The Thermals: The Video Game!

The Portland punk band releases a video game set to "The Sword By My Side."

By MATTHEW SINGER

The hall of musicians who've inspired video games is short but illustrious. Michael Jackson. Motley Crue. Frankie Goes to Hollywood. Kriss Kross. PaRappa the Rapper. And now, Portland's own Thermals.

The power-punk luminaries have released a single-level, 16-bit online game called The Sword By My Side, which essentially serves as a music video for the song of the same name, from this year's Desperate Ground. Made by Slouch Couch Game Studios, the game's hero—judging by the blonde streak in her hair—is apparently the lovechild of bassist Kathy Foster and Kid Icarus, floating through some sort mystical cave-realm overrun by formless demons. The objective is to free a race of sprites from bondage by slicing your way to the final boss, then destroy his heart. Punk-fucking-rock!

It all takes about the exact running time of "The Sword By My Side." You can play the game here. It's no Moonwalker, or even Dikembe Mutombo's 4 1/2 Weeks to Save the World, but it sure beats another boring old music video. 

WWeek 2015

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