It has been almost seven years since Valve released a major update to their iconic team-based first-person shooter Team Fortress 2.
If you were still hoping Valve might appease its dedicated fanbase or develop a sequel to the 2007 classic, recent leaks have dashed those hopes. Valve is instead working on an entirely new 6v6 team-based hero shooter with mundane and inclusive character designs.
Valve has now crushed any chance of a large-scale update, a sequel, or any resolution to the rampant botting problem that TF2 has suffered from over the past months.
Despite widespread criticism from its devoted players, which has plunged Team Fortress 2 into the “Overwhelmingly Negative” review bracket with only 16% positive reception from 45,000 Steam reviews over the past month, Valve continues to neglect the nearly two-decade-old game and refuses to address its botting crisis.
Instead, Valve has opted to leverage the franchise’s name and likeness as a DLC bonus for Funko Fusion, set to launch on September 13th.
Funko Pops have become a popular trend, although they’re just low-quality, disfigured vinyl trash that have proliferated Western markets, appealing to feminized collectors who are willing to spend on these mini figures representing characters from a wide array of movies, TV shows, and video games.
Enter Funko Fusion, a game that nobody particularly asked for, featuring commercial tie-in characters and themes based on Funko Pop figures. This action-adventure game, developed by 10:10 Games, includes characters from franchises like Five Nights at Freddy’s and Back to the Future.
Players navigate through worlds inspired by these pop culture franchises. Think of it as a brand-licensed LEGO game adaptation but of a much lower quality and featuring unattractive plastic figures.
The last major content update for Team Fortress 2, the “Jungle Inferno” update released back in October 2017, over 2,400 days ago. Instead of putting in minimal effort to update Team Fortress 2 or developing a proper sequel at any point in time since 2007, Valve has opted to neglect the franchise while profiteering off in-game microtransactional market sales.
And now they’re whoring out the TF2 brand in Funko Fusion as free downloadable content, effectively leveraging the game’s name for a different project entirely.
Hilariously enough, the TF2 collaboration with Funko Fusion only includes renditions of the Heavy, Scout, Medic, and Engineer. There is no mention of other prominent characters like the Spy, Demoman, Pyro, or Sniper in the Steam store listing or the trailer.
Avid fans of Team Fortress 2 are watching their beloved game die before their eyes, with Valve deliberately neglecting the game and refusing to handle the botting epidemic. Meanwhile, they take a fat paycheck to feature some of the game’s characters in a low-rate video game whose entire purpose revolves around selling you nostalgia and popular franchises wrapped in the horrible aesthetic of a minifigure.
