reads in part. “However, as time went on and interest waned, the production studio found themselves out of money and closed their doors for good. Toy sales would dwindle, and birthday balloons and cakes would find new mascots. In time, the once household names would fade into increasingly niche fandoms. Until one night years later, the studio unexpectedly clicks back to life and starts broadcasting The Friendly Neighborhood. TV sets across the globe flicker for a moment before the familiar puppets return for a surprise encore! But this isn't your typical family-friendly holiday special… are those puppets eating each other!?”

Well, there you have it. In a nutshell, it’s Poppy Playtime meets Five Nights at Freddy’s, with perhaps a glimmer of, I don’t know, We Happy Few. There’ll be action, puppets, and a shedload of jump scares. So, your everyday survival horror, then — only with a Wish version of Elmo to boot. How’s that for an opener?

Story

You will take on the role of Gordon, an all-round handyman who’s dispatched to the old network station to get to the bottom of the issue surrounding the now-deceased puppet show mysteriously airing on repeat. But of course, being a survival horror, such an issue will present you with another challenge: handling the puppets of the once-loved family show as they transition into sadistic tools of violence.

“Stepping into his work boots, you'll have to fend off ferocious friends, solve a plethora of playtime puzzles turned perilous, and hopefully uncover the dastardly truth at the heart of this terrifying tale,” the blurb concludes.

Gameplay

It goes without saying that, as it’s a survival horror at heart, the bulk of the gameplay will revolve around solving puzzles whilst working to avoid being detected by the roaming ill-fated puppets. And it won’t just be the case of crossing a few wires and fetching a few cogs, either, as there’ll also be instances where you’ll have to get rough with your pursuers through the use of good ol’ fashioned melee and ranged combat.

It’ll be a non-linear game, too, which means there won’t be any A-to-B progression, per se, but more open exploration with a mixture of objectives left to complete at your own time and pace. Again, this is something we’ve seen a number of times over the years; Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach rings a bell, actually.

“If you're tired of games that rely on gore more than solid scares, then come on over to the streets of MFN!” the elevator pitch adds. “Featuring a mix of action and adventure, MFN is the perfect game for horror fans looking for something a bit different. Sure, there might not be any dismemberment or decapitations. But that just means the puppets don't stay down for good…” Oh goodie.

Development

John and Evan Szymanski, the creative minds behind the project, first teased My Friendly Neighborhood back in 2021, at which point the publisher, DreadXP, posted a couple of trailers to tide potential fans over. More recently, the game made an appearance at Summer Game Fest 2023, during the PC Gaming panel, to be precise.

Anyway, it was announced at the time that a demo would be made available on Steam in the weeks leading up to its eventual launch. Speaking of which, that’s on July 18, 2023. So, hardly a wait, after all. If you’re interested in testing the waters before jumping into the deep end, then you can get your hands on a sneak preview here.

Trailer

The good news is. DreadXP has already gone ahead and teased a trailer of My Friendly Neighborhood over on its regular streaming handle. But don’t let us spoil all the action for you. You can check it out for yourself in the video embedded above.

Release Date, Platforms & Editions

My Friendly Neighborhood will be launching on PC via Steam on July 18, 2023. It’ll also be heading to Xbox and PlayStation, though DreadXP has yet to confirm when exactly this is likely to be. Whatever the case, here’s hoping it’ll grace the consoles before year’s end.

Interested in staying up to date with MFN? If so, then be sure to check in with the team’s official social feed here. If anything changes ahead of its launch, we’ll be sure to fill you in on all the key details right here on gaming.net.

So, what’s your take? Will you be hitting up My Friendly Neighborhood when it drops on consoles and PC later this month? Let us know your thoughts over on our socials here.