Usually when you play a climbing game like Death Stranding, it involves heavy handed mechanical exercises, and strenuous playthroughs. I love that game, but man, it was stressful to go through certain places because of that. This is, I am relieved to say, the opposite of that. Jusant is actually another Don't Nod title, but rather, actually a really good one.
Most of their games have their strengths placed in the narrative experiences. With great production value, and good soundtracks. But here, it's where the gameplay actually shines. It's a calm soothing climb to the top, with amazing gameplay design and mechanic that creates an addictive loop.
Playing the short tech demo was kind of like the only grip I've had. There's so much to do, yet in so little time. I was enamored by the environment design, and all the other things kind of grew on me in that short period. I wish more of their games was like from this point on.
Just a simple premise, a boy comes to a place that had life, he must climb a tall tower to explore the biomes within. This is where things open up, from afar where the tower is looming in the distance within a fog, while everything else is deserted. Wreckages of boats everywhere.
Sounds like some post-apocalypse setting, yet there's more to add to its uniqueness in that premise. The artstyle in this game colorful, like they've been masterfully crafted with clay, but the lighting, shadows, and rendering effects give it vibrancy in life.
Yeah, that kind of look is achieved using the UE5 engine. There's no voice acting, as it focuses a lot on the sound design and visual fidelity for the immersion. How I know about the character, and his companion is through their expression, and how they react through their surroundings. While every area provides environmental storytelling through the complex Himalayan inspired architecture.
Climbing and using platforms is what this game. To start is, I have to jump, then hold both triggers to climb with my arm. A Piton is set up just to avoid me from falling, a total of 4 can be used. Using the analog to move them towards the direction, while pressing each trigger button manually to climb.
That's the neat part, is how I have to hold at least one trigger to keep them grabbing hold, if not, they fall. Each trigger corresponds to an arm, and climbing left, I had to use the trigger to use right arm. Mechanics have added complexities, including pressing to grab ledges while doing double jumps.
The environments are intricately designed, kind of like getting me interested into geology way. The challenge comes in doing the rest. Climbs are long at times, so I have to use multiple Pitons points in case I fall. My stamina also drains up, have to keep an eye on that. There's no concept of death in this game, so I can play however I want. There's just something calm about it
I can take rests, but my permanent stamina drains till I reach surface. Pressing a button simply just shake it off which returns whatever left of my stamina pool. Bumpers can pull up and down rope while hanging on rope. I can also do wall runs before jumping to the next area even.
Hasn't been an hour yet, and pretty much enamored by all the things I see as I get go further up. One is a small settlement home. There are objects to interact with, like placing a pebble on a pile of rocks. Guessing it's a long term goal, and repeatedly finding those unlock something.
The areas broaden up, kind of seems intimidating to climb over as not only do I have to takes guesses as to where to go next, but also to do wall running to get over there as well. NGL, there's some jank in the movements, and physics stuff. Yet, I've gotten used to seeing past those. As mentioned before, I can take my time with this without a game over screen.
From here, I found my first seashell, interacting brings a cutscene where the reward I receive is different views of the place around me, with some blissful audio porn which in this case sounded like whales howling in the distance before the sound of something being hammered.
It probably acts as a memorandum of what the place used to be. At times I would also find journals or notes of other inhabitants, which shows world building as much as the environmental storytelling has. Meaning I have to understandably create agency to be invested in it.
There's no tangible reward systems like the other games where finding this would have changes in the gameplay, these collectibles do help with achievement hunting, and are easy to spot by just exploring a bit. Level design gets progressively interesting. All they had to do was create long stretches of climbing, harder to reach places that required close observation to reach.
These places put every new mechanic I've learned put to good use. Like, interacting with a lever to bring down a hanging Piton so that I can backtrack to the area I came before. Am double jumping on the left or right, climbing taking a risk with a ledge I can barely see.
Ah yes, and then comes the cute element of this long odyssey. Turns out the squeaky noises I've been hearing from my bag is from this cute little blue guy. Turns he can create sudden growths in flora to help me reach other areas via echoes, and also show my objective markers. He becomes a bit part of the climbing experience from that point on.
From an overarching sense, in its whole, it's focus to create this immersive long trek to the top of a giant tower. And even with no concept of dying, it still feels perilous in some ways. Yet marvelous in the discovery, since there's so many well conceived ideas in presence.
It's nothing too grand, something that really has a giant wow factor as the recent games do have now. But within a few small hours, it kind of rewards my curiosities, not making me feel like almost anything I saw was dismissible as sightseeing.
This is a gorgeous looking game, with phenomenal production value using a crazy demanding game engine that somehow manages to put everything it does in good use. I will also give Don't Nod credit for creating a climbing game that makes other platformers like UC4, Tomb Raider, and Prince of Persia truly inferior when they do similar stuff. I just wish I could have played this longer.
And it didn't need to add an obtuse amount of the stuff it does, just sparse in those placement in unique areas to have multiple seamless moments where I get to learn and feel different things. Not even the kind triple A games can easily achieve these days, except maybe Death Stranding did.
Despite though, there being some jank at times. Not everything in the mechanics do register well during climbing, animation can get a little wonky, and ah, I've been stuck in weird invisible walls from places that shouldn't be. Still, small dilapidations from an otherwise, incredibly noteworthy game from a developer that has now broken typecasting.
Credit should be where it's due, for a 4hr priced tech demo, it's quite not like any other.
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