While the Funko brand has always been an explicit love letter to popular culture in general, that has never been more true than inFunko Fusion, a co-op action-adventure title developed and published by 10:10 Games.Funko Fusionmelds original Funkos with its seminal adaptations of classic popular culture characters across media and aims to honor these fandoms.
Still, how this could look in a video game is far different from Funkos themselves sitting idly on collectors' shelves, especially when it comes toFunko Fusion’s narrative and translation of certain Funko staples. Game Rant spoke with 10:10 Games co-founder Arthur Parsons, as well as lead designer Wil Evans, about what players can expect out ofFunko Fusion’s story, gameplay, and overall world before they dive in.The following interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
Funko Fusion’s Gameplay and World is Inspired by a Wealth of Popular Culture
Q: Can you describe how the story and world progression works inFunko Fusion?
Evans:When the game starts, you have a choice of seven different worlds to choose from, each with five levels in it. Completing each level earns you a crown, and these crowns are used to unlock other worlds. The cost of unlocking each new world varies depending on how far along you are, but the player can choose to play any world in any order they like.
Additional crowns can be earned by completing puzzles and challenges in the levels that require the use of characters and mechanics you have unlocked by playing the game. You don’t necessarily have to complete a world to unlock another one, so everyone’s playthrough will be a little different. Completing the fifth level in each world drives the story further, finding out more about what’s going on, why Eddy is evil, and how he can be stopped.
Q: Can you talk about the narrative setting ofFunko Fusion? What was it like coming up with and working withFunko"lore"?
Parsons:Funko Fusionis actually set in Freddy Funko’s toy factory, the WonderWorks – it’s here that all the magic happens. There are multiple locations within the toy factory, and I don’t really want to spoil that for players. Needless to say, it was an absolute joy being able to bring Freddy, Eddy, and the supporting cast to life. Players should definitely make sure they interact with all the characters and pay attention to find outEddy’s backstory, which gets revealed as players progress.
Q: What was the IP selection process like when picking the 60 playable characters ofFunko Fusion?
Parsons:We had a huge amount of fun when picking the franchises and characters forFunko Fusion. We picked movies and TV shows that we were fans of, and also made sure to pick franchises that appealed to potential players from across the different age groupings.
Being able to throw in classics from the 1970s likeThe ThingandJaws, all the way through to the very current shows likeUmbrella Academy. We then also added in some extra surprises for players during development, which is why things likeFive Nights at Freddy’s,Invincible, andMega Manjoined the party. It’s a terrific mix of characters, all of which have been lovingly created in Funko Pop! form.
Evans:This sounds like it’d be super easy, but in fact it caused a tonne of arguments! There are some characters that obviously must be chosen, but so many of the IPs have amazing characters that it’s almost impossible to pick one over another. We all have favorites, deep cuts, and personal choices for various reasons, all while trying to predict what the fans will want.
You never want to disappoint anyone, but there’s a limit on how many we can do. However, we think the roster we ended on is a mix of all of those things, and there’s something in there for everyone!
Q: How did you approach the gameplay styles of each of these Funko Pops?
Evans:It really starts with understanding the character and trying to bring them to life as well as meeting player expectations. He-Man, for example, is known for being super strong, so if his melee attacks felt weak, it would not feel right.
On the other hand, we have to balance characters out so it’s fun to play as all of them. Some characters are good at dealing damage up close, others are masters of dealing it at range. All thecharacters in a party have strengths and weaknessescompared to others, but this also lets players find a character that’s right for their playstyle. Regardless of who you choose, all the characters are a blast to experience.
Funko Fusion’s Core Gameplay Loop Explained
Q: Can you describe the gameplay loop ofFunko Fusion, in broad strokes?
Parsons:This is a tricky one to describe because, when designing the game, we wanted the game to speak to multiple different play styles, so we didn’t sit in one tight spot or another. We want to ensure thatas many gamers as possible can playFunko Fusiontheir way. This influenced the decision to allow players to choose the order that they play the main worlds in, for example.
In terms of the gameplay loop, that is effectively—play through a world and unlock mechanics and characters to allow progression to other worlds. After the initial start to the game, players have the freedom to move to unlock other worlds before completing the ones they’ve started, and over time, they will end up with multiple mechanics, weapons, and soda buffs at their disposal, allowing multiple different ways of playing the content in the levels.
Effectively, the more that you play the game, the more tools at your disposal, the more hidden funplay you’re able to find and unlock. This will cater to completionist gamers, but also to those gamers that want an increased challenge. Likewise, wesupport players who may want to play as their favorite characters, so some character-specific mechanics can actually be used by any character if they find the secret wonder weapons.
Q: Can you talk about the larger puzzle philosophy ofFunko Fusion? What kinds of puzzles should players expect?
Evans:We knew at the outset that we wanted to challenge the player when designing the puzzles, but that they should not be frustrating. We also wanted to ensure that puzzles fit the flow of the levels they took place in. If a level features heavy combat, any puzzles shouldn’t be too time-consuming or difficult to work out, whereas if the player has more to think about, we made them more complex and cerebral.
We also attempt to ensure that the puzzles have some inherent logic to the world they exist in. That’s not to say just because you know the IP, you’ll know the answer immediately, but it might! When it came to designing funplay puzzles, which are thepuzzles in the game you come back to solvewith the characters and mechanics you’ve unlocked from other worlds, we wanted a scale of difficulty that challenged their knowledge of the game, using mechanics in new ways to solve the problem in front of them.
Q: How doesFunko Fusionapproach ranged vs. melee combat in the game, since these typically vary with different characters?
Evans:All characters have melee attacks and ranged attacks, and their weapons are often really cool things tied to them as a character like a speeding-ticket-firing gun inHot Fuzz. When it comes to ranged combat, some characters might have short-range, shotgun-style weapons, some slower-firing grenade launchers, which can decimate whole groups of enemies, and some fast-firing butlow-damage SMG-style weapons– and that’s just the tip of the iceberg!
All our characters have the ability to wail on enemies once they get close with melee weapons with jump slams and power attacks. We meld this all together with enemies in the game that can only be defeated by melee attacks, which have to be dizzied first with ranged attacks, so this forces the player to have to switch up the way they attack and play and keeps them on their toes.
How Crafting Works in Funko Fusion
Q: How does crafting at large work inFunko Fusion?
Evans:Moulding is our version of crafting. While many characters have inherent mechanics, many of our puzzles can only be solved via the use of gadgets. These can only be moulded by the player and are unlocked by finding the blueprints, which we call proto-parts, in each level. Moulding costs the player vinyl, which is ourgame currency collected from defeating enemies and destroying items in the world. As you progress, you unlock more and more gadgets, allowing you to complete more puzzles throughout the world.
However, gadgets are not the only things you can mould. Sodas give the player the ability to heal, as well as fun and interesting short-lived abilities such as super speed or invulnerability, as well as Wonder Weapons, which are awesome fun weapons the player can use to devastate enemies. These are all available once the player has found the proto-parts for them.
Q: It’s said that some characters have unique skills for puzzle-solving or finding secrets. Could you provide a couple of examples of what these unique skills might be?
Evans:Yes! Some characters have innate abilities that the player would expect them to have, and these are reflected in the game. Is someone blocking your way and won’t let you pass?Allison fromUmbrella Academycan rumor them and get them to move. Need to burn that red vinyl that’s stopping you from getting that collectible? Childs fromThe Thingcomes equipped with a flamethrower that can melt it. Every world has a character or gadget unique to them to discover and master.
Q: Is there a post-game after players have completed the story so that they can seek out hidden areas or unlocks they may have missed?
Parsons:Once the story is completed inFunko Fusion,there is so much more to discover, whether that is the secret cameo quests that span across the worlds, the hidden cameo levels, or the hidden secrets and unlockable hidden characters and variants. The game definitely has a huge amount to play and find and enjoy once the credits have rolled.
Evans:Yes, and I don’t want to spoil it too much, but once the credits have rolled, the story isn’t quite over and there’s still a lot more for the player to discover and do!
Q: Are there any distinct advantages/disadvantages of playing the game in co-op? What’s the general philosophy there?
Evans:Multiplayer is simply a great experience and lots of fun playing with your friends. We wanted the core of the game to be there. You’re playing the same levels, but we also wanted to offer new experiences and opportunities for fun to be had.
We scale the enemies to match the number of players, to keep it fun and challenging, and we introduce a new currency only available in multiplayer that can be used tounlock new skinswith different and challenging ways to earn it as you play with your friends. We reward the player if they complete the level as quickly as they can, and we reward the player if they take their time and be thorough, so however you and your friends play, there is something to enjoy from it.
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