One of my favorite VNs! It adds so much to the cast of F/SN by the daytime events, fleshing out (nearly) every character even more through fun and sweet events, but the nighttime is where this game really shines. Bazett and Avenger's story is my favorite thing in the series, and Bazett is one of my favorite characters ever. Really interesting dynamic between these two, and slowly piecing together how the events of Hollow Ataraxia are happening with them was incredible. If you liked F/SN, you'll definitely love this! It's an incredibly cathartic ending to truly wrap up the Fate/Stay Night universe, so i can't recommend it enough.

This was the coolest rhythm game ever for 1 set of levels. Thumper’s intense abstraction of visuals into gameplay is a masterwork, but unfortunately is not developed enough to deliver on the excitement of its foundation.

The sense that Thumper is a rhythm game is, I feel, a misnomer. Thumper has rhythm-like elements, but for the majority of its playtime, is not a rhythm game. To wit, you play as a beetle on rails that must press a button and flick the control stick to avoid obstacles. These obstacles stack on the rails ahead of you with consistent sound effects in such a way where, in time with the music, you can anticipate and react to obstacles before they appear on screen.

For the first world, this feels amazing. Elements are placed in a way where you can clearly see and hear what is coming, as it weans you off the visuals and lets you feel clever for swerving around unseeable bends. However, starting with the second world, this careful placement of elements to create a dynamic soundtrack with your inputs is lost. Obstacles clack onto the track in a cacophonous crash that overlaps and overwhelms the senses, eroding auditory premonition in favor of memory and visual reaction. Markers to tap do not fall on a beat, often placed just outside the range established by your intuition to flow. And this is when the tempo is still comprehensible - the game speeds up as the levels get harder, until it becomes the most visceral game of Simon Says ever.

I enjoy hard games if the goal seems fun and the mechanics fight fair. I love non-traditional rhythm games that attempt to do more than Guitar Hero or DDR. After I realized Thumper wasn’t interested in being a rhythm game so much as a memory game that occasionally provided auditory clues, my interest dropped fast. My first clue was the way the audio cut out for emphasis when you take damage or hit important “beats” - doing either ruins the timing of prediction if the sounds of your actions are supposed to coincide with the beats of the soundtrack. Of which to say, there is only building, moody synths of the type designed to put you on edge. The lack of melodies or refrains really disappointed me once I got past the first level and realized the games wasn’t going to build to or end on anything, musically.

In my rating system, 2 stars represent an average, C rank game. I respect the ambition behind Thumper, but don’t love what its doing to believe it understands its own greatness. There isn’t the variety or the depth to keep my interest in such a spartan, focused, arcade experience. It does feel great in the elements that exist, where success feels as visceral as failure. If you are looking for something for zone, flow, or zen, don’t let the discussion of it as a rhythm game dissuade you - I think arcade action game fans would appreciate it more.