Skip to main content
Upstairs Game Cover

About Upstairs

Upstairs is a single player puzzle game with horror, mystery and thriller themes. It was developed by Karellen Games and was released on March 20, 2026. It received overwhelmingly positive reviews from players.

Upstairs is a short point-and-click game with a verb-based interface and dialogue choices, inspired by all those classic adventures you’re thinking of right now. You’ve been trapped for years. Now you finally have a chance to escape. Find your way through a strange building full of unsettling people, dark humor, and strange mysteries. Every floor brings you closer to freedom… or deeper into an…

Skip Games Like Upstairs

Games Like Upstairs

Looking for games like Upstairs? Here are top puzzle recommendations with a horror, mystery and thriller focus, selected from player-similarity data — start with The Darkside Detective, Willy Morgan and the Curse of Bone Town or If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers.

The Darkside Detective Image
Games like The Darkside Detective
Willy Morgan and the Curse of Bone Town Image
Games like Willy Morgan and the Curse of Bone Town
If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers Image
Games like If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers
Lucy Dreaming Image
Games like Lucy Dreaming
Edna & Harvey: Harvey's New Eyes Image
Games like Edna & Harvey: Harvey's New Eyes
The Inner World Image
Games like The Inner World
Slender Threads: Prologue Image
Games like Slender Threads: Prologue
TSIOQUE Image
Games like TSIOQUE
The Slaughter: Act One Image
Games like The Slaughter: Act One
The Plague Doctor of Wippra Image
Games like The Plague Doctor of Wippra
Skip User Reviews

Reviews

96%Audience ScoreBased on 25 reviews
story8 positive mentions

  • Charming pixel art and animations with fitting music and sound effects that enhance the atmosphere.
  • Engaging, well-written story with a unique dark humor tone and memorable characters.
  • Clever, well-paced puzzles that provide a satisfying challenge without being overly difficult.
  • The game is very short, with a playtime around 1 to 2 hours, which may leave some players wanting more content.
  • The user interface can feel clunky and old-school, which might frustrate some players.
  • Some plot elements, like the boy's captivity duration, lack believability or relevance, and the ending may feel disconnected or reduce player agency.
  • story

    13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    62% positive mentions, 15% neutral mentions, 23% negative mentions

    The story is generally praised for being intriguing, fun, and darkly humorous with unexpected twists, complemented by strong environmental storytelling and quirky dialogue. Some critiques note moments of disbelief in the plot's timeline, but overall it is engaging and well-suited to the game's charming pixel art and gameplay. The narrative blends dark themes with a light, playful tone reminiscent of classic adventure games.

    • “Polished game, great story and cool vibe!”
    • “A really fun little game, with great pixel art, intriguing story, and fun, well paced puzzles.”
    • “Brilliant little point and click adventure with nice pixel art, a captivating story and puzzles that make sense in the context.”
    • “Another thing that seemed weird is the boy supposedly having been held captive for five years which isn't made even remotely believable. This issue could've been easily avoided by simply stating he was kidnapped a week ago instead of five years, which has no relevance to the plot in any way.”
    • “Not the characters, not the story, not the puzzles, not the ending.”
    • “Decent puzzles, too, but the story could have been better.”
  • humor

    6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game features a strong and memorable sense of humor, blending dark and charming comedic elements that consistently entertain throughout its short runtime. Its writing is praised for being fun and clever, successfully mixing humor with horror in a tone reminiscent of classic LucasArts adventures.

    • “Charming little game with an amazing sense of humor and memorable characters.”
    • “Dark humor is spot on too, perhaps the strongest point of the game.”
    • “The story and events are technically pretty dark and gruesome, but the humorous tone means it still feels akin to something like a LucasArts classic.”
  • gameplay

    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The gameplay is engaging and fun, featuring interesting storylines and well-designed puzzles, complemented by appealing pixel art. Players find it offers great value with many hours of enjoyable content.

    • “Interesting story, fun gameplay, good puzzles, and obviously gorgeous pixel art.”
    • “I probably got 10 hours of solid gameplay for 3 bucks, totally good deal.”
    • “Gameplay is fun.”
  • music

    3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The music is thoughtfully composed and well-suited to the game's pixel art style, enhancing each scene and action with fitting sound effects. Overall, the music complements the charming animation and engaging story effectively.

    • “Nicely done with good use of pixel graphics and music.”
    • “Sound effects and music were fitting for every scene and action.”
    • “I thought music was used thoughtfully and well.”
  • graphics

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The graphics are well-executed, featuring appealing pixel art that complements the game's style effectively.

    • “Nicely done with good use of pixel graphics and music.”
Skip Game Offers

Buy Upstairs

Skip Videos

Videos

Skip FAQs

Frequently Asked Questions

Upstairs is a puzzle game with horror, mystery and thriller themes. Common tags for Upstairs include gothic, demons, indie, exploration, pixel graphics and others.

Upstairs is available on PC, Mac OS, Windows and Linux.

Upstairs was released on March 20, 2026.

Upstairs was developed by Karellen Games.

Upstairs has received overwhelmingly positive reviews from players. Most players liked Upstairs for its story.

Upstairs is a single player game.

Similar games include The Darkside Detective, Willy Morgan and the Curse of Bone Town, If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers, Lucy Dreaming, Edna & Harvey: Harvey's New Eyes and others.