Rhythm

5Aug

By PaulNo Comments

ROCKBEASTS – PC Preview

Ever wanted to manage a talented yet unorganised and volatile 90s rock band? Good news! Now you can, with ROCKBEASTS from Lichthund and Team17. This is an upcoming (2026) narrative management-sim set in a fictional world of anthropomorphic animals. Today I'm chucking out the PC version, which you can Wishlist on Steam here. Video Games Killed The Radio Star The game opens on a flash forward to 2009, where a couple of band members, Paz and Vernon, are being interviewed on the radio. They're in the build up to performing at the 'Aid The World' concert. The radio host, Iggy Pup (voiced by actual Iggy Pop), asks them if they always knew they would make it big. Apparently, the band were on the brink of breaking up back in 1993 when they decided they needed a manager to help them keep things i...

Maestro Star Wars Duel of the Fates DLC – Quest 3 Review

8Jul

By Stuart1 Comment

VR Reviews

Maestro Star Wars Duel of the Fates DLC – Quest 3 Review

Do you remember that time when I said that it would be great if Double Jack released a John Williams DLC for Maestro? I mentioned it in the Doom Bound DLC article. Well, fast-forward a couple of months and as if by magic, we now have a Maestro Star Wars Duel of the Fates DLC. Granted it's only one track, but boy oh boy was I excited to play. Feel The Force If you haven't read my first article about Maestro, then go and check it out here. Now, I'll be entirely honest with you, this DLC got the Platinum Award. I know I should really have made you wait till the end. It's Star Wars, though, and anyone who knows me knows I have an incredibly large soft spot for Star Wars. Gameplay The Maestro Star Wars Duel of the Fates DLC may only contain one track, Duel of the Fates by John Williams,...

Rift of the NecroDancer: Hatsune Miku DLC – PC Review

26Jun

By Rowen CameronNo Comments

PC Reviews

Rift of the NecroDancer: Hatsune Miku DLC – PC Review

As Thumb Culture’s resident NecroDancer fanatic—Rift gained a TC Gold Award from me!—my eyes immediately lit up at the announcement of more new music packs. Celeste and Pizza Tower tracks got the Rift treatment in previous packs, as well as some Super Meat Boy tracks and Crypt of the NecroDancer favourites for free (cue many squees from me!). Now Cadence is back to conquer even more rifts, this time with an old friend who is no stranger to NecroDancer DLC. Virtual pop star and Vocaloid legend Hatsune Miku joins the fray with 6 new tracks to sharpen your rhythm skills and bop till you drop. Miku Miku Beam! Admittedly, despite being familiar with her, my only experience of Miku songs is through the Crypt DLC. So naturally, it stands to reason that I hear more of her virtual vocals through...

25Apr

By StuartNo Comments

VR Reviews

Beatable – Quest 3 Review

You may have heard of XR Games. You may even be familiar with their work—Zombieland VR: Headshot Fever, Jurassic World Aftermath, even ForeVR Cornhole to name a few. Now, however, they venture into rhythm games with Beatable. Released on the Quest at the start of April, we were lucky enough to get some hands-on time. Literally. Un-BEATABLE Put down your controllers, get those hands warmed up, it's time to start tapping your desk! Although please remember to be considerate of your neighbours. This game gets rowdy. Gameplay When you first fire up Beatable you get the option to play through a very brief tutorial. It's worth it. The game isn't rich in depth when it comes to what you need to do, but does have a massive learning curve. Thankfully, tapping on the desk is something I do regula...

10Apr

By StuartNo Comments

VR Reviews

Maestro Doom Bound DLC – Quest 3 Review

Ok, so it's no secret that I adore Maestro, the orchestral rhythm game developed by Double Jack with help from development partner Wild Sheep Studio. We covered the main game back when it released in October last year. Giving it the TC Platinum Award in the process. We then covered the Secret Sorcery DLC pack as well. Handing out another TC Platinum Award. Can you guess where this article is going to end? Like a trip to Mount Doom it'll end with something shiny. I present the Doom Bound DLC to you! Join Us In Kings Landing So just what is new in the Doom Bound DLC? Read on to find out. And when you're done head to the Meta Store to pick it up. Gameplay Starting up Maestro again is like coming home to a familiar face. This time though, it was to sample the incredible music of The Lord o...

9Apr

By StuartNo Comments

PC Reviews

Game Over A Musical RPG?? – PC Review

You may be reading the title and wondering just what this is. A Musical RPG, I hear you ask. Why yes, that is indeed the title, Game Over A Musical RPG??. Releasing on 11 April on Steam the game is developed and published by solo dev Jake Houston. This might just become your new favourite rhythm game. That's right, RPG now stands for Rhythm Playing Game! The Rhythm Might Just Get You I considered myself quite a musical person. However, once playing through this, I knew that I might have bitten off more than I could chew. I pressed on and managed to get somewhere. Let's go and check out more of the game. Gameplay Having been developed over a 8 year period, Game Over A Musical RPG?? has a lot of gameplay to it. The first thing that I found incredibly impressive was the use of sound. I kn...

5 Rift of the NecroDancer Tracks You’ll Have On Repeat

18Mar

By Rowen CameronNo Comments

Features

5 Rift of the NecroDancer Tracks You’ll Have On Repeat

It’s been just over a month since Cadence and friends were sucked into the modern world in a blaze of musical glory and I'm still not quite over it. Rift of the NecroDancer brought the best of Crypt of the NecroDancer and a Guitar Hero-like mechanic today and mixed it all up with a first-class roster of composers, because—in the words of Raul Julia’s M. Bison—of course! Danny Baranowsky assembled the best of best of musical talent, both Crypt mainstays and newcomers, and got them to work their magic on the soundtrack. And let’s just say, you’ll be hard-pressed to get it out of your head! A soundtrack like this makes choosing highlights a mammoth task, but if you’re playing this game, a challenge is par for the course. So, here are five of my favourite tracks I’ve been listening to on re...

3Feb

By Rowen Cameron1 Comment

PC Reviews

Rift of the NecroDancer – PC Review

9 years after their critically acclaimed beat-busting dungeon delver, Brace Yourself Games teams up with Tic Toc Games and returns with a sequel that puts a new spin on a familiar mechanic, NecroDancer style. And here I am, an avid fan. Let’s rock! Rift of the NecroDancer fully leans into the rhythm genre and transports Cadence and co to a strange new world: ours. After dispatching a strange purple slime, crypt explorer Cadence is sucked into a strange rift which drops her into the present day. She soon discovers she’s not the only one mysteriously jettisoned and now working a day job, not to mention more strange rifts opening and turning regular folk into monsters from the Crypt. Using teamwork and sick guitar skills, Cadence and her friends must get to the bottom of this otherworldly phe...

21Jan

By StuartNo Comments

Switch Reviews

Let’s Sing 2025 – Switch Review

Released back in November, Let's Sing 2025 has brought karaoke to wherever you are. Developed by Voxler, Published by Plaion and released on pretty much every console out. We were lucky enough to get sent a press box that contained some awesome goodies, thanks again Plaion! Of course the bit we were most interested in was the game itself, oh, and the microphones of course. Tone Deaf or Pitch Challenged? Do you have a favourite karaoke track? The smallest member of the TC Mini Crew begged us to do Sweet Caroline. Not sure what that is all about, but we went with it! Although heads up, if you're looking to play this with small children, the official age rating on this game is 12. This is mainly down to the large catalogue of songs available to you, especially with the VIP Pass, but alwa...

Maestro Secret Sorcery Pack – Quest 3 Review

17Dec

By StuartNo Comments

VR Reviews

Maestro Secret Sorcery Pack – Quest 3 Review

Regular Thumb Culture readers and VR gamers may well remember that back in October I reviewed a little VR a rhythm game called Maestro. Which you can handily read here. Well the developers Double Jack are back with the Maestro Secret Sorcery Pack. An add on pack for Maestro with five new spell bounding orchestral pieces for you to conduct. The Maestro Secret Sorcery Pack is now available on the Meta Horizon Store for £6.99. Handel With Care Before you can play this pack you'll need to pick up the base Maestro game. And good news for you it is currently discounted to £15.99. Or pick up the Bundle for £19.99. But hurry, these offers are only available until 7th January, 2025. Now onto the review! Gameplay The Maestro Secret Sorcery Pack is the first add on pack from Double Jack. The ...