If I told you about a game where you trained cute little pet monsters to fight other cute monsters, only Pokemon should come to mind. Unfortunately, due to Nintendo’s paralysis over the past year or two regarding their strategy for Facebook as a platform, Pokemon isn't available on Facebook. This is a real shame because clearly the game would translate over just wonderfully and introduce some good PvP and co-op options. Jumping on this opportunity is Tetris Online's Monster Fusion, where you play the role of a Monster Rancher and raise a group of adorable little beasts and improve their butt-kicking skills to fight various foes.

You begin Monster Fusion by being taught the basics of creating your Monsters and caring for them by Tina, your guide. Monsters are created in a Monster Gacha. As with so many other Facebook games, Monster Fusion has a two-tier currency system that includes gold, which is earned from completing quests and winning battles, and Monster Coins, which are the premium currency. Monster Coins are not at the time of this writing available for purchase as Tetris Online has just recently released the game. Quests in the game consist of Story, Job, and Battle Quests. Story Quests take you along the game's plot line where you learn more about Allastora, the universe where Monster Fusion takes place. Job Quests are similar to Mafia Wars “jobs” that have a progress bar. Battle Quests are specific fights your monsters must win to complete the quest at hand. Energy spent taking actions in many other social games are split into two categories in Monster Fusion: Quest Points and Battle Points. For battles, there is a matchmaking feature that will pair you up with another person who has monsters of a similar skill set as your own.

Taking pages right out of Pokemon, your monsters have a variety of attributes. Each monster is associated with one of five attribues: Earth, Air, Fire, Water, and Neutral. The first four have a “paper scissors rock” like effect on each other (water has an advantage over fire, which has an advantage over earth, etc.) Your monsters must be properly fed so their mood stays high, which affects their fighting abilities. They can also be taught “tricks” that can increase their attack or defense skills during a fight. Each has their own experience points that are gained from fighting. Your monsters can also be combined or “fused” and have one absorb the skills of another.

As far as I've played through, Monster Fusion looks like it has an interesting story line which could contain some interesting plot twists. The range of skill sets and types of monsters is rich. Combining that with the “fusion” features makes for a lot of variety. It’s anyone’s guess as to when or if Pokemon will ever appear on Facebook. So until then, give Monster Fusion a try!