10 Games Like Getting Over It (Rage Games)
Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy is the 2017 climbing game Foddy released on PC: a man in a cauldron, a sledgehammer, and a mountain of junk you ascend by hooking and pulling yourself up. Fall once and you can lose a huge chunk of progress. It’s the rage-game template made deliberate art, narrated by Foddy himself musing on failure. Getting Over It doesn’t have a browser version, but Foddy’s earlier work does, along with a genre of browser rage games that share its DNA. Here are ten games like Getting Over It to try in a tab.
Key takeaways
- Getting Over It is not browser-playable; several of Bennett Foddy’s earlier games are, on his website (foddy.net).
- Browser rage games tend to use awkward controls: separate keys per limb, single-button input, gravity-heavy momentum.
- This list mixes Foddy’s own browser catalog with thematic cousins that capture the punishing-physics feel.
- The genre is defined by intentional difficulty and the comedy of failure, not by mechanical complexity.
1. QWOP (browser at foddy.net)
Bennett Foddy’s 2008 sprinting game, the one that made his name. You control a runner’s thighs and calves with four keys (Q, W, O, P) and try to make him run 100 meters. Most people topple within a few steps. The conceit of turning a simple goal into a physics nightmare via control mapping is the same template Getting Over It uses. Free on Foddy’s site. Essential play if you’ve never tried it.
2. GIRP (foddy.net)
Foddy’s 2011 climbing game and the most direct precursor to Getting Over It. You play a climber who grabs handholds by holding down the letter key marked on each hold, then hauls up with Shift. Falling means losing height you worked hard for. The “one hand at a time, careful or fall” tension is what Getting Over It would refine six years later. It began as a Flash game, so check foddy.net for the current playable build.
3. CLOP (foddy.net)
Foddy’s 2012 unicorn-walking game. You control each of the four legs separately with the C, L, O, and P keys. The unicorn falls over almost immediately the first dozen times. The pattern is clear by now: Foddy makes you re-learn how to do something simple by giving you deliberately awkward controls. Like GIRP, it started life in Flash.
4. Pole Riders (foddy.net)
Foddy’s two-player pole-vaulting ball game. Two players, each riding a vaulting pole, try to knock a ball into the opposing goal. The physics are deliberately absurd. Local multiplayer and excellent for two-player rage-laugh sessions; it is another of Foddy’s Flash-era games.
5. Happy Wheels
Jim Bonacci’s 2010 physics game is one of the best-known browser rage games ever made. You pilot characters on various vehicles (a Segway, a wheelchair, a pogo stick) through obstacle courses, dying in elaborate and gory ways. The cruelty is more cartoon than cathartic, but the “try again, fail more spectacularly, laugh” loop is pure rage game. The developer’s own site hosts a browser version; it’s violent, so it’s not one for younger players.
6. Flappy Bird
The modern one-button rage game. Our Flappy Bird asks you to tap through pipe gaps, and a single mistimed tap ends the run. There’s no progress to lose beyond your score, but the “how did I miss that” reaction is pure Getting Over It.
7. Dirt Bike
Physics and throttle control decide everything here. Our Dirt Bike game makes you balance speed against rotation over bumps and jumps, and over-correcting flips you onto your head. It’s the closest thing on our own shelf to Foddy-style “the controls are the obstacle.”
8. Tower Stack
A vertical climb of a different kind. In Tower Stack you drop moving blocks onto a growing tower, and every sloppy drop shrinks the platform you have left. The higher you get, the more one bad tap costs you, which is the same slow-dread feeling as a long Getting Over It climb.
9. Doodle Jump
Another vertical ascent with a long way to fall. Our Doodle Jump has you bouncing from platform to platform, and a single missed landing sends you back to the start. Much gentler than Foddy’s work, but the climb-and-fall rhythm is shared.
10. The Chrome Dino game
The opposite of rage, mostly. The Chrome Dino game has predictable physics, instant restarts, and nothing to lose but a score. As the speed climbs toward its maximum, though, one late jump over a cactus can still produce a very Foddy-like groan.
Which one should you start with?
If you’ve never played any Foddy, start with QWOP; it’s the cleanest expression of his design idea. For the closest mechanical precursor to Getting Over It, GIRP. For a more slapstick rage experience, Happy Wheels. For multiplayer chaos, Pole Riders. For a quick one-button fix, Flappy Bird.
The honest caveat
None of these are Getting Over It. Foddy built it as a homage to Jazzuo’s 2002 game Sexy Hiking, and his combination of hammer-climbing mechanics and philosophical narration is hard to replicate. The browser space gives you Foddy’s earlier sketches and a few thematic cousins, but the full Getting Over It experience requires the PC or mobile version (about $8 on Steam, and worth it if you have the disposition for it).
For more on Foddy’s career, our history of Bennett Foddy covers his games in order, and the Wikipedia article on Getting Over It traces the development and reception.
How they compare
| Game | Control style | Setting | Foddy? |
|---|---|---|---|
| QWOP | 4-key | Sprint track | Yes |
| GIRP | Letter keys + Shift | Cliff face | Yes |
| CLOP | 4-key | Open ground | Yes |
| Pole Riders | Keys per player | Ball field | Yes |
| Happy Wheels | Arrow keys | Obstacle course | No |
| Flappy Bird | 1-button | Pipes | No |
| Dirt Bike | Throttle + lean | Track | No |
| Tower Stack | 1-button | Vertical tower | No |
| Doodle Jump | Left/right | Vertical climb | No |
| Chrome Dino | Jump + duck | Desert | No |
Frequently asked questions
Can I play Getting Over It in a browser?
No. Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy is a paid download on PC and mobile. There is no official browser version.
What is the closest browser game to Getting Over It?
GIRP, Foddy’s own 2011 climbing game, is the closest direct precursor and shares the most DNA: a long climb, awkward controls, and a painful fall. QWOP and CLOP share the design philosophy, if not the setting.
Who is Bennett Foddy?
Bennett Foddy is an Australian philosopher and game designer who teaches at NYU’s Game Center. His browser games, including QWOP, GIRP, CLOP, and Pole Riders, predate Getting Over It and helped define the rage-game genre.
Are rage games supposed to be fun?
Yes, in a specific way: the comedy of failure and the eventual triumph after many attempts. The genre is defined by intentional difficulty, not poor design. The frustration is the point, and the payoff when you succeed is calibrated against it.
Is QWOP still playable?
Yes. QWOP was originally a Flash game, but a version that runs in modern browsers is available on foddy.net.
The bottom line
Games like Getting Over It in a browser start with Bennett Foddy’s own earlier catalog: QWOP, GIRP, CLOP, and Pole Riders. For slapstick physics, Happy Wheels; for quick one-button frustration, Flappy Bird and Tower Stack. And when you need to recover from a frustration spike, the T-Rex Runner is one key away.
