Funko Fusionis a third-person, action-adventure crossover game that brings together numerous IPs from movies, TV, comics, and video games in a celebration of fandom. Developed by 10:10 Games,Funko Fusionenables players to play as 60+ characters from over 20 franchises in their re-created and universally recognizable Funko Pop! form. Indeed,Funko Fusion’s recent launch trailershowcased its mash-up of characters and worlds, from modern newcomers like Jordan Peele’sNopeto classic franchises likeJaws,The Thing,Masters of the Universe,and much more. With so many facets of popular culture represented, many players may be eager to know how 10:10 Games chose and created its playground of IPs inFunko Fusion.
Game Rant recently sat down with 10:10 Games co-founder Arthur Parsons, lead designer Wil Evans, animation director Andy Dolan, and lead character artist Sean Dudley to learn more about how the studio brought its chosen IPs and franchises together inFunko Fusion.They discussed what it was like to bring modern, classic, and debut franchises into the world ofFunko Fusion, how they chose various IPs, and how they aimed to make it the ultimate celebration of fandom.The following transcript has been edited for clarity and brevity.
Debut, Modern, and Classic Franchises in Funko Fusion
Q: What was it like bringing debut franchises to the gaming world like Jordan Peele’sNopefor the first time?
Evans:It meant a lot that these franchises were willing to trust us, and it made us work all that much harder to do them justice.
Parsons:This was a really exciting opportunity, and working with Jordan and his team at Monkeypaw was a joy. The care and love that they have for their movie is apparent, and they were incredibly collaborative and creative in their approach to working with us. The end result is a level that embodieseverything that makesNopeawesome, and we are really thankful to the team for trusting us to bringNope, Em, and OJ to life in Funko Pop! form.
Q: Did bringing modern franchises likeThe Walking Deadin work any different from classics likeXena: Warrior Princess?
Evans:In principle, no, because no matter how old or new, big or small. We treat every franchise the same, in that we give it as much respect as we can because we know what it is to be a fan of something. We know most kids might not have heard ofXena, but for those that have, it’s important we get all the elements right because, as fans ourselves, we know how much it means.
The Role And Influence Of Jurassic Games And Horror Franchises In Funko Fusion
Q: There’s been a long list ofJurassicgames released over the years. Did any of these directly influence how you incorporatedJurassic World?
Evans:While many of those games were great, they had no influence on our design. We started with what was great about the films, and how we could fit that with our game.
Parsons:We always approach working with beloved franchises the same way. We digest the content, pour over it, and then look to pick out the key moments we think that players will want to see in the game, whether those are action sequences to live out in the game or key moments that we can turn on their heads for added humor, but the inspiration and influences for what we do is always the original source material.
Q: There are multiple horror franchises represented inFunko Fusion. What was the general approach of taking those horror elements and translating them into a more “friendly” game?
Dolan:There is an element of that just by bringing them into the Funko world. They look cuter than perhaps they would otherwise with their big heads etc. But I like to think that, as far as they’re concerned, they’re still just as evil, violent, or nasty, it’s just that they now exist in a Funko world that has its own rules.
Evans:Well, telling the story withFunko Pop!sinstantly tones things down a touch; it’s an instant leveler, and a head with spider legs is a fun mix of scary and hilarious. But we’ve still tried to lean into it, as the horror made those films so great. In The Thing, we have really tried to evoke the atmosphere and suspense and terror you felt watching it. What we can do as a game is punctuate those moments with action to relieve the player, so it’s a careful balance.
Team Fortress 2, Five Nights At Freddy’s, and Knight Rider in Fusion Fusion
Q: There are only a couple of video game franchises represented (Team Fortress 2andFive Nights At Freddy’s). Was it a deliberate choice to focus on comics/movies/TV or is there another reason why there aren’t more video game IPs inFunko Fusion?
Parsons:The choice of IPs that are in the game was a very deliberate choice, and we put together what we think is an incredible and diverse mix of genres and styles. We’ve tried to make a fandom playground for players to enjoy, where there are franchises that will draw people in to play, but also franchises that people will end up coming to love that they may never have previously experienced. When it comes tovideo game franchises, we wanted to verify we included a few that our players would really engage with, hence bringing inFNAF, as well asMega Man. The mix is all about surprise for our players, and hopefully, when people experience the game they’ll love the end result.
Q:Knight Riderhasn’t seen any kind of major media release since the TV series in 2009 (although a reboot was announced in 2016). A lot of younger players may have not have heard of IPs like this, so forKnight Riderand similar cases, how does the game onboard newer fans with classic IPs?
Parsons:When it comes to some of the moreclassic franchisesin the game, we treat all of them the same way, in that, whether they are main world, cameo level or cameo quest, they get the love and attention they deserve. We’ve tried to really draw out the personality of the characters, and also what makes those franchises so popular with their fanbases, and we hope that what we’ve done will introduce some franchises to entirely new fanbases.Funko Fusionis a celebration of fandom, and a celebration of all of these incredible IPs, we’ve done our best to bring them to life in Funko Pop! form, and hopefully enough to make people then want to follow up and go and watch the TV shows or movies they are from.
Community Requested IPs and Re-Creating IPs in Funko Fusion
Q: Have there been any surprising or standout IPs/characters requested by the community so far?
Evans:Lots, and we always love the community being vocal about what they want to see, because most of the time, we totally agree!
Parsons:As we’ve revealed content for the game in the run-up to launch, it’s been incredible to see how each different fan base reacts to the content we have. Whether it is something more classic or something that is right up-to-date, the consistent theme is that fans of these franchises care passionately about them, and for us that is all the inspiration we need to make sure we do each and every one of them justice. We are always listening to our community, and we can’t wait to hear from people once the game launches.
Q: What was the process like when taking one of these IPs and translating them into one ofFunko Fusion’s worlds?
Dolan:A lot of fun. Firstly, more often than not, we were already fans of the IP. Or there would be someone in the office that would be a fan. We would revisit the movies and shows and pick out key moments and characteristics. We identify the must-have moments for the cutscenes that we need to recreate and think about how we can make it funnier whilst still telling the story in a short space of time. Or as animators, we analyze how a character walks or stands, etc., and try and capture as much of that as we can into the characters – even when they’re handling enormously oversized and whacky weapons.
Dudley: From a character side, it’s great to turn these beloved characters from different franchises into game form. Funko has such a massive range of Pops which we’ve brought to life in the game, but it was especially great to work on licenses that have never been made in Funko form before, such asThe ThingandHot Fuzz. Funko has a unique style, and we take references from the franchises and recreate them as true to the Funko styling as if they were all being made into physical products.
Evans: This is always one of the hardest parts of designing the worlds, especially as a fan, because you are so desperate to do the franchise justice. But as a designer, you have to be aware that ultimately this is a game, and sometimes one might need to sacrifice for the other. The skill is blending the two, so both sides work as well as they can together. It’s fun to play, but also respectful to the source material.
Q: Were there any IPs you wanted to include but could not for whatever reason?
Parsons:This is a question I’ve been asked a few times during the development ofFunko Fusion, and you’d think that there would be things that we wanted and couldn’t get, but everything that we wanted to get into the game back at its conception has made it in, and then more too. It’s been an amazing journey with our partners, and we couldn’t be more grateful for their creative input and the trust they’ve placed in us to bring their characters and worlds to life. We even managed to getColonel Sandersinto the game, and that was on my list in week one over three years ago.
Choosing Iconic Moments for Funko Fusion
Q: How challenging was it to decide what iconic moments to include in the game and also in recreating those in game format?
Evans:The challenge is in picking the perfect moment in franchises that often have tonnes of things you could pick! The key is finding those moments that are not only iconic, but that will fit the game you’re making so they’re awesome fun to play. As a designer, seeing the moments from a franchise you love brought to life by the team around you is one of the best things about the job.
Q: At the same time,Funko Fusioninvolves taking those licenses and putting them all together. Can you discuss the challenges associated with working with 20+ licenses and important brands?
Parsons:Working with a single franchise can definitely be a challenge, so you can imagine working with over 20, from a broad spectrum of TV, movie, gaming, and comics would be even more of a challenge. However, we’ve had the opportunity withFunko Fusionto blend these very different IPs together into a cohesive experience that not only celebrates the original source material, but also has its own distinct style and voice. This is down to our previous experiences of working on the world’s biggest franchises, the incredible partners we’ve had on the journey, our brilliantly creative development team, and importantly the Funko lens that we have used to pull everything together. What should on paper have been a challenge and a struggle has actually been a joyful and creative adventure.
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