Icy Tower is returning on November 10, 2026, with a full remake for PC and Mac through Steam, developed by Johan Peitz and Anders Svensson, who also worked on the 2001 original. Anyone who remembers the game from the early days of downloadable PC freeware will find the same straightforward challenge at its core: climb an endless tower without falling. This time, however, the tower has been rebuilt, and the game will no longer be free. The announced price is $11.99.
There was more to the original Icy Tower than jumping from one floor to the next. Reaching greater heights meant building speed, bouncing off the side walls and stringing together jumps for larger combos, all while the screen kept moving and left less room for mistakes. The controls were easy to understand, but a single poorly timed move could end a run just as it was getting good. That tension between a simple objective and the constant temptation to push farther was a large part of its appeal.
The remake keeps that arcade structure, with the climb growing tougher as players ascend and take bigger risks in pursuit of high scores. The scenery will change along the way, too: instead of looking at the same surroundings throughout a run, players will pass through environments that include ancient temples, libraries and volcanic areas. These new settings give the tower more visual variety, while the action remains focused on timing, momentum and the challenge of pulling off one more successful jump.
First released by Free Lunch Design in 2001, Icy Tower went on to reach more than 40 million players, according to the figures shared by its creators. Its score-chasing formula also helped build a community around records, where the height of a climb was only part of the competition; total points and jump combos mattered as well. The game appeared in later versions over the years, and a sequel, Icy Tower 2, was released for iOS and Android in 2012.
Peitz, who designed the original game, and Svensson, who composed its music, are now working together on Icy Tower again after twenty-five years. Their goal is not to replace the underlying idea with a different kind of platformer, but to bring that familiar quick-to-start, hard-to-put-down challenge to Steam in a new form.
