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Marfusha Review – Surprisingly Relaxing Despite All the Machine Guns

Marfusha game screenshot, Close Quarters
Marfusha Review – Surprisingly Relaxing Despite All the Machine Guns
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Platforms: Windows PC, Steam

Game Name: Marfusha

Publisher: hinyari9

Developer: hinyari9

Genre: Action

Release Date: August 26th, 2021

Marfusha by hinyari9

Marfusha depicts a dystopian world where robots are attacking humans. It’s up to Marfusha to help defend the outer walls of the human settlement from attacking robots. With the help of her fellow soldiers and plenty of weapons, it’s a pretty easy job.

Marfusha game screenshot, Setup

Left, Left, Right, Right, Shoot

The gameplay is relatively simple. Move left, right and shoot anything that moves. The main goal of the game is to protect the wall from being breached. It’s a small area to move around in on a 2D plane, and you can shoot in any direction to kill things as fast as possible.

There are plenty of enemies, from mini-bosses to flying enemies. There is a nice variety of robots to destroy, each requiring their own approach…well, a slightly varied approach because there isn’t much strategy going on within the moment-to-moment gameplay.

The game does mix things up by offering purchasable upgrades after each wave, a number of different weapons, and defensive items like barricades and mines. These are all randomized, which adds some unpredictability to the game, but it’s all fairly basic stuff, nothing too complicated. I like that about the game. It gives Marfusha a more chill kind of vibe to it all, which I enjoyed. Just don’t expect a lot of strategy; this game leans more towards mindless action.

Marfusha game screenshot, Waves Gif

The game is simple, but I think it offers just enough with its upgrades to keeping things from feeling too repetitious. During my time with Marfusha, I was able to have an A.I.-controlled companion to help me shoot things and upgrade my stats for extra damage and increased reload speed. I also was a fan of the fast-firing submachine gun. There is a nice amount of upgrades to tailor how you play the game, which in my case usually involved a lot of focus on firing speed.

Short and Sweet

Luckily, the game ended right when I was about to max out most of my stats. I think in this regard Marfusha is paced really well and does not overstay its welcome, but it also offers a slightly more punishing Challenge Mode for those looking for something more taxing.

Overall, however, I feel like the game was a bit too easy. The challenge mode is more difficult, but the game’s Main Mode was not difficult at all. I think I only had to retry a stage four times, and that was it. But I think that’s really not the point of the game; if you’re looking for something more challenging, just jump straight into the aforementioned Challenge Mode. There are no retries, and it provides more of a “how long can you survive” affair.

Marfusha game screenshot, Circle Robot

The game opts for a cutesy anime style with tiny female characters wielding guns. It nails its style well and makes it feel more like a game based on an anime, thanks to its well-drawn and animated characters. Environments themselves are relatively sparse since there are only a handful of areas within the game. In this regard, I feel like Marfusha could have mixed up the environments a bit more to make things more visually interesting.

Music and sound effects are well-executed. Guns have a nice, loud punchy sound to them. Explosions have the right amount of oomph to them to make the moment-to-moment gameplay feel satisfying. The music consists of nice soft synth tunes to make things feel more laid back. There is an odd dichotomy here with the sound effects mixed in with softer music, but it fits the game surprisingly well.

Marfusha is a fun game to spend a couple hours with, and I liked the mindless action experience it offered. It’s a game I recommend to those looking for a more relaxing but still engaging game to pass the time.

Marfusha is available via Steam.

Check out the official trailer for Marfusha below: