Fruity survivors-like Funguys Swarm is out today on consoles, and it's berry good fun

I cannot resist a Survivors-like, especially when said Survivors-like has an adorable, brightly-coloured theme. Forget vampires, demons and monsters: Funguys Swarm, out today on consoles and updating to version 1.0 on PC after a year in early access, has you battling against sentient fruits and vegetables. Don’t let that give you the idea that Funguys Swarm goes easy on you, however; this roguelike is every bit as tricky as its counterparts. These plants can kick serious butt.

Funguys Swarm gives you the option to turn off auto fire and auto aim, allowing you to play it as a traditional bullet hell shooter if you’d rather. I wouldn’t recommend it, though. Keep auto fire turned on and all you need to worry about is staying out of danger; your fingers will thank you.

To begin with, only one character and one weapon is available to you: a mushroom guy and the ability to throw berries as bullets. As you progress you’ll unlock more, with each character having their own unique ability. A water-based character has less health but a permanent regenerating shield, for example. You’ll quickly find your favourite, and you’ll no doubt have your preferred starting weapon, too. Berries are good for ranged attack, but the melon-shaped axe, which you unlock second, does much more damage if you’re brave enough to get up close and personal.

Of course, your starting weapon isn’t going to be all you have. Collect pips after defeating enemies and you’ll gain experience. Gain enough and you’ll level up, which grants you a new ability (or the level-up of an existing one). Along with new skills – everything from poisonous auras to mushrooms that circle you as you move are up for grabs here – you’ll also be able to equip passive abilities, like a faster cooldown, or a blanket upgrade to all weapon damage.

Funguys Swarm wouldn’t be a roguelike without the ability to unlock permanent upgrades either, would it? There are multiple types of currency that can all be used for different types of upgrades between runs. Water droplets can be spent on upgrading your character’s innate abilities, while shards can be spent on improving your starting weapons. There’s also a skill tree to unlock more powerful permanent abilities, like a free revive. An absolute gamechanger, I’ve found.

While this might not be quite as in-depth as the likes of Vampire Survivors – there are much fewer characters and weapons to unlock, for starters – there’s still plenty to get stuck into. With numerous levels to unlock, there’s hours upon hours of entertainment here, and with a vast amount of permanent upgrades to unlock, you always feel like you’re working towards something, even if your run doesn’t last very long.

Costing just £7.99, if you’re a fan of survivors-like games, ensure Funguys Swarm is on your wishlist. It’s available now on PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Switch 2 and PC.