Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy: Survival Guide

A practical guide to climbing Bennett Foddy's mountain: how the hammer physics work, the core techniques, a section-by-section route overview, the settings and versions that matter, and how to stop losing your mind when you fall.

Researched September 2026 — current as of version 1.7 (January 6, 2022) plus the January 29, 2022 M1 Mac bugfix, the last game patch. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

1. You only control the hammer. Diogenes sits in a pot; the mouse moves the hammer head around him. Everything (climbing, jumping, flying) comes from pushing and pulling the world with the hammer.
2. Slow, deliberate movements beat fast ones. Most early falls come from panicked flicks. Move the mouse smoothly and small.
3. Hook and pull. Put the hammer head on top of a ledge, then pull the mouse down toward you to haul the pot up.
4. Push off the ground to "pogo". Put the hammer under the pot and push the mouse up quickly to launch yourself.
5. There are no checkpoints. A single mistake can drop you back to the start. This is the entire design.
6. The game saves your position when you quit. You can close it and resume where you were.
7. Falling is progress in disguise. Each fall replays sections you already know, which is practice.
8. Use a real mouse on a big mouse pad with low-to-medium sensitivity and no pointer acceleration.
9. Listen to Bennett. The voiceover (and the music) is there to soften the blow of losing an hour. Or turn it down in settings if it annoys you.

How the Physics Work

• The hammer head goes where your mouse points relative to the pot, within the length of the hammer.
• When the hammer head is touching something solid, moving the mouse moves the pot instead. That's the core idea: anchor the head, then move your body.
• Speed of mouse movement translates into force. A fast swing launches you; a slow pull climbs you.
• The pot has its own collision. It can snag on corners and slopes. Version 1.6 slightly reshaped the pot collider to reduce the pot "gripping" the world unexpectedly on slopes.
• The hammer can hook over edges and pull you. It can also get stuck in odd geometry; 1.6 fixed a few spots (a barrel and a toilet), but Foddy himself says it will never be perfect.

Core Techniques

Hook pull, step by step

1. Reach the hammer up over the ledge edge.
2. Make sure the head is actually resting on top, not in front of the wall.
3. Pull the mouse down and toward the pot slowly.
4. Once the pot is on top, lower your arm to stay balanced.

Pogo, step by step

1. Put the head on the ground just under and slightly behind the pot.
2. Push the mouse upward briskly.
3. The pot springs up. Move the hammer forward to hook the next ledge while airborne.

Swinging and flying

• Spin the hammer in a circle (the mouse in a circle) while the head scrapes along the ground to build momentum.
• The release direction decides where you go.
• Flying is the hardest thing in the game and is mainly for later sections and speedruns. On a first climb, prefer safe hook pulls.

Route Overview

The mountain is one continuous climb. The community has nicknames for many sections; what matters is recognising them. A rough outline from bottom to top:

• The start: rocks and the tree. Learning the hook pull and pogo. The first "wall" here stops many new players; hook over the top and pull slowly.
• Pipes, the "chimney" and early obstacles. Narrow vertical sections where you brace the hammer on one side and push up. The Chimney is an early tough spot.
• The junkyard / furniture section. Barrels, a toilet, furniture, a slide. Some objects can snag the hammer. Swing gently.
• Orange Hell. A notorious section with orange geometry and slippery angles. A fall here can send you very far back. Take it slowly, and brace often.
• The ice / snow mountain. Slippery surfaces; you must hook the hammer deep and never rush.
• The tower and antenna. A precision climb near the top. A single bad fling drops you to the bottom. Stay calm.
• The summit. Keep going upward into space. Reaching the top unlocks Got Over It.

The reward at the top

Reaching the top triggers the ending and credits. If you confirm you aren't recording or streaming, the game gives you access to a chat room with other players who finished. It's the "magical reward" the store page promises. (The January 2022 patch notes say the end-of-game secret doesn't work on M1 Macs unless you run in Rosetta mode.)

Settings and Versions

• Mouse: Turn off Windows "Enhance pointer precision" (mouse acceleration). Consistency beats speed.
• Sensitivity: Find a setting where a comfortable arm motion covers the hammer's full reach. Too high and you'll overshoot constantly.
• Old versions: Foddy keeps previous versions available. In Steam, go to the game's Properties, then the Betas tab, enter the password nakedmaninapot, and choose a version (the version before 1.6 is 1.599). Speedrunners sometimes prefer specific versions.
• Speedrun reset: Ctrl-R resets the run, but it doesn't work on a player's very first run (May 2021 patch).
• Settings safety: Since the May 2021 update, you can't accidentally start a game while the settings menu is open.
• Orange Hell snag fixed: a May 17, 2021 patch removed a tiny unintended spike in the Orange Hell floor collider that was getting people stuck. If you play an old beta branch, it's still there.
• Version 1.7 (January 2022) only fixed Korean subtitles; the M1 Mac fix later that month stopped the end-of-game crash that could block the achievement on those machines.

Achievements

Fifty climbs sounds insane, but by then you'll be climbing in minutes, not hours. Players commonly report a golden pot and hammer cosmetic unlocking around this milestone.

Recovering From a Fall

A fall is only a disaster if you let it become two falls.

1. Let the pot land and settle. Don't flail mid-air; a random swing can send you further.
2. Stop and breathe for a few seconds before touching the mouse.
3. Identify where you are. You'll recognise sections quickly after a few climbs.
4. Climb the familiar sections slowly. Rushing the easy parts is how a 10-minute setback turns into an hour.
5. When you get back to where you fell, pause. Think about what went wrong before trying the move again. Change one thing: hammer placement, speed of the pull, or where you brace.

Mental Game

• Take breaks after big falls. Tilt makes you rush, which makes you fall again.
• Set small goals. "Get past the Chimney" is a better goal than "beat the game today".
• Each fall shows you where the real challenge is. Note the exact move that went wrong.
• Don't stream a first climb angry. If you want a calm run, play offline and without chat.
• The median time to finish for playtesters was about 5 hours, per the store page. Most people take longer, and that's fine.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Flicking the mouse. Fast, jerky motions throw the pot around. Slow down.
• Hooking the wall instead of the ledge top. Check the hammer head is actually on top before pulling.
• Standing up too tall on slopes. Keep the hammer low and braced so the pot doesn't slide.
• Rushing the easy parts after a fall. Easy parts done lazily cause more falls than hard parts.
• Using a trackpad or high acceleration. Consistency is everything.
• Trying to fly before you can pull. Learn safe hook pulls first.

Advanced Tips

• Learn one safe route per section. Speed comes later; reliability first.
• Watch a speedrun. World-class runs take only a few minutes and show how flying works. You won't copy it immediately, but you'll see where the shortcuts are.
• Practise flinging on low-stakes terrain near the start, where a mistake costs little.
• Use the environment to brace. Any crack or edge can hold the hammer to stop a slide.
• Pre-plan the next hook while airborne. In jumps, the next placement matters more than the jump itself.
• Stay relaxed. A tense grip on the mouse makes you overcorrect.

If You Like This

Bennett Foddy's later projects in the same spirit: APE OUT (2019, designed with friends; Foddy did not bill it as a "Bennett Foddy" game) and Baby Steps (released September 2025), a hiking game where you control each foot manually, set in a large open world, with Foddy voicing seven characters.

FAQ

How long does it take to beat Getting Over It? Anywhere from a couple of hours to never. The store says the median playtester time was 5 hours, but the mean was "closer to infinity".

Is there a save? Yes, your position is saved when you quit. There are no checkpoints that protect you from a fall.

How do I get old versions? Steam Properties, Betas tab, password nakedmaninapot, then pick the version.

What's the reward at the top? The ending, credits and access to a chat room with other people who reached the top (if you confirm you aren't recording).

Does it work on Mac? Yes. Version 1.6 added support for newer Macs, including Apple Silicon, but the end-of-game secret doesn't work on M1 Macs unless run in Rosetta mode.

Can I play with a controller? It's designed for a mouse. Use a mouse.

Sources

• Getting Over It on Steam
• Steam news: version 1.6 patch notes and later updates
• Steam achievements list
• Getting Over It on Wikipedia