Thumper Review (Aerba)
This game is not what you think it is. It is not a rhythm game. It is an anti-rhythm game. It is designed to lure you into a false sense of steadiness and throw that away with sudden twists and turns which seemingly do not match the beats. Every level is made to correspond with that time signature. It will leave you thinking about any possible leads you can create with real music, and God willingly, your own "solos" should you dare thump down and stutter the entire melody itself.
I was a tiny disappointed with original expectations and only 9 levels, but it was an interesting twist. Unfortunately, many of the patterns must simply be memorized and have less to do with "rhythm" and reaction. Since the tribal drumbeats can throw you off the melody hard (especially level 9 which is my favorite) you may find the game actually easier without any audio, but of course that's a boring experience. Still, there is more to this game.
The joy of beat pounding over and over from successful blue notes repeatedly causing short frame pauses and large reverberations is felt in very few games. It is enough to put you in some kind of mild trance. It's like the notes you play and the background beating are two different rhythms but still work wonderfully, the same kind of syncopation you might get from your favorite Meshuggah song.
Finally, what's most intriguing but has absolutely no impact on the gameplay is the "lore". At first I couldn't figure out why I couldn't stop thinking about this game. Its parallels to Lovecraftian horrors really sell it for me, even though I don't care whatsoever for that genre. The visuals are "asymmetrical, shapeshifting creatures" and often times "frustratingly formless." And that is exactly what the music is. It is made of chaos, it is made to destroy you, not to comfort you, and you know in the final level that perhaps you have gone where you shouldn't have.
This game is a nightmare, and it's amazing.