Celeste and TowerFall can no longer be bought on the Xbox store, and co-creator Maddy Thorson has confirmed the removal was deliberate: both games were delisted to back the BDS movement's boycott of Microsoft.
Players first noticed on October 29 that Celeste had vanished from Xbox's digital storefront. According to Rock Paper Shotgun, it was still listed on the PlayStation and Nintendo stores. Thorson then addressed the question on Bluesky that afternoon. "We did this to support the BDS boycott," she wrote, confirming that both titles had been taken down.
Rock Paper Shotgun reports that neither the other Celeste developers nor EXOK Games, Thorson's current studio, has issued a fuller statement. Kotaku credited the confirmation to Thorson of MaddyMakesGames, the label behind both games.
Why BDS targets Microsoft and Xbox
The BDS (boycott, divest, sanction) movement called for a boycott of Microsoft and Xbox games and hardware last year. Rock Paper Shotgun says the call followed reports that Microsoft supplied AI software to the Israeli military, which Microsoft has confirmed, and that the company stays on the boycott list because it continues to provide other services, including email and file management. Both outlets describe Israel's military campaign against Palestinians as a genocide. Kotaku notes that the wider BDS list also includes companies such as Disney, HP, and Reebok.
No Games for Genocide, a collective of developers and industry workers, has been pressing for a boycott of Xbox games and services as part of that movement. Rock Paper Shotgun's writer discloses being an organiser with the group.
“We did this to support the BDS boycott”Maddy Thorson
Other indie studios taking similar steps
The Celeste and TowerFall delisting is the second prominent indie move against Xbox this month. House House, the studio behind Big Walk, said earlier in October that its social puzzle game would not launch on Xbox for the foreseeable future, also citing its support for BDS.
Origame Digital has also taken a stand with its latest game. Kotaku reports the studio included a sharply worded message about the games industry's silence on the war and blocked sales of the game in Israel, though that action was not aimed at Xbox specifically.
Both delisted games have long histories on consoles. TowerFall, the archery party brawler, debuted in 2014, originally on the Ouya. Celeste followed in 2018 and became one of the defining indie releases of its era, praised for demanding platforming, its soundtrack, and an emotional story. It won best independent game at The Game Awards that year. Kotaku points out that The Game Awards has itself drawn criticism over its host declining to acknowledge the killing of Palestinians.
