A lot of surprising developments have happened aroundTeam Fortress 2recently, with the game still managing to find itself in the public eye almost 20 years on from its initial release. Despite the game itself receiving a lot of vocal backlash from its community over the lack of new content it has received in recent years, news recently broke that a crossover is set to happen between the title and the upcoming action adventure gameFunko Fusion.
This surprising crossover will see some of the iconic in-game classes ofTeam Fortress 2be playable inFunko Fusion, which is set for a release date of September 13. While this might have been positive news under normal circumstances, the severe problems thatTeam Fortress 2has been facing for years and the lack of real response from Valve has made its collaboration withFunko Fusiona point of valid criticism from some circles of players.
Team Fortress 2’s Funko Fusion Collaboration Has Come At a Very Contentious Time
As the name suggests, the upcomingFunko Fusionis a video game based on Funko Pop collectible figures, with the title having access to a huge range of IPs across gaming, TV, and film as a result. Players will be able to play as different characters across a range of story experiences and locations, with many characters having unique skills and abilities relevant to the franchises that they belong to.
The confirmed franchise crossovers forFunko Fusionalready include the likes ofJaws,Invincible, andThe Walking Dead, but not many were expecting the recent news thatTeam Fortress 2characters will also be available. These figures will be accessed as a free in-game add-on for players who purchaseFunko Fusionthrough Steam, with theScout, Heavy, Engineer, and Medic classes being a part of the crossover.
Team Fortress 2’s Bots and Content Issues Are Too Large To Ignore
A brief trailer for the crossover suggests that this crossover will also come withTF2-inspired maps, with each class possessing their stock weapons fromTeam Fortress 2that can then be used inFunko Fusion. One of the main sources of criticism around this collaboration relates to the significantlack of original content thatTeam Fortress 2has received in recent years; it’s been close to seven years since the game last received a dedicated major update.
These issues around in-game content have only been compounded byTeam Fortress 2’s devastating bot problem, which has seen aimbot-equipped bot accounts ruin the vast majority ofTF2casual matches since around 2019. TheTF2community has remained remarkably strong despite these issues, with a recentpetition for Valve to addressTeam Fortress 2’s issues reaching close to 350,000 signatures.
In all fairness,Valve has finally taken some measures to addressTeam Fortress 2’s bot problemin recent weeks, with a wave of consistent Steam bans against bot hosters seemingly making a dent in the issue. This has definitely softened the blow of the news regardingTeam Fortress 2’sFunko Fusioncollaboration, but the game’s bot problem is still far from being completely fixed.
Regardless of any improvements toTF2’s bot issue, it is clear why so many fans are disheartened at the game being a source of content forFunko FusionwhenTF2itself has not received direct content support from Valve in so long. While a lot of contention currently exists around theTF2andFunko Fusioncollab, Valve’s recent actions againstTeam Fortress 2’s bot hosts is hopefully a sign of much more support in the near future, potentially even putting a positive spin on the upcoming crossover.
Team Fortress 2
WHERE TO PLAY
One of the most popular online action games of all time, Team Fortress 2 delivers constant free updates—new game modes, maps, equipment and, most importantly, hats. Nine distinct classes provide a broad range of tactical abilities and personalities, and lend themselves to a variety of player skills.Detailed training and offline practice modes will help you hone your skills before jumping into one of TF2’s many game modes, including Capture the Flag, Control Point, Payload, Arena, King of the Hill and more.Make a character your own:There are hundreds of weapons, hats and more to collect, craft, buy and trade. Tweak your favorite class to suit your gameplay style and personal taste. You don’t need to pay to win—virtually all of the items in the Mann Co. Store can also be found in-game.
