Highlights
- Funko Fusion surprises with adult themes like decapitations and blood spurts, separating it from LEGO games for older gamers.
- With a roster including Chucky, Jurassic Park, and Scott Pilgrim characters, Funko Fusion offers a gruesome smorgasbord of IPs.
- The game’s adult swim-styled humor and darker tone create a different, fiercer perspective for Funko fans and collectors.
Funko Pops! have dominated the pop culture collectibles field for over a decade, releasing beady-eyed vinyl figure characters from movies, video games, and comic book franchises, like titans Marvel and DC. When I first discovered Warhammer as a 10-year-old, I was disappointed to find out The Lord of the Rings models I had ogled in White Dwarf were actually the size of your thumb, when I had expected a girthy, detailed 4-ich-or-so figure. Luckily, Funko has filled the void left behind by that bummer by offering an overwhelming catalog full of vibrant, aesthetically pleasing miniatures. Now, there’s a video game on the way to bring these creations to life.
Funko Fusion’s reveal trailer debuted just last month, confirming the third-person, action-adventure title would offer a roster of characters from a host of franchises, including The Walking Dead, Five Nights at Freddy’s, The Mummy, and Masters of the Universe. Set to release on all current-gen platforms, the Funko-themed chaos promised single-player and up to four-player co-op fun battling foes in IP-themed environments. This premise initially got labeled a LEGO-inspired dud on my part, until the horror elements and gore changed my mind.
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Less LEGO, More Adult Swim
LEGO has made an impressive dent in its video games portfolio, transforming the likes of Batman, the Avengers, and the Star Wars and Harry Potter franchises into blockade form. Accompanied by a light-hearted and often humorous tone, there’s no doubt these alternate series are popular, but endeavoring as a LEGO-fied hero has never appealed to me. The silly vibe doesn’t match my wavelength most of the time, and even though I indulge in building LEGO often, the games feel a touch too childish for my liking. Therefore, when Funko Fusion was announced, I cast it aside as something similar but with Funkos. However, I may have jumped the gun too early.
What surprised me most about the reveal trailer from 10:10 Games, was the amount of decapitations, blood spurts, and mutated B-movie-styled creatures on offer – the latter leaning into the game’s inclusion of The Thing. Rick O’Connell sweated blood after being eaten alive by scarabs, multiple enemies were getting their heads blown off by shotguns, mangled Funko bodies were lying on roads, and parasitical monsters oozed green gunk and flaunted their toothy-deformed heads all within a 1 minute 44 second-trailer. It’s clear Funko Fusion has found an edge to separate it from LEGO, and therefore, appeal to an older audience, i.e myself.
…the amount of decapitations, blood spurts, and mutated B-movie-styled creatures on offer…it’s clear Funko Fusion has found an edge to separate it from LEGO, and therefore, appeal to an older audience.
Another element that further removed Funko Fusion from the infantile (in my eyes) LEGO games was the adult swim-styled humor that boomed from the chilling but comical narration bellowed by the main antagonist. Similar to Adult Swim – a brand of Cartoon Network – shows such as Samurai Jack and Rick and Morty, and even the bite of South Park, it’s clear this Funko escapade was hellbent on not taking itself too seriously and aims to pack as much fun, chaos, and gruesome deaths into gameplay as possible. From the blatant hyperbole that’ll flavor the narrative to the dry humor of Hot Fuzz, the game’s formula may turn out to be a genius fusion of its own.
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LEGO merges with Red Dead Redemption 2 in this fantastic animation scene between John and Uncle.
A Gruesome IP Smörgåsbord
In contrast to LEGO games, Funko Fusion isn’t restricted to one IP character roster, and merging the likes of Chucky, with the dinosaurs from Jurassic Park and the musicians of Scott Pilgrim vs. the World into one all-out brawl is an additional perk. Not only does this satisfy the masses, but it also creates recognizable environments, scenarios, and character patterns from popular franchises that will only add to the experience for fans. Leaning into the grisly side, there are several horror themes present through zombie-like mutations, supernatural possessions, good, old-fashioned maulings by sharks (Jaws), and insta-kills from explosions. By adding a darker tone to the story and encounters, Funko Fusion offers gamers and collectors alike to view the brand from a different, fiercer perspective than its usual PG spotlight.
By adding a darker tone to the narrative and encounters, Funko Fusion offers gamers and collectors alike to view the brand from a different, fiercer perspective than its usual PG spotlight.
As a Funko collector and horror fan, injecting the upcoming action adventure with adult themes was the most I could hope for from an on-brand game. Funko Fusion certainly had the potential to be a throwaway cash grab, but with the various themes, nostalgic environments, and thrilling character deaths on offer, this could be an entertaining, save-the-earth endeavor to remember. However, there may be a few disgruntled parents who must explain to their 10-year-olds why they can’t play the friendly little Funko game.
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