Thumper Coming to Nintendo Switch and Xbox One

After Thumper released back in October, we've received many requests to bring it to Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. Today, we're happy to say Thumper will launch on both platforms this spring.

On Nintendo Switch, you'll thump on-the-go for the first time. Naturally, we'll fully utilize the fantastic HD rumble feature. You'll feel every pulsing hit, scrape, pound, and crash. We're calling it "rumble violence!"

On Xbox One, expect all the features and graphical quality of our other platforms. We'll have more to say about our Xbox version soon.

We'll be announcing the release dates for Switch and Xbox soon, but we plan to release both in Q2 2017. Of course, Thumper is still available on PS4, Steam, and Oculus.

Thumper Now Supports SteamVR and Oculus

Thumper has been called Game of the Year, one of the best rhythm games ever, and one the year's best VR games. And now you can play it on SteamVR and Oculus.

Today’s Steam update adds support for both HTC Vive and Oculus Rift via SteamVR. It includes Oculus SDK support as well. We’ve added basic support for both Oculus Touch and Vive controllers.

Thumper is also now available for Rift directly through Oculus Home.

Of course, you can still play all nine epic levels (including PLAY+ mode) in both traditional 2D and VR mode.

We’ll continue to fine tune our VR support for both headsets over the next couple weeks. We have more updates, including advanced video, control, and calibration settings on the way. Thanks for your support as we continue making Thumper the best game we can.

 

Thumper Update: PLAY +, PlayStation Pro, and more

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Thumper has been updated on Steam and PS4 with the new PLAY + mode. You will become the resplendent golden beetle. You’ll gain more points and scream through all nine levels faster than ever. But die once, and it’s GAME OVER.

If you’ve already beaten the game, PLAY + mode is the ultimate test of your thumping skill. If you’re new to the game, just beat Level 3 to unlock the new mode!

PlayStation Pro launches today and we’re excited to support it from day one. On PS4 Pro, Thumper's psychedelic hellscape shines in glorious native 4K at 60 FPS (with no upscaling). And with Pro and PS VR, high quality supersampling and anti-aliasing enhance the ominous immersion while maintaining the same rock solid 90 frames per second.

MORE UPDATES

Based on all your feedback, we've made multiple improvements that benefit PC, PS4, and PS VR gamers:

  • Improved audio mastering and better volume levels when using headphones (PS4)
  • In-game volume control (find it under Options > Audio)
  • Thumper starts up in VR mode if PS VR is connected and powered on (PS4)
  • Holding OPTIONS button resets PS VR tracking orientation (PS4)
  • Thumb relief: you can now use R1 in addition to (X) to thump
  • Quick restart: press L1 to restart from the current/previous checkpoint
  • Restart from previous checkpoint. Allows you to restart from the current checkpoint or the immediately previous one. If you quit the level or app, you lose the ability to restart from the previous checkpoint. This reduces frustration for players who want to grind out S-Ranks.
  • Press and hold (X) button to speed up death animation
  • Hold (X) button on score screen to speed up animation

We're still working on more updates, including A/V calibration and support for Oculus and Vive. Thanks for your patience as we continue to make Thumper the best game we can.

Let us know what you think about the latest update!

Thumper coming in October + Collector's Edition!

Back in 2009, we teamed up to make Thumper, our rhythm violence game. Today, we're excited to finally announce Thumper will debut in October!

You can already wishlist Thumper on Steam.

We’ve always wanted to release Thumper in style. Audio is a critical part of the game and a high-quality soundtrack is essential! So we couldn’t be more psyched to team up with the fine folks from iam8bit on our limited collector's edition.

It includes a game code (Steam or PS4) and a premium vinyl soundtrack with cover artwork designed by Robert Beatty. Robert’s music and art were a key inspiration for Thumper and we can’t wait to hold this beautifully designed package in our hands!

PRE-ORDER COLLECTOR' EDITION NOW

Check out a couple tracks from the soundtrack!

To be notified when the game comes out, sign up for our mailing list.

New Gameplay Trailer + PS VR Support

You might have seen our announcement on the PlayStation Blog, but today we're excited to unveil our latest "Rhythm Hell" gameplay trailer. It's the first time we've shown uncut, uninterrupted gameplay from one of Thumper's advanced levels. Let us know what you think!

We're also psyched to say Thumper will support PlayStation VR. Playing the game in VR feels incredible in ways we didn't expect.  We can't wait for you to try it. Of course, we're working hard to make both the 2D and VR modes as beautiful and intense as possible. The entire game will be playable in both 2D and VR.

We've already received questions about support for other VR platforms. Although we're only certain about PS VR right now, we'd like to support all platforms that make sense. Hopefully we'll have more good news to share soon!

Upcoming Thumper Events

On the road again!

IndieCade (Culver City, CA, Oct 23 - 25) Thumper is a Night Games selection and will also be playable in the PlayStation booth.

IGF China (Shanghai, China, Oct 25 - 26) Thumper is a finalist for the Independent Games Festival China.

Day of the Devs (San Francisco, CA, Nov 7) Play Thumper and lots of other special games for one very special evening in San Francisco.

G-STAR (Busan, Korea, Nov 12 - Nov 15) Thumper is part of the Busan Indie Connect Showcase -- the first time indie games will be prominently featured at Korea's biggest game show!

We'll announce one more really exciting event soon!

Thumper at Open Play Day

Thumper will be publicly playable this Thursday, December 4th at Open Play Day, in COEX (Korea World Trade Center), Seoul.  The game will be shown alongside 30 other games currently in development.  The event allows developers to play test their work and receive feedback from other developers and the public.  It's free, so come and support the Korean indie scene!  Here's a trailer for the event, it includes a sneak peak of Thumper gameplay.

Thumper featured on Dead End Thrills

Visit Dead End Thrills to see a new feature on Thumper.  It contains new hi-res screenshots, early concept work by Mat Brinkman, and an interview with Brian and me.  In the interview, we discuss our influences, goals, and the long process of creating Thumper.  It's the most in-depth look at the game yet.

Dead End Thrills has to be the most beautiful gaming site in the world and we're psyched to be featured -- a big thanks to Duncan from DET for putting it together!

Thumper Tech Talk at Korea Games Conference

Update: you can download the slides from my talk.  It will be hard to understand the content from the slides alone, but I'll try to find an audio or video recording and post it too.  My original plan was to talk about programming tools for small/mid-sized games, but I ended up talking a lot about engine design, the drawbacks of OOP, and time-management techniques.  But I think these topics are all related in the end.

Marc will speak at the Korea Games Conference this Wednesday, November 5th at 11:40am.  The conference is at the COEX Grand Ballroom in Gangnam, Seoul, and my talk is in room 102.  I'll talk about the tech behind Thumper and the lessons I've learned building our engine over the past five years.  와주세요!

Thumper at BitSummit

I'm in Kyoto, on the eve of BitSummit 2014.  It's this weekend (March 7th - 9th), so stop by the Kyoto International Exhibition Hall and be among the first to play Thumper.  Starting tomorrow, I'll post some pics from the event here and on our Twitter feed.  Brian and I are still scrambling to put our demo together, so I better get back to bug-fixing!

Is Thumper a "Music Game?"

We're asked that question often and there's not a simple answer.  It depends on what one means by "music game."   The label efficiently conveys some elements of our game, but it's potentially misleading and limiting too. Fortunately Dan Soldberg has skillfully navigated the increasingly complex waters of music-related gaming in an article over at Kill Screen.  Of course we're not the only developer exploring this space and this is a nice survey of some of the latest developments.  It also brings some focus and clarity to how we talk about the aesthetics of "music games."  Ultimately, that's far more important than genre labels or snappy marketing taglines.

The article includes a couple of quotes from us on Thumper.

Update! Dan has posted the full text of all the developer interviews on his blog.  It's interesting to read how these inspiring and adventurousdevelopers approach the same questions.  We're psyched to be featured alongside them.

Starting a New Year by Looking Back

It's 2014 and we're hard at work on Thumper.  Recently, the game received coverage from IndieStatik, The Guardian, IndieGames.com, and PC Gamer -- they've all mentioned Thumper as an indie game to look forward to in 2014. We've been developing Thumper for a long time, and we've done a lot of experimentation along the way.  To start the new year, we'll share some footage from our early prototypes.  Oftentimes game developers are shy about sharing this sort of thing for obvious marketing reasons.  Early prototypes usually look rough and you don't ever want your game to look bad.   Your game will change a lot during development and showing early versions can create false impressions or expectations.  But prototypes can be a fun and interesting insight into the creative process, so we're happy to share ours!

So, with the standard caveat that these videos do not represent the final gameplay, graphics, or audio of our game, here is footage from one of our first prototypes.  We developed a custom engine for Thumper and at this early stage, our renderer was limited to drawing solid lines.  That limitation led to a pretty cool vector art style.

Next, a slightly more developed prototype.  At this point, we were able to draw lines and solid color quads.  It was the pinnacle of my programmer artistry.  This prototype also shows our first experiments with path barriers and jumping.

Shorty after we made this build, I added support for drawing meshes, textures, and a basic lighting model to our engine.  So Brian (the Drool artist) was able to start developing our visual style and, sadly, my promising career as a programmer-artist ended.  We'll share more of our prototypes and concept art in the coming months, but if you want a better idea of were Thumper is headed, check out our teaser trailer.

Recent Coverage of the Debut Trailer

"...the demonic/cyberpunk rhythm/racing game of your dreams." -Kill Screen

"...it already looks gorgeous." - Wired

"The right reaction to watching [thumper] for the first time is to sit there, eyes wide and mouth open." - Indiestatic.com

"It's been too long since a good rhythm game stole my life." - PCGamesN

"Thumper Has Crazy Beetles for Miles" - Giant Bomb

"Thumper's fast pace and strange world caught our attention." - Pocket Gamer

DROOL HANNO APPENA PUBBLICATO UN TEASER CHE VA BEN OLTRE LE NOSTRE PIU’ VERDEE ASPETTATIVE!!!  - Gioca Giuè's Sunday Links

"Thumper features a sci-fi beetle on a fast track, dodging obstacles provided by the creepy-looking Crakhed." -Polygon

PC Gamer...Destructoid...Kill Screen Cheat Sheet...

Thanks for helping spread the word everyone.  It's been great to see all the reactions, comments and feedback.  Soon we'll be sharing more about the tech, gameplay, graphics, and audio of Thumper.  What are you most interested in hearing about next?  Let us know in the comments.

THUMPER Debut Trailer

Today, we're psyched to released the first THUMPER "Kill CRAKHED Teaser" trailer.  It contains early gameplay footage and a glimpse of CRAKHED.  Of course, THUMPER is still under development, so this does not represent final quality.