Only Up!, a popular 3D platformer from SCKR Games, has been removed from Steam. Despite the game’s explosive popularity on Twitch and social media, the game has been pulled from the Steam store in a decision made entirely by its creator, who remains nameless. In stating the reasoning behind pulling Only Up! off the market, the creator explained that they – a solo developer – were “kept under a lot of stress” while developing their debut game and would like nothing more than to put Only Up! behind them and heal. They also teased plans for a new game called Kith but warned that it wouldn’t be anything like Only Up!
Why Is ‘Only Up!’ Being Taken Off Steam?
Released earlier this year, Only Up! came out of nowhere in terms of popularity. The game, a 3D platformer, puts players in control of Jackie, a teenager who’s jumping and climbing over various hurdles in order to reach the summit of a skyborne obstacle course. Players are timed to see how long it takes them to reach the summit and encouraged to find shortcuts to shorten their time. While the premise of the game seems simple and straightforward, the real key to Only Up!’s meteoric rise in popularity was its speedrunning potential. The game found its niche among viral Twitch streamers who spend their time looking for crafty shortcuts and ways to shave seconds off their time while treating audiences to grandiose reactions while falling to their doom on failed attempts.
Unfortunately, the surprise Twitch-based popularity of Only Up! won’t be enough to keep it on Steam. In a “small update” posted to the game’s Steam Community page, the nameless creator of Only Up! detailed some small, routine bug fixes they made in an update while diving into the serious stuff under a section titled “Game’s future.”
“I’m a solo developer and this game is my first experience in Gamedev, a game I did for creativity, to test myself, and where I made a lot of mistakes,” the creator stated. “The game has kept me under a lot of stress all these months. Now I want to put the game behind me. And yes. the game won’t be available in the steam store soon, that’s what I decided myself. What I need now is peace of mind and healing.”
Later in the same post, the creator explained their plans to continue their education in game design and teased a new game under the working title Kith. It was described as “a new experience and a new concept with realism, a completely different genre and setting, and the emphasis is on cinematography”, which they hope will be developed by a team of developers rather than a single individual. From what little we know about Kith, it doesn’t seem like the new game will share any similarities with Only Up!, outside of sharing a creator – and that’s on purpose.
While Only Up! is no longer available for purchase on Steam, players who bought the game prior to its removal are still able to play it without issue. This includes all of the Twitch streamers who made the game a one-hit wonder, though it’s unclear if the game will retain its popularity now that prospective players are unable to get Only Up! for themselves.
