A janky however brutal platformer, Solely Up! blew up this Might after turning into a sensational hit with Twitch viewers. It’s one in all 2023’s most viral Steam video games up to now. Nonetheless, in a surprising and abrupt choice, the developer has eliminated the sport from Steam, with no plans for it to return to the platform. In a submit, the solo developer behind Solely Up! acknowledged that this was their first foray into making a recreation, and now they wish to say goodbye to it.
The Reputation Behind Solely Up!
Solely Up! launched in Might 2023, providing a third-person platforming expertise akin to the title Getting Over It with Bennet Foddy. The sport’s recognition didn’t peak till effectively after its launch, because the indie closely relied on phrase of mouth to succeed in its viewers.
Due to its difficult nature, Solely Up! acquired its large break when Twitch streamers like IShowSpeed, identified for enjoying high-difficulty video games began noticing it, in the end resulting in a viral gross sales interval. The parkour recreation hit over 90,000 viewers on Twitch and 10,000 concurrency gamers in June. Nonetheless, Solely Up’s recognition declined considerably following its peak in July.
Solely Up! had a ‘Principally Optimistic’ overview rating after getting 12,000 person critiques, with some gamers praising its capricious 3D platforming. Nonetheless, a substantial chunk of unfavourable critiques critiqued its glitchy physics and hasty designs. Contemplating that Solely Up! was faraway from Steam for allegedly stealing property from different video games beforehand, the title additionally gained notoriety for being a recreation that appeared prefer it was put collectively by slapping already-existing property collectively. Let’s not neglect that it marketed NFTs, too, with pictures of Goblintown tokens showing on sure ranges.
“Peace of Thoughts and Therapeutic”
Indiesolodev, the brains behind Solely Up!, wrote within the recreation’s Steam neighborhood that the title has saved him beneath loads of stress for the previous few months since Solely Up! was launched, and now they wish to put the sport behind them. He additionally acknowledged that what he wants now’s “pealing of thoughts and therapeutic,” and he plans to take a pause to additional his training on recreation design.
With new data and experiences, Indiesolodev is prioritizing his sophomore mission, “Kith.” He describes it as a very completely different recreation from Solely Up!, highlighting cinematography. We’re not completely certain what which means till we see extra footage. Nonetheless, Indiesolodev needs it to be created by a small staff reasonably than being a solo factor once more to forestall the stress of operating as a solo operator.
Regardless of Its Sudden Disappearance, Solely Up! Raked In Hundreds of thousands
Gamers are already mourning the lack of the sport’s sudden disappearance. At present, Solely Up! has already been delisted from Steam, however its person critiques stay. Regardless of its controversy, although, Solely Up! was a large success. It was priced at $6, and through its comparatively quick time on the most important gaming storefront for PC platforms, it raked in round $2.6 million in gross income alone.
Will You Lose the Recreation If You Personal It?
For people who have purchased Solely Up! Earlier than the Steam itemizing has been torn down, there’s no want to stress—you received’t lose your buy of it since there’s no indication of Steam possession being rescinded. Solely Up! will solely be unavailable for many who don’t have or wish to purchase the sport proper now. Gamers will previous purchases of Solely Up! and can proceed to have it of their libraries, obtainable to play and obtain anytime.