Jusant

Beautiful game in both story and presentation. A great reminder to appreciate the cycle of nature we're a part of. Personally, I found it a testament to humanity's stubborn resilience and striving to make the most out of a situation, for better and for worse. Pros: - Touching story and meaningful message. Build-up in final area and ending stuck with me. - Gorgeous graphics: stunning vistas, beautiful lighting and textures, unique design and art direction - Great worldbuilding, with interesting settlements and background story that stirs your imagination for what the past must have been like. - Enjoyable puzzles and gameplay (climbing): strikes the right balance between challenge and ease for the atmosphere it's going for. - Nods to real-world rockclimbing in a fantasy/sci-fi setting was refreshing. Cons: - Very linear. - No real exploration: very rarely are you rewarded for exploring off the beaten path, and most places you can rappel to don't even let you stand there. - No interaction with majority of settlements and their many objects strewn about, other than tech used to progress. - No interaction with few animals to be found, other than startling them away. - Was longer than it needed to be, even with its relatively short playtime. Some areas felt like padding (though they were very beautiful) - Inverse kinematics used on main character sometimes janky while climbing. Some things to note: - Solitary experience. - No dialogue for present-day story. - Background story delivered entirely through letters, plenty of reading. - Isn't a realistic representation of rockclimbing (but I forgive it because of the fantasy/sci-fi setting... maybe the main character's race has super efficient muscles and hollow bones for some of those moves)

Incredibly fun climbing mechanics and a fairly awe inspiring finale.

The water has been long gone. You, a lone wanderer in this arid world, begin to climb an impossibly high mountain, its vertical slopes once a place where people lived and made a living. They are long gone, too, their homes deserted. It's not clear who you or your little blue companion are or why you climb this mountain together. But perhaps you will learn a few things along the way... I absolutely adore Jusant's setting, this freakishly steep, almost pillar-like mountain in the middle of a desert. An outlandish place but at the same time made familiar by the remains of a society that once called this their home. As you climb the mountain you come across dwellings and worksites, read some of the former resident's letters and journals, and start to piece together, in a sense, what happened. The story and lore are doled out with a light touch. You never dwell in one place for long, always staying on the move, always continuing the climb. Speaking of which, the climbing mechanics are well-designed and (when using a controller) intuitive. It's here where Jusant presents a gentle challenge as you have to find the way upwards and deal with stamina while shifting from ledge to ledge. However, being a non-violent and generally chill game, you cannot fall to your death as you are automatically secured while climbing. Jusant doesn't try to be too many things at once. It focuses entirely on its marvelous setting, its gentle story and thoughtful climbing mechanics. It is not very long and it doesn't have to be. A very special game.

Jeu très posé, où les pics de difficultés se placent ci et là de l'avancée. L'histoire est contée principalement par des lettres laissées par les habitants qui semblent avoir quitté le lieu que nous explorons en grimpant toujours plus haut. La DA est parfaite, que ce soient les graphismes ou les musiques !