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Ladder Lad is a brand new 2D platform game that is, apparently, “all about ladders.” While you may be thinking that ladders aren’t a particularly enticing subject matter for a video game, would retro 2D platform games such as Donkey Kong, Lode Runner, Montezuma’s Revenge and Popeye be as beloved as they are today without their use of the humble ladder?
The game is a collaboration between BUCK Games and BUCK, a global creative company serving brands like Nike, Apple, Netflix, IBM, and Airbnb, as well as contributing to the likes of Netflix’s Love, Death + Robots and Sony Pictures Animation’s Spider-Man Across the Spider-Verse. Ladder Lad is set in a world that has forgotten how to jump, and ladders have become the only means of upward mobility. As the titular Lad, you’ll scale a ladder-shaped tower with nothing more than a ladder at your disposal, but in this game, the ladder is a more versatile tool than you might first think: it can be used to bridge gaps, to pole-vault the Lad into the air, be bounced on like a pogo stick, ridden it like a sled, and more….
Ladder Lad promises: “physics-based chaos and slapstick comedy, “colliding “in a world seemingly built to torture our poor, sweet Lad.”
Ladder Lad is set to launch on PC via Steam and on Nintendo Switch in 2027. In the meantime, you can learn more about BUCK Games and Ladder Lad at the game’s official website, and a playable demo of the game will also be available at the PAX Rising Showcase at PAX West. which is set to take place in Seattle from September 4 to September 7, 2026.
