Does Funko Fusion deliver a fun KO?
The Lego series has gone from strength to strength over the years, even though I personally feel they’re a little overblown since the early Star Wars and Indiana Jones entries. With the swathe of franchises they have links with, it’s no surprise that there are so many different games that have been released. Funko also have a lot of fingers in a lot of franchises though, and it seems they want a slice of the video game pie, and whilst Funko Fusion has a lot of charm, there are too many missteps to really recommend it.
The story, for what it’s worth, is that Funko Freddy has his magic crown stolen by his evil shadow Eddy. Parts of the crown shatter and fly off into different worlds, and it’s up to you to visit those worlds and retrieve the crown fragments. There are occasional cut scenes to fill in Eddy’s back story, but quite why I don’t know. I don’t think anyone was clamouring for deep Funko Pop lore.
Each world follows part of the story the franchise is known for though, and this is a bit more fun. You’ll be playing through the plots of seven different franchises, from Hot Fuzz, to He-Man. When it comes to plot, it was more fun to play through these brief pastiches of a series I was familiar with. It’s worth pointing out that players’ mileage may vary based on their familiarity with the source material. I had more fun playing through Hot Fuzz and Scott Pilgrim than Umbrella Academy simply because I have little knowledge of the latter. Most of the franchises are pretty well known though, so there should be something you know well enough.
Each world takes place across five-or-so levels that feature scenes from the movie or series you’re playing through. You’ll need to solve puzzles and fight through various enemies to complete objectives before fighting a boss in the final stage. This was a really mixed bag for so many reasons. Some of the worlds in Funko Fusion are put together in a fun way that makes interesting use of the source material, whilst others would be a complete slog. I liked how Hot Fuzz had you setting up UV cameras to find evidence that would unlock the next area, and Umbrella Academy using music to lead characters around. Scott Pilgrim was a chore though, being a series of bosses that just force you to complete the same task over and over to allow you to damage your enemy.
That repetition is the greatest issue with Funko Fusion. Some of the puzzles make quite creative use of the game’s mechanics, but they tend to get used over and over again. The combat is the real issue though. You’ll be fighting so many enemies that are pretty much the same but with a different skin. Sometimes they’re immune to ranged damage, sometimes you’ll have to destroy a shield before finishing them off, but you’ll always be shooting and hitting absolute hordes of cookie cutter enemies that in many cases respawn endlessly. I can’t count the number of times I was trying to solve a puzzle to find a collectible only to be blindsided by another bunch of foes that I’d have to fend off. It became tiresome very quickly.
The fact there are a swathe of different characters to play as should be a boon, but it doesn’t help ease the monotony all that much. Each world has four playable characters, with more to unlock through gameplay and discovering hidden secrets. Some of them have unique skills, like teleporting through walls or being able to smash certain objects, but beyond solving puzzles and returning to collect secrets, they all fall into a small handful of archetypes. Some of them move faster and have less health, some have a machine gun instead of a pistol, a couple are better suited to melee, but they all feel pretty much the same when it comes to minute to minute gameplay. You’ll find a character you like and defer to them whenever possible. I will give credit where it’s due though, as it’s quite fun to take Hot Fuzz’s Nicholas Angel up against Skeletor and other silly combinations.
With all that said though, there’s still something undeniably enjoyable about completing a new world and being able to take those characters back to previous ones to unlock new secrets. Umbrella Academy’s Number Five can go back and teleport to secret areas, whilst the Battlestar Galactica crew can activate switches with their blasters. I really enjoyed going back and finding secret worlds and hidden characters to unlock and play with. The first time I saw Voltron I think I squealed a little. These moments of nostalgia are a treat for nerds of a certain age, but it’s frustrating that the gameplay itself never changes all that much.
Age is something interesting to bring up, as I’m not entirely sure who Funko Fusion is aimed at. My kids love Funko Pops, and were quickly drawn to this game thanks to their inclusion along with the bright colours and fun theming. But all the franchises are all over the place in terms of who would get the references. Beyond that is the theming of some of the worlds. The Thing is wildly different to He-Man in terms of who it’s appropriate for. There’s violence on display in Umbrella Academy that simply wouldn’t feature in Scott Pilgrim. The tone is all over the place and hard to pin down. Playing this as an adult is fun enough, but I’d have to pick very carefully what my kids could watch me play or play for themselves.
Then there are the bugs. Characters I needed to speak to would be invisible. The music and sound would cut out for entire levels. I’d access an area that I couldn’t get out of. Mission objectives would not update or even appear for the wrong level. Inexplicable framerate drops. It’s pretty maddening as from a graphics and sound perspective, Funko Fusion looks quite polished, but once you start playing you’ll find all sorts of issues.
Funko Fusion is the epitome of an interesting idea with a fluffed execution. The game itself feels a bit one note, but going back and finding secrets with newly unlocked characters can be satisfying. It looks the part but doesn’t hold up from a technical standpoint. The franchises are interesting inclusions but underdeveloped. This isn’t to say I didn’t have any fun, but it’s fair to point out that a lot of the fun I had was sullied by frustrating game design choices. People who’ve absolutely cleaned out the Lego back catalogue could probably have some fun here, but they should be prepared for a less than polished experience in spite of the glossy coat.
Funko Fusion is available now on PC, Xbox, Nintendo Switch, and Playstation.
