Best Games For Exploring Vertical Worlds

Most video game environments are designed as flat landscapes with lots of details, depending on the game. For instance, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild has a huge world with different areas, towns, and climbable cliffs. However, even with the ability to climb, it’s not truly a game built around vertical spaces.

If you’re interested in games where the main focus is going up or down – whether it’s scaling walls or dropping into the depths – these are worth a look. You’ll find a variety of genres, including fast-paced platformers, action-packed RPGs, and challenging roguelikes, all available on many different gaming systems. Get ready for some thrilling, vertical adventures!

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Donkey Kong Bananza

Traverse The Sub-Layers

In the recent game Donkey Kong Bananza, players explore a world that moves downwards instead of upwards. As Donkey Kong and Pauline, you’ll journey through different areas, solve puzzles, and descend deeper and deeper towards the planet’s center.

The journey down is full of exciting discoveries and is definitely worth experiencing. Beyond the unexpected surprises, you’ll love how much of the world can be broken and changed. Plus, Donkey Kong can scale huge buildings and hills in each area, making exploration feel truly vertical and dynamic.

Persona 3 Reload

Ascending Terminus

Persona 3 Reload is a reimagining of the classic PlayStation 2 game. It follows a group of high school students with special abilities who fight against mysterious forces that appear during a secret, extra hour at night when the rest of Japan is asleep.

Currently, the students’ school has become a massive tower known as Tartarus. Throughout the game, players must descend to the bottom floor of each section, defeat a boss, and then advance the story. Each floor is randomly generated with monsters and items, similar to a roguelike game, and combat happens through turn-based battles. Importantly, all of this takes place within the tower itself – there’s no actual climbing involved.

Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition

Traveling Across Bionis And Mechonis

The first Xenoblade game features a truly unique setting: a war between humans and robots fought on the bodies of two colossal, long-dormant titans named Bionis and Mechonis.

To end the conflict, players begin their journey on the colossal Bionis, traveling upwards through its structure before moving to Mechonis and venturing down into its interior. Battles play out similarly to those in online multiplayer games, and there’s a large, open world to discover between these two massive titans. The latest way to play is with Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition on the Nintendo Switch.

Etrian Odyssey 2: Heroes Of Lagaard

Going Into Yggdrasil’s Trunk

Etrian Odyssey 2: Heroes of Lagaard is a tough but rewarding RPG where you build a team of adventurers with different skills, like warriors and mages. The story revolves around Yggdrasil, a giant world tree, and you’ll explore a sprawling labyrinth starting from the base city, working your way upwards towards a legendary fortress.

The game puts you right into the action with a first-person view, and you’ll need to create your own map as you explore the dungeons, discovering everything from useful resources to secret routes. It’s known as one of the most challenging games in the series, but the 2023 version is a little more forgiving.

Kid Icarus

Pit’s Challenge

Both Kid Icarus and Metroid were released on the NES around the same time, though Kid Icarus came out a bit earlier in Japan. They share many similar gameplay features, but Kid Icarus focuses more on upward movement. The hero, Pit, was more mobile than Samus from Metroid because he could fly with his wings.

Players start with a bow and arrow and can collect power-ups while trying to reach Medusa, the game’s final boss. Like many games from the original NES, it’s quite difficult, but those curious about Pit’s first adventure can easily play it on the Switch through the NES digital library.

Grow Home

Robot And The Beanstalk

Released about ten years ago, Grow Home was a charming indie game from Ubisoft that gained a dedicated following. Players control BUD, a robot stranded on an alien planet, and must grow vines upwards from a base plant to reach floating nutrients. By connecting these nutrients, BUD can eventually reach his spaceship.

Playing BUD can be tricky – the controls feel a bit clumsy, similar to the game Baby Steps, which makes it quite challenging. However, that difficulty actually works with the game’s focus on climbing and vertical movement. It’s satisfying to reach the top of a level and then float down on a flower, seeing everything you’ve achieved. If you enjoy BUD, its sequel, Grow Up, is also a good game to try.

Jusant

A Less Scary Way To Live Out Your Dreams

If you’re finding the climbing in Cairn difficult, you might enjoy Jusant instead. Both games share similar concepts – you play as a climber seeking adventure – but Jusant has much easier-to-use controls. This means you can focus on enjoying the experience and scenery with a reasonable challenge, rather than getting frustrated with every move.

I’ve been playing Jusant, and while it’s way less scary than actual rock climbing, it’s seriously gotten me thinking about giving it a try! The game is challenging, but the views from the top are absolutely stunning, and they really make you want to experience something similar in real life.

Pandora’s Tower

Feed Her Heart

In Pandora’s Tower, you play as Aeron, who ventures into a dangerous, connected dungeon called The Thirteen Towers to save Elena from a deadly curse. To keep her alive, you must defeat monsters and offer their hearts to sustain her – a rather gruesome process, but motivated by love.

Pandora’s Tower, a game only available on the Wii, blends the exploration of Metroid with the puzzle-solving of Zelda. Players swing a chain weapon to navigate a connected, dungeon-like world, battle enemies, and overcome challenges. The game cleverly uses different heights and perspectives, and it’s disappointing that a remastered version hasn’t been released.

The Deadly Tower Of Monsters

A B-Movie Parody

Okay, so I stumbled across this indie game called Deadly Tower of Monsters, and the idea is seriously awesome. It’s like you’re watching a cheesy old B-movie, but while you’re playing it! They really nailed the feel – the game actually glitches and stutters like an old film reel, and there’s this director character giving running commentary, pointing out all the ‘problems’ with the scenes. It’s a really clever way to present a game, and I think it flew under a lot of people’s radars when it came out in 2016.

Okay, so the game is all about climbing this crazy, never-ending tower, and you’re battling everything you can imagine – dinosaurs, aliens, all sorts of monsters! What really grabbed me, though, is how it blends reality with the game world. They even use a choppy, low frame rate sometimes to make it look like those old stop-motion movies, which is a really cool touch. If you’re into those delightfully cheesy, over-the-top B-movies, you’re going to love this top-down action game. It’s totally self-aware and loves to break the fourth wall, making it a really unique experience.

Let It Die

Beware The Towers Of Barbs

I still remember when Let It Die first came out – the whole idea was so cool! This massive, mysterious dungeon called the Towers of Barbs just popped up somewhere outside Japan, and everyone was rushing in to try and grab the treasure inside. You created your own character, geared up with whatever weapons and items you could find, and went for it, knowing full well that if you messed up, your character was gone for good. It was a really unique and intense experience!

It seemed nearly impossible to beat Let It Die without spending money, thanks to its punishing difficulty, permanent death, and free-to-play setup. However, players who persevered and reached the top of The Towers of Barbs likely felt a great sense of accomplishment.

2026-02-10 04:06