Superfuse (Early Access)

Superfuse was provided by Raw Fury for review. Thank you!

Superfuse is a hack'n'slash ARPG taking place in a comic-book-styled world. Choose your class, level up, get new gear, and embark on a colorful journey in a sci-fi world by yourself or with up to 3 friends in offline or online modes. While inspired by Diablo 2, this ARPG has a unique twist with its fuse system where you are able to fine-tune your skills with unique buffs and changes. This system dramatically affect each skill, modifying it to look, feel, and react differently. Power through the world, level up, customize your skills, and be the hero you were destined to be.

When I first saw Superfuse, I was hooked by the concept. An ARPG that's styled like a comic book with a system to modify your skills to your heart's content sounds fantastic. After playing the game, I can say that this game has a TON of potential, but has some issues that hold it back. For the good, the aesthetic is a fantastic mix with this style of game and the fuse system to modify your skills in different ways is so cool.

Unfortunately, the game has its faults that make it a hard one to fully recommend just yet. With a lack of content, loot scaling issues, and bugs make the experience feel more like a tech demo. While this is Early Access and could be corrected, little to no communication from the developers from add in a little uncertainty to the mix. According to [Raw Fury] Asteyni from the official Superfuse discord server, the devs are hard at work through this silence, but there isn't much news to share yet.

Overall, Superfuse does have a ton of potential and I can really see it being a great ARPG that could really outpace others in the space. The fantastic visuals paired with the fuse system can lead to some great moments that feel unique and enjoyable. As of right now though, it does feel lacking and a time-investment into something that isn't guaranteed to grow. If you truly enjoy games like this, it may be a risk worth taking, though it might not be a fun time yet on the Steam Deck.

Superfuse - Steam Deck Performance

Superfuse is another game where I wish we had half stars here. The game is technically playable, but is it comfortably playable yet? No, I wouldn't say it is. When it comes to performance, 30 FPS is going to be where to go. Trying for anything higher, even at low settings, can barely scratch 40 FPS at 21W and still drops below to 34 FPS.

When capped to 30, the game is more stable, but still dips below to 28-29 at some points and in combat. The drops don't make as much an impact though, but it still happens. Combine this with a TDP limit of 9 and some increases to quality settings to get around 12W - 14W average battery drain.

The game supports cloud saves and 16:10 resolutions so the entire screen is filled, but quite possibly the biggest issue plaguing the game on the Steam Deck right now is the lack of controller support.

No Controller Support for This Hero

While some games can be decently modified with Steam Input, Superfuse is a bit harder to crack. The reliance on the mouse and precise clicking makes using the trackpad not only a necessity, but a bit of a nuisance at times. I decided to use Jazneo's "steam deck" community layout for my playthrough. It does help a decent amount by mapping the healing items to the left touchpad and most important menus to the D-Pad, but it still has its shortcomings.

The R5 button was originally the control key, but I changed it to M to access missions easier.

Even with these changes, the new controls still feel clunky. This makes sense due to the nature of the game and no official support, but it becomes borderline unplayable at times when trying to use certain skills.

Conclusion

Superfuse is an incredible concept with a gorgeous aesthetic that has so much potential with its fuse system and overall direction. Unfortunately, even for an early access game, it feels like there is little content and definitely needs some overhauls to its loot scaling. There's a lot of work to be done here, but the basis behind the game is solid and has so much potential. It does have its issues on the Steam Deck, but I want to have faith these will be addressed so we can play the game once the core behind it has been realized fully!

Since the game is in early access, the performance and content is subject to change. We will be following the game and updating our review accordingly.

Our review is based on the PC version of this game.

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