Which Way Up: Galaxy Games is a multiplayer party game inspired by Super Mario Galaxy. This chaotic, gravity-bending game is Aussie developers Turtle Flip‘s first game, which is due to be released in Q1 of 2025. The team have recently released a demo playable on Steam, which features an assortment of mini-games and gives a glimpse of what we can expect in the full release.
The game combines the platforming and aesthetic of Super Mario Galaxy and gameplay that shares the same excitement as the mini-games found in Mario Party. Each player chooses one of seven characters to partake in the Galaxy Games. While the characters are all adorably unique, they all play the same and are only different cosmetically.
At the time of writing, the Online Mode is currently locked and will remain so until the full release of the game next year. You can, of course, play locally with up to 3 other players. Otherwise, Steam Remote play can be used during the demo to play with friends across the world. I experienced the game the latter way and experienced no lag or delay during gameplay, so I highly recommend getting two or three friends together and giving this game a shot!
As the game is set in space, gravity plays a major factor in every aspect of gameplay. The movement of the characters and the physics of objects are all influenced by gravity and can be a determining factor in winning or losing each mini-game. Asteroids are the main type of platform during these mini-games, and each type of asteroid influences your movement. There are asteroids made out of ice, which allows you to move quickly but prevents you from changing the direction you are travelling. Other asteroids move slightly when landed on, which can disorientate players. These are subtle details that may seem simple, but with quick-wit, can allow players to bamboozle you and snatch the win.
Players control their character using a controller of their choice (a DualSense is recommended) and can jump and comet push. Comet pushing allows players to move objects and other players as well as push themselves in a specific direction. Although the controls are simplified, there’s a certain amount of precision you need in order to win the round. Spamming the comet push will not grant much benefit except cause even more chaos!
In the Which Way Up: Galaxy Games demo, there were several mini-games to play, and they were all really enjoyable and varied. Event Horizon has players running away from a black hole, which gets faster and faster as time goes on. This was one of my favourite games, and I love that the black hole slowly takes over the screen to cause sheer mayhem.
Comet Collection plays similarly to Rocket League, which tasks players to hit a comet into their goal post. This was brilliant. In sheer panic, I always ended up scoring a goal for the other team. Star Ring has a bubble floating across the map, with players gaining points if they are the only player inside the bubble. There are a few more mini-games to try out in the demo, which offer heaps of replayability. I never felt like the games got repetitive, and I was always eager to replay them.
I think Turtle Flip has a winner on their hands here. This game is going to be loved and adored over many family game nights to come. I’ll be eagerly awaiting its release next year in the hopes that there are more mini-games added to the full game, as well as other content. This is certainly a game to keep your eye on.
Keep up with the latest Which Way Up: Galaxy Games news on their official Discord server or via their socials, linked below.
X – twitter.com/WhichWayUpGame
Instagram – instagram.com/WhichWayUpGame
TikTok – tiktok.com/@whichwayupgame
Which Way Up: Galaxy Games is due for release on Nintendo Switch, Xbox, Playstation, and Steam in Q1 2025. A demo is available now on Steam.
