Climbing is the most boring mechanics in the game. And Jusant is a climbing game. From this description it was clear that the game is one of two things. Either the perfect way to fall asleep or the most innovative crossing experience since Octodad…Et I was pleasantly surprised by what I found.
Juicing starts at the bottom and gives them a rope to carry them to the top of a mountain. It is almost disrespectful to describe this juggernaut as a mountain, because the term may seem misleading. You will discover small towns on cliffs and windmills along the mountain. And in the mountain itself you will cross wooded environments and be greeted by a soft, slimy flora.
The dreamlike landscape of a desert
A subtly ascending soundtrack accompanies their ascent. Dream synthesizers, strings and piano among other atmospheric instruments encourage their ascent. The style and progress of the music are reminiscent of another game with a mountain, Journey with its stunning orchestral sound. The ascending road is full of letters, secrets and columns that add more to the world of Jusant, from which you quickly learn that he is not doing so well.
The traditions of the world are explored in a fairly effective way through travel entries and environmental narratives. The writing is pleasant, albeit somewhat forced, but more importantly, it paints a vivid picture of the people who once lived in this place. There is no spoken dialogue or narrative dumps. If you ignore all the diary entries, you may be wondering if there is a story.
But that’s okay, because Jusant’s motherboard is not reading, but physics and control.
Rope physics and freedom
Once you have learned to put one hand in front of the other, you will be shown very quickly how much freedom you have to approach each section. The game uses a robust physics system with ten percent tripping over themselves and ninety percent genius. It is very dynamic and satisfying to cross this space.
This is most elegantly illustrated with the rope system. True to the actual climbing, you have a safety trigger and a carabiner. They are also immune to fall damage. With these two powers you can get started on anything and everything.
The game allows you to place rope anchors almost anywhere (up to 3 at a time), so you can tie yourself to a wall and swing as a pendulum. The rope itself is based on physics, so it can tie around objects and terrain to your advantage or disadvantage. In any matter, it makes the climbing game interesting and allows you to set your own control points using this system.
Opportunity and controls
If there is one thing that has disappointed me a little, it is the missed opportunity to take advantage of the features of the DualSense controller. I was playing Jusant on PS5 and was hoping that the adaptive triggers of the controller would be used in a similar way as in Astro’s game room. I was a little discouraged when I found out that he was not found. However, if it had been used, my fingers would have gotten blisters, like a real mountaineer.
To climb, you need to switch between the left and right triggers, which at first seems a little strange, but quickly becomes very natural. The game also subtly gives a little forgiveness in these controls, allowing you to climb walls very quickly without worrying about slipping from the long climb.