Celeste and TowerFall have been suddenly delisted from the Xbox store earlier this week, a move that developer Maddy Thorson has clarified was intentional. In a post on Bluesky, Thorson stated that the games were removed from sale specifically to support the BDS movement. This campaign aims to protest companies linked to or supporting the Israeli government during the ongoing conflict in Palestine.
Thorson explicitly addressed inquiries regarding the removal, confirming, "For those who're asking, yes we delisted Celeste and TowerFall on Xbox. We did this to support the BDS boycott." According to the BDS organization, Microsoft is included on their list due to its partnership with Israel and its prison system. The tech giant has reportedly provided Azure Cloud and AI systems that have been utilized in the subjugation of Palestinians over recent years. Consequently, BDS has urged consumers to cancel Game Pass subscriptions and boycott major Xbox franchises alongside other Microsoft gaming products.
This incident marks another instance where developers have opted out of the Xbox platform due to these political concerns. Just weeks prior, House House, the developer of Big Walk, announced their game would not be on Xbox because of Microsoft's ties to Israel. Similarly, the creator of Tenderfoot Tactics made a comparable decision in 2025. That Australian developer noted at the time that they would only return to the platform once Microsoft and Xbox were removed as BDS targets, expressing a belief in coordinated collective action.
Microsoft has previously responded to these boycotts by acknowledging it supplied AI technology to Israel's Ministry of Defense. However, the company claims there is no evidence that this technology was used to target or harm people in the conflict in Gaza, a statement that various reports have refuted. Despite their removal from the Xbox ecosystem, both Celeste and TowerFall remain available for purchase on PlayStation, PC, and Nintendo Switch.
Sources: Eurogamer.