A climb with no checkpoints, on purpose
Only Up! starts in a junkyard and points straight up. Jackie, a teenager, runs, jumps and vaults across floating junk, pipes, train cars and rooftops, heading for the moon. You can slow time for a tricky landing, and beds work as trampolines. There are no checkpoints and no way to save. Miss a jump and you fall, sometimes all the way back to the start.
Floating train cars and track high above a city: one stretch of the climb.
That is the game. Reviewers praised the challenge and criticized the graphics and level design, and players ran into bugs and spots where Jackie gets stuck in scenery.
Streamers made it famous
Only Up! came out on Steam in May 2023 from a solo developer. In June, streamers including Kai Cenat and xQc played it live, and their reactions to long falls turned it into one of the most-watched games on Twitch. Kids who watched those streams often know the game better from the screaming than from playing it.
A long way down: Jackie falling past loops of track toward the city below.
If your kid wants to try a game like this, watch the first half hour with them. How they handle the first big fall tells you whether this kind of game is fun for them or a fight waiting to happen. When your kid rage-quits has ideas for that moment.
The original is gone, and copies took the name
Only Up! was briefly removed from Steam in June 2023 over copyrighted assets, and it drew criticism for using NFT artwork. On September 7, 2023, the developer removed it for good, writing that they needed "peace of mind and healing" after months of stress. Owners can still play it. Nobody new can buy it.
Since then, other developers have released games called Only Up! on Steam and Nintendo Switch. One on Steam by WGI Gaming has 26% positive reviews, with buyers saying they thought it was the original. If your kid asks for it, check the developer before you pay.
Better hard games to play instead
Celeste is a hard climbing game made with care, for kids who want a challenge: tight controls, frequent checkpoints, and a story about anxiety and self-doubt. More in streamer games.
