Games

Funko Fusion Review – Funky Plastic Figurines and Myriad IP Ultimately Make For a Hollow Experience

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As a seasoned gamer with a heart full of nostalgia for the golden age of gaming and a shelf adorned with collectibles from various universes, I approached Funko Fusion with a sense of excitement and anticipation. Having grown up on the LEGO games and being a fan of many of the properties represented in this new title, it seemed like a perfect blend of my two passions.

As a gamer, I must confess that while many seem enamored with Funko Pops, their oversized, bulbous heads and unblinking eyes resembling black saucers leave me unmoved. Yet, I can understand the appeal – the Funko craze is an intriguing platform for a game showcasing the countless IP that’s been molded into rubbery figurines. Given TT Games’ background in LEGO video games, they seem like the ideal team to bring this concept to life. However, I can’t help but wonder if this fusion of Funko and gaming will be as successful as anticipated. Only time will tell!

The game Funko Fusion thrives as a tribute to the movies, TV series, and comics it encapsulates within small boxes with clear windows. Since everyone has their own favorites, I began my adventure by selecting John Carpenter’s The Thing, a choice that suited me well. As in LEGO games, your chosen character (MacCready, for instance) smashes objects to reveal tiny collectibles. Instead of studs as currency, this game uses colorful ‘vinyl’ balls, which can be utilized to create helpful items, refreshing soda drinks, and weapons from oversized vending machines scattered throughout each level.

The primary issue with Fusion lies in its open levels frequently feeling empty and repetitive, where you end up doing the same monotonous tasks repeatedly, albeit within a different plastic-like setting and with characters having football heads. The narrative, centered around preventing Eddy Funko (voiced by Clancy Brown) from contaminating characters across various game universes, isn’t particularly gripping, and the absence of meaningful dialogue doesn’t make it any more engaging.

In various settings such as Jurassic World, Scott Pilgrim, The Thing, Hot Fuzz, Masters of the Universe, Umbrella Academy, and 1970s Battlestar Galactica, you’ll traverse through action-packed stages filled with combat and enemy elimination. The defeated enemies have a satisfying decapitation effect. Besides combat, there are also puzzles to solve, typically involving locating a fuse, flipping switches, shooting targets in a specific sequence, or similar tasks. Just like the LEGO games, certain actions can only be performed by specific characters, but Funko Fusion does not always indicate which character is needed. This could lead to frustration as you might spend a lot of time trying to access hidden items without the right character. However, you can switch characters at any moment using one of the Funko boxes scattered across each level. A small convenience in an otherwise challenging game!

Experiencing tough boss fights along with other mentioned problems results in a rather challenging experience. However, after a substantial post-release update, many of the game’s issues have been addressed. For example, boss battles have been rebalanced, reducing the number of annoying minion characters that distract you during combat. Additionally, players can now choose any unlocked character within a level, which was not an option at launch. Furthermore, skipping cutscenes during stage replays is now possible, something that wasn’t feasible before. These improvements help smooth out some rough edges in Funko Fusion, but the tedious escort missions, repetitive objectives, and monotonous combat remain unchanged.

In gameplay with the ‘Performance’ setting activated, the frame rate often becomes unevenly smooth, especially during hectic scenes where many objects appear on the screen. Additionally, enemies seem to pass through the scenery quite frequently. After the latest update, an abundance of continuously spawning enemies remains a problem, leading to a generally unpleasant experience that feels more like a tedious task than enjoyable gameplay. Each level seems to be more laborious as you move back and forth, and having to retrace your steps is further aggravated by the inclusion of a seemingly unnecessary stamina meter. I can’t fathom why your character has a stamina bar; it serves no purpose and complicates navigation in large areas.

10 Games deserves praise for their dedication to fan service. However, the game falls short due to limited variety, lack of engaging activities, and technical issues, making it a somewhat disappointing overall package. Fans of Funko Pop characters will likely enjoy playing as their favorite figurines, and the cameo stages and hidden bonus characters are an added bonus, though you’ll need to put in some effort to unlock them.

Fundamentally, one gets the sense that playing Funko Fusion demands significant effort for limited rewards. For instance, to unlock Mega Man, you have to finish several tedious escort missions. To get Chucky, you chase after the killer doll and play hide-and-seek with him multiple times. Frankly, it’s not worth the trouble. Whether or not Funko Fusion is worth your while depends on your personal interest in Funko figurines – the vibrant aesthetics and rubbery visuals are appealing (despite the frame rate problems), and it can be easy to become engrossed, lose track of time, and spend hours mindlessly pressing buttons. However, you may suddenly regain consciousness and realize that there are better games out there that deserve your attention more.

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2024-09-24 16:12

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