TowerFall is from 2014. It runs via backward compatibility. It still holds up better than most modern local versus games because the design is completely stripped back: one-hit kills, shared screen, archers firing at each other in small arenas, rounds that last about forty seconds. There is nothing to configure. You pick up a controller and you are playing. I have seen this described as the purest couch-competitive game ever made, and it is hard to argue. The lower score on PS5 polish reflects its age, which is the honest trade-off for ranking it this high. But there is no native PS5 successor that does what TowerFall does, which is exactly why it is still on this list.


TowerFall Ascension
March 11, 2014PlatformerESRB E10+
Available on
Genres
Overview
About TowerFall Ascension
Enter the land of TowerFall with your friends and engage in the noble and brutal tradition of bow-and-arrow combat. TowerFall is an archery combat platformer for 1-4 players, with an arcade co-op mode and hilarious, intense versus matches. The core mechanics are simple and accessible, but combat is fast and fierce. The focus is on player mastery and friendly rivalry.
TowerFall Ascension is an enhanced version of the original Ouya release.
TowerFall Ascension was initially released on PlayStation 4 and Windows, through Steam, in March 2014, with Mac and Linux versions available soon after.
A Vita and Xbox One version have also been released.
The original Ouya game was eventually updated with Ascension's content in August 2014, according to the archived page, but the page's release date was later changed to November 2016.
A Nintendo Switch version of the game, under the original title of TowerFall, was released in 2018 with all the content from Acension and the Dark World expansion as well as some new exclusive features and updates.
Reference
At a glance
- Released
- March 11, 2014
- Platforms
- PC, macOS, PlayStation 4, Linux, Xbox One
- Genres
- Platformer, Indie, Action
- Play modes
- Single Player, Multiplayer, Co-op, Local Couch Co-op
- Age rating
- ESRB E10+
- Time to beat
- 3 hours
- Multiplayer
- By platform
Media
Screenshots
Click any screenshot to view it full size.
Playtime
How long to beat
Player-reported completion times for TowerFall Ascension.
- Typical
- 3hoursStory plus some extras
Playing together
Multiplayer by platform
How TowerFall Ascension supports playing with other people, broken down per platform.
| Platform | Local | Online | LAN | Split-screen | Co-op campaign | Drop-in/out |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PlayStation 4 | Yes, up to 4 players | No | No | No | No | No |
| Xbox One | Yes, up to 4 players | No | No | No | No | No |
- Supported (a number is the player cap)
- Not supported
- Not documented for this platform
Content
Age ratings
How rating boards around the world have classified TowerFall Ascension. Open a board for its content descriptors.
ESRBE10+
- Fantasy Violence
GRACALL
- Violence
PEGI7
- Violence
This game was rated PEGI 7 because it features violence that lacks any apparent harm or injury to fantasy or mythical beings and creatures as well as non-realistic violence in a child-friendly setting or context.
Also in our guides
Often listed alongside TowerFall Ascension
Titles that appear in the same guides on this site. Grouped by where they show up, not by recommendation.
Coverage
Featured in our articles
This game appears in 1 article on this site.
#6
Game data and imagery provided by IGDB.com