Thrasher Review – Pulsating VR Action

Most of the time, single-player games on VR platforms can feel quite structurally restrictive. If you’re going down the narrative-based route, you’re pretty much limited to a first-person viewpoint, pigeonholed into either action or exploration. Finding a way to actually stand out in an inherently niche part of gaming is no easy feat.

Thrasher, the latest game from Thumper developer Puddle, manages to wildly subvert standard VR game expectations. Its gameplay is fluid and challenging, with a visual design quite unlike anything else I’ve played before. If your VR library is lacking something a bit whimsical and singular, look no further than Thrasher.

You control a celestial-style ‘space eel’ that starts off small in each stage and gradually gets larger as you complete levels. Using just one of the controllers, you tilt to angle the eel’s movement, avoiding obstacles and going through objective markers. It sounds simple in concept, but the focus is on clearing each stage as fast as you can. Hitting pesky red obstacles will deduct a few seconds from your time, which is displayed at the end of each stage and in global leaderboards.

Thrasher is one of those games that really sucks you in and very quickly orients you to its gameplay loop. You’ll start off thinking it’s quite easy – just moving an eel with motion controls towards circular objective zones – but it very methodically ups the difficulty. You’ll soon encounter rotating obstacles that seem to move without rhyme or reason, a screen filled with dangers, and even some boss battles.

The simple control scheme is a bit of a false flag because it’s much more difficult than waving your controller aloft like a wand. Your eel doesn’t move exactly in tandem with the flick of your wrist, instead floating slightly – something you need to account for when slaloming through obstacles. It’s not mapped precisely to your movement, which is a bold creative decision that may confuse beginners, but soon becomes just another layer of the challenge.

Speaking of boss battles, these multi-layered fights are epic when they emerge, with the thrilling, oozing soundtrack slowing down to usher in their arrival. The first few bosses really leave you overawed, but fortunately, the gameplay remains fairly similar to what you’ve already grown used to.

That’s because Thrasher is less interested in challenging your reflexes and reaction time or making things overbearingly difficult. Instead, its goal is to bathe you in an aesthetic and style that really has no comparisons. It’s one of those games that needs to be experienced first-hand to truly appreciate how singular it is, with no gushing words that can truly do it justice. Simply let it wash over you, taking in the bright fluorescent colors, ethereal sound design, and approachable gameplay loop that gradually ups the ante.

There’s nothing quite like Thrasher on Meta Quest 3 right now, which is pretty much the highest praise I can give the game. If you find yourself struggling to find new games to play, tiring of the same first-person shooters or walking simulators, Thrasher is the perfect antidote. It’s bound to be polarizing and put off those who don’t buy into its unique aesthetic and mood-driven style, but if you’re willing to take a chance, you’ll get a game like no other.