What Extremely OK Games does

Extremely OK Games (EXOK), operating as Extremely OK Games, Ltd. and headquartered in Vancouver, Canada, is an independent, privately held game studio founded in September 2019 as the successor to Maddy Makes Games Inc. The studio develops and self-publishes hand-crafted video games, led by a small core team including director Maddy Thorson, programmer Noel Berry, and collaborators such as composer Lena Raine. EXOK's product surface is narrow and curated: it currently consists of TowerFall Ascension, a four-player local archery combat party game released across Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, Steam, itch.io, and Mac/Linux; Celeste, a single-player narrative-driven platformer with over 700 core screens, an IGF Excellence in Audio finalist recognition, and the free Chapter 9: Farewell expansion adding 100+ further screens; and City of None, an externally developed adventure title being published by EXOK and targeted for 2027. A fourth project, the multi-year 2D explor-action platformer Earthblade, was cancelled in January 2025 after the studio lost creative direction; the team has since committed to smaller-scale projects closer to the Celeste/TowerFall model. A co-founding member and the studio's lead pixel artist departed in January 2025 following a dispute over Celeste IP rights.

The studio's underlying technology is a custom in-house game engine used for Celeste and TowerFall (with Unity employed experimentally only for early Earthblade prototyping). Notable technical components include a hand-crafted pixel art animation system, lightning-fast respawn mechanics that preserve player flow, and — in the cancelled Earthblade project — a free-roaming, dynamically-loading seamless world architecture. There are no AI/ML capabilities disclosed across the product stack.

Commercially, EXOK runs a direct-to-consumer, distribution-led model with revenue from one-time digital game sales across six storefronts (Steam, Nintendo Switch eShop, PlayStation Store, Xbox Store, itch.io, Epic Games Store), soundtrack sales on Bandcamp (Celeste OST, B-Side OST, Farewell OST), physical merchandise via FanGamer and The Yetee, and a nascent publishing revenue line on externally developed games such as City of None. Pricing is set by platform storefronts rather than by EXOK; the studio has issued major content updates (notably Celeste Chapter 9) as free releases to existing owners. Marketing is community-led rather than paid, relying on Discord, Bluesky, an email newsletter ("Official EXOK Fanclub"), press coverage, and major-reveal placements at industry events like The Game Awards. The studio has no disclosed external investors, parent company, or institutional funding, and serves a horizontal customer base of indie game enthusiasts, couch multiplayer gamers, and gaming content creators.

Name

Extremely OK Games

Legal name

Extremely OK Games, Ltd.

Website

https://exok.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2019

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Extremely OK Games (EXOK) is an independent Vancouver-based game studio that develops and self-publishes hand-crafted indie video games — including Celeste, TowerFall Ascension, and the forthcoming City of None — directly to global consumers via Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, itch.io, and Epic Games Store.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Indie Video Games

NAICS

Software Publishers (513210)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Indie Game Studios (MPAFAAAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Creator Marketplaces & Asset Stores (UGC items, skins, templates, plugins) (MPAFAIAC)

Keywords

• Indie game development
• Narrative platformers
• Couch multiplayer games
• Digital game distribution
• Action adventure games

Headquarters

HQ city

Vancouver

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Digital Game Sales: One-time purchase model for games sold through platform storefronts (Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, itch.io, Epic Games Store). Celeste Chapter 9: Farewell was released free as an update to existing players.
2. Soundtrack Sales: Original soundtracks sold through Bandcamp, including Celeste OST, B-Side OST, and Farewell OST by Lena Raine.
3. Merchandise: Physical merchandise including shirts and stickers sold through FanGamer. Also available through The Yetee.
4. Publishing Revenue: EXOK publishes games developed by external creators, such as City of None by Noel and Liam Berry. EXOK receives publishing revenue from these arrangements.

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels9 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Extremely OK Games is an independent video game studio that develops and self-publishes hand-crafted, narrative-driven indie games across PC and console platforms. Its catalog centers on Celeste, a single-player platformer with 700+ screens of challenging levels and a story of self-discovery, and TowerFall Ascension, a 4-player local multiplayer archery combat party game. The studio also publishes external works such as City of None (developed by Noel and Liam Berry).

Product overview

Extremely OK Games (EXOK) is an independent game studio based in Vancouver, Canada, formerly known as Maddy Makes Games. The company specializes in hand-crafted, narrative-driven video games with a focus on tight platforming mechanics. Their portfolio includes TowerFall Ascension (a 4-player archery combat party game), Celeste (a single-player platformer with 700+ levels), and City of None (an upcoming adventure game coming in 2027). They previously developed Earthblade, a 2D explor-action game that was cancelled in January 2025. Celeste Chapter 9: Farewell was released as a free expansion to Celeste. The company emphasizes collaborative development with a small, tight-knit team and self-published their games across multiple platforms including Steam, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and itch.io.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• TowerFall Ascension A 4-player local multiplayer archery combat party game with simple but hard-to-master mechanics, a 1- or 2-player co-op Quest mode, 120 unique maps, 8 playable archers, game-changing power-ups, and 75 match variants, targeted at consumers seeking social in-person gaming experiences.
• Celeste A narrative-driven single-player platformer in which players help Madeline survive her inner demons on her journey up Celeste Mountain, featuring 700+ screens of hardcore platforming challenges, brutal B-side chapters, and over 2 hours of original music led by live piano and synth beats, targeted at consumers seeking challenging but fair platforming with emotional storytelling.

Quantifiable outcome

• Celeste became an indie hit with significant commercial success, enabling the team to formalize as EXOK and hire full-time team members.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Maddy Makes GamesminorOEM/ Whitelabel/ Licensing Partner · 5 September 2019Maddy Makes Games Inc. (MMG) was the predecessor company to EXOK. MMG is still listed as publisher or developer for TowerFall and Celeste on various platforms, but all future work comes from EXOK. Maddy Thorson retired MMG when forming EXOK to allow for more equitable team structure.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Klei Entertainment: Indie developer of Don't Starve, Mark of the Ninja, and other 2D titles. Similar in long-running indie portfolio, cross-platform publishing, and small-team discipline, though somewhat larger in headcount.
• Moon Studios: Indie studio behind the Ori series — narrative-driven 2D platformers with strong critical reception, cross-platform self-publishing, and a small distributed team. Directly comparable in genre and player experience.
• Supergiant Games: Small, narrative-driven indie studio (Bastion, Transistor, Hades) with a tight core team and cross-platform self-publishing. Closely comparable in scope, polish, narrative-platformer focus, and reliance on a flagship hit to fund subsequent projects.
• Yacht Club Games: Small indie studio behind Shovel Knight, founded by veterans with a tight 2D platformer focus and self-publishing across Nintendo/Sony/Microsoft/PC storefronts. Comparable size, scope, and platforming DNA.
• Heart Machine: Indie studio behind Hyper Light Drifter and Solar Ash — small team, 2D action/platformer focus, narrative depth, and self-publishing across consoles and PC. Overlapping genre and similar studio scale.
• Mega Crit: Two-person indie studio behind Slay the Spire, a breakout hit with deep replayability and self-published across PC and consoles. Highly comparable in team size, single-hit dependency, and self-publishing model.
• Motion Twin: French cooperative indie studio behind Dead Cells, a tight platformer/roguelike. Comparable small-team indie model, cross-platform self-publishing, and a flagship hit (Dead Cells) that funded ongoing content.
• Team Cherry: Australian indie studio behind Hollow Knight, a critically acclaimed 2D action-platformer. Comparably small team, self-published across all major platforms, and similarly dependent on a single breakout hit and word-of-mouth community.

Broad incumbents

• Devolver Digital: Indie-focused publisher that brings platformer and narrative-driven titles (e.g., Hotline Miami, Inscryption, Fall Guys) to market. Compares as a broader incumbent in the same indie-publishing ecosystem where EXOK operates its storefront and publishing strategy.
• Annapurna Interactive: Major indie publisher for narrative/arthouse games (Stray, Outer Wilds, Cocoon). Comparable as a publishing partner-of-record for premium indie titles, though substantially larger in portfolio breadth than EXOK.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/exok_games

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Extremely OK Games