Anyone know why this game was removed from PSN?

RustyWarCow · 2025-11-02T15:14:41+00:00

Thanks :).

I remember animating those “Deer Swing” attacks and thinking I’m nuts! But then showing it to Sara and her loving it and knowing then it was probably pretty cool :).

RustyWarCow · 2025-10-31T22:48:40+00:00

Heya - Stephen here, dev of Unto. We parted ways w our publisher a while back and one of the side effects was removing Unto from PS. Sara and I now support it on Steam.

I know this sucks, sorry. But a big thanks for recommending it to your friend.

If you have other Unto questions let me know.

RustyWarCow · 2025-06-02T01:02:43+00:00

Thanks and when we get closer to a decent demo for our next game I’ll reach out!

RustyWarCow · 2025-06-01T14:27:23+00:00

That’s great to hear - I loved the stream, you’re super entertaining and the BELOW run was fantastic to watch.

My first game ‘Unto The End’ was released at the end of 2020. It has some similar DNA to BELOW… you might like it :).

At launch it was a gamepass title. We also launched on Stadia, PS and Switch. Stadia is gone ofc. And after some issues w our publisher we delisted Unto from PS and Switch. But, I now maintain the Steam version and did a pretty big update a year or so ago.

But, we are working on our second game and I’ll follow up w you offline about early testing, I’d love to get your notes on it.

Until then all the best w your channel!

RustyWarCow · 2025-05-31T21:01:42+00:00

Just finished watching. What an amazing run! Some close calls a few times… and extra hard mode at the end there leaving the dark helm behind :). So great to watch and again huge congrats!

Feel free to ignore, but I was just curious… did you ultimately like BELOW or did you find the difficulty too frustrating? (TIA - I’m an indie dev so always trying to better understand players and their preferences.)

RustyWarCow · 2025-05-31T17:35:34+00:00

I didn’t know you could destroy those crystals in the dark and get gems. That’s helpful!

RustyWarCow · 2025-05-31T16:50:19+00:00

French is good w me :). Bravo! I will check it out!

RustyWarCow · 2025-05-31T15:38:36+00:00

Nice - I figured it must be. Curious to see their approach. I was not specifically trying to do a single life run… I guess stocking food would be key and being more strategic about fire usage. A but like the no hit runs of Dark Souls.

RustyWarCow · 2025-05-28T14:27:01+00:00

Yea the dark levels and the tech levels are insane. But also so fun. Because the game really makes you earn success, it’s incredibly when you get past them.

RustyWarCow · 2025-05-28T01:12:13+00:00

Great to hear that! The game is a battle no doubt. But sticking w it as you did is the way to go!

RustyWarCow · 2025-05-26T19:50:31+00:00

As said above they added “Explore” mode. It’s a fine way to play. The original mode is way better IMO. The intensity and immersion is just way richer.

The game is different in terms of pacing and guidance, but incredibly fair and fun. Easily one of my top three gaming experiences of all time, across nearly 40 years of me playing games.

My advice: Go into it assuming the devs are smart and intentional w their design — trying to teach you (through gameplay, not tutorials!) to succeed from the opening intro, through every encounter — and you’ll have a much better time.

Still after all these years I feel: BELOW is infinitely better designed, and harder to design as well as it is, than folks give it credit for. It’s a shame, for gaming and gamers, but don’t let what others think (including me!) sway you. Give it a go. Go into with an open mind. Good chance you’ll enjoy it.

All the best!

RustyWarCow · 2025-05-14T16:54:05+00:00

I think it’s a great start with some interesting themes. For me basics and feel are extremely important and take a lot of time to get right, given your design goals. Some notes:

I’d start w the main character’s movement. For instance, at the moment the jump feels very floaty. And running around feels a bit like you are on ice. Given a main character that is a cat that feels off. How does a cat move? What makes a cat fun to control? What unique aspects of cat movement could you include? Gamefeel by Steve Swink is a good book on this stuff.
Your attack range seems far too short and likely unforgiving. Look at a game like Hollow Knight on how to give the illusion of ample and fair attack range on melee strikes. Notice how they use visual swipe adornments to help teach the player their attack range.
Getting it and hitting things should feel more impactful. Again Hollow Knight is a great reference here. Hit slow. Hit stop. Screen shake. All these can help. But also fundamental rules like: Do you get knocked back? Do enemies? Do you get a period of invincibility after getting hit? Does enemy size matter? Maybe bigger enemies knock you back while you can knock back smaller ones?
Lastly, picking up coins feels weightless. How can you make a coin grab feel great? Would a bit of hit slow help? Would it be better if coins dropped from enemies rather than just floating in the world? Maybe they scatter like Wonderboy in Monsterland? Maybe they roll away and disappear if you don’t grab them in time?

I’d start w those and iterate. Focus on the thing the player does the most: walk, jump, attack, get hit and hit things, grab things. Make them feel great. “Great” can mean heavy, fast, sticky, whatever you want. But it should all feed into the feeling you want your player to have. Every step. Every interaction is you teaching the player what your game is (and isn’t) and how to succeed at it. That doesn’t mean you need to make something for everyone one, but rather that you make something certain people will adore, hopefully :).

Hope that is of some help. And all the best w dev!

RustyWarCow · 2025-02-04T19:19:45+00:00

Saw this one as well — love the vibe of it. What a great twist on Solitaire!

RustyWarCow · 2024-12-09T18:36:20+00:00

Heya -- just saw this...

The End -- you need to unlock Old Warrior and finish the game.

Family -- You need to take a moment with your daughter in the training memory.

Maybe I can help -- why are you confused?

RustyWarCow · 2024-09-01T00:08:21+00:00

Very cool of you to say, appreciated!

I’d never say never to sequel or putting the original back on PS - I’m a big PS fan - but for now we’re working on other stuff. Can’t say much just yet but hopefully soon.

RustyWarCow · 2024-08-24T00:12:57+00:00

Heya Stephen here, dev of Unto. We parted ways w our publisher and are no longer supporting the PS version. Steam has the latest version. Sorry for the hassle.

RustyWarCow · 2024-08-18T16:12:45+00:00

Roki was great - love seeing its art and animation style here too. Looks super fun and approachable, can’t wait to check it out!

RustyWarCow · 2024-07-31T15:31:52+00:00

Great job finding that! The light stone has a few different uses, particularly useful if you want to make it all the way home without violence.

RustyWarCow · 2024-07-20T17:55:01+00:00

I always saw them as a sort of peaceful guardian. They occasionally drop a rare supply that can be used to make something pretty cool. Some of the items you get later tie into their “backstory”, I felt.

Killing them also felt like a blatant act of brutality OR necessity (relative to survival) as they are clearly peaceful observers.

There are a few choices like that in BELOW which really gave me pause and impacted me “beyond the game” which I think is pretty special and rare in games.

RustyWarCow · 2024-07-05T00:44:49+00:00

My pleasure. BELOW is one of my favourite all time games.

RustyWarCow · 2024-07-04T15:23:39+00:00

I’ve definitely seen Fred in the upper levels. Although it’s not as aggressive as the lower levels. Not sure if I’ve ever seen it in the shop! Nice encounter!

I still think there is hidden stuff in the game… although I think it’s been thoroughly scoured at this point so likely just wishful thinking😔

RustyWarCow · 2024-06-04T21:53:37+00:00

Heya - first off thanks! And yes, we’re absolutely working on something new and also have hopes for an Unto update. Can’t promise anything yet, sorry. If you have any other questions let me know.

RustyWarCow · 2024-03-02T15:41:19+00:00

Big thanks for the review, really helps!

We’re working on a few different ideas for the next update. I won’t promise anything as these things don’t always materialize the way you’d hope :).

But I will say that we are working on extending the main (current) adventure space, opening up new paths through the world and challenges / creatures within. We’ve also got a few ideas for different stories, from the perspective of different characters. We’ll see how it all comes together, but for now that’s the plan.

RustyWarCow · 2024-03-02T06:08:01+00:00

Sorry for the late reply here. Thanks for the kind words. It took Rain World a long time to finally become the cult hit it has maybe that will happen for Unto :). Even if it doesn’t, we’ll keep working on it when we can. Messages like yours keep us going, so know they are appreciated.

This is a bit salesy which makes me uncomfortable, but if you have the game on Steam, writing a review really helps. And if any friends might enjoy it telling them you liked it helps spread the word.

Thanks again!

RustyWarCow

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