Cairn (video game)

Last updated

Cairn
Cairn cover art.jpg
Developer The Game Bakers
Publisher The Game Bakers
Director Emeric Thoa
Designer Audrey Leprince
Artist Mathieu Bablet
Writer Mathieu Bablet
Composers
Engine Unity
Platforms
Release29 January 2026
Genres Simulation, adventure
Mode Single-player

Cairn is a 2026 simulation adventure video game developed and published by The Game Bakers. In the game, the player assumes control of Aava, a professional mountaineer who seeks to summit the mysterious Mount Kami. While her journey is mostly solitary, she also encounters other climbers and inhabitants on the mountain and uncovers remnants of past expeditions along with a long-lost civilization. As a simulation game, players manually control each of Aava's limbs. The game also features elements commonly found in survival games, with players being tasked with managing Aava's hunger, thirst, and temperature. The game also features a weather system and a day-night cycle, all of which affect its difficulty.

Contents

Development of the game started in 2020. Emeric Thoa served as the game's creative director, while comic book artist Mathieu Bablet was its art director and lead writer, and Martin Stig Andersen was the game's audio designer and co-composer. The Game Bakers described the game as a conclusion to its "trilogy on freedom", following Furi and Haven . The team was inspired by climbing documentaries and The Summit of the Gods while creating the game. They also consulted alpinists and visited Aiguille du Midi to understand more about mountaineering. While The Game Bakers described the game as a "survival climber" and compared Mount Kami to a long boss fight, the game was not designed to be punishing, with the team introducing various accessibility options. The game was powered by Unity, and it had a budget of €5 million.

Announced in June 2024, the game was released in January 2026 for PlayStation 5 and Windows. The game received generally positive reviews, with critics praising its simulation gameplay, story, and art direction, though Aava's characterization and the game's technical issues were criticized. The game sold over 200,000 copies in three days.

Gameplay

In Cairn, players must manually position the limbs of a mountaineer as she attempts to summit a mountain. Cairn screenshot.png
In Cairn, players must manually position the limbs of a mountaineer as she attempts to summit a mountain.

Cairn is a rock climbing simulation video game played from a third-person perspective. In the game, the player assumes control of Aava, a professional mountaineer who aspires to become the first person to summit a fictional mountain named Mount Kami. [1]

As Aava, players are tasked with reading the rock face and charting out their climbing routes. [2] There are multiple pathways for players to reach the top. [3] Players must manually position each of Aava's limbs on handholds and footholds as she climbs up the mountain. [4] The game automatically selects which limb to move by default, though players can override this with manual control at any time. [5] Pitons, which catch Aava when she falls, function as the game's checkpoints, and chalk can increase Aava's grip. [6] Players have to be aware of Aava's posture and manage her stamina. If Aava is placed in an uncomfortable position for a sustained period, overextending or overexerting one limb, she may fall, partially resetting the player's progress. [7] [8] Players must observe Aava to gauge her level of exhaustion. If she is under extreme stress, she will breathe heavily and her limbs will tremble. [9] Players can shake one of Aava's tired limbs or belay off a piton to regain some stamina during an ascent. Aava's body language will also inform players that a hold is large enough for her to grab. [6] Weather, time of day, and the composition of the rock wall will also alter the difficulty of an ascent. [10] For instance, strong wind will disrupt Aava's balance and heavy rain will cause rock faces to become slippery, while nighttime significantly lowers visibility. [11]

The game also features elements from survival games, as Aava needs to rest, eat, and drink to lower hunger and thirst. [12] At regular intervals, players can rest at a bivouac shelter, which serves as a save point for players. It is a place where Aava can rest, bandage herself, cook food, and repair equipment. [13] She is also accompanied by a robot named Climbot, which can recycle pitons and make new chalk for Aava. [6] [14] While her backpack has limited space, she can find new resources necessary for her survival while exploring Mount Kami. [13] Players also discover side objectives by collecting maps and letters, prompting her to explore off the beaten path to look for collectibles. As Aava progresses, she will gain new items and upgrades, such as indestructible pitons and a pinwheel, as well as additional recipes for food. [10] [11] Cairn is also an adventure game. Aava will discover the secrets of the mountain and decide the sacrifices she will have to make to achieve her dream. [1] She will encounter other climbers attempting to summit the mountain, discover traces of past expeditions, and remnants of a long-lost Troglodyte civilization. Her friends also leave messages for her through her Climbot. Through interactions with these non-playable characters and visiting locations of interest, players will understand more about Aava's motivations and background. [6]

Besides the story mode, the game also features Expedition mode, in which players can choose their playable avatar (Aava or Marco), select their climbing style (alpine or free solo), and share their results with other players. [1] The game was also released with several accessibility options that make the experience easier. For instance, players can toggle "rewind", allowing them to turn back time before Aava falls. Players can also activate assist mode, which turns off all survival needs, and increase the frequency of autosaves. [15]

Development and release

To prepare for the game's development and understand more about mountaineering, the team visited the Aiguille du Midi in the Mont Blanc massif. Aiguille-du-Midi-sundown.JPG
To prepare for the game's development and understand more about mountaineering, the team visited the Aiguille du Midi in the Mont Blanc massif.

Cairn was developed by The Game Bakers. Development of the game started in 2020, and a team of 25 people worked on the game. [16] Emeric Thoa served as the game's creative director, while comic book artist Mathieu Bablet was recruited for the game's art direction and story. [1] It had a budget of €5 million. [17] The Game Bakers announced Cairn in June 2024 for PlayStation 5 and Windows. [1] A time-limited demo for the game was released through Steam in December 2024. [18] More than 600,000 players tried the demo. [19] The game was originally planned to be released on 5 November 2025 [20] [21] but it was delayed to 29 January 2026. [22]

Cairn was described by the team as the conclusion of their "trilogy on freedom", following Furi and Haven . [23] Creative director Emeric Thoa felt that alpinism stories captured a sense of "absolute freedom", and that Cairn was "a reflection on mountaineering itself, on what drives people to push themselves beyond their limits to climb mountains". [24] [15] Thoa was inspired by climbing documentaries and the manga The Summit of the Gods while creating the game. [15] The game also explores the darker side of mountaineering, including the dangers and isolation associated with it. [15] The team also found several similarities between playing a video game and mountaineering, as both had clearly defined rules and "instinctive success and failure consequences". [12] The Game Bakers wanted the story to be "moving". Bablet described Aava as an individual who is demanding, a perfectionist, and highly disciplined, though her attachment to her ambitions sometimes inflicts a heavy toll on the surrounding people. Several side characters were introduced to reveal Aava's background and personal history. [24] The team spent three years consulting alpinist Élisabeth Revol and Chamonix mountain guide Loan Giroud, who shared their mountaineering experience with the team. [25] Mount Kami was inspired by the Himalayas, the Alps, and the Vercors massif, and the team also attempted to ascend Aiguille du Midi themselves. [17]

The Game Bakers described the game as a "survival climber". [23] It compared summiting the game's mountain to a persistent boss battle, in which players use their skills and manage their resources in order to conquer it. [26] Since the core theme of the game is freedom, players may chart their own path while climbing. [27] The game initially did not have any save points, and the player character would die permanently if they fell, though this idea was scrapped and relegated to a side mode after realizing that this punishing difficulty would not appeal to all players. [15] The team compared it to Death Stranding and the Dark Souls series, though Thoa stressed Cairn was not designed to induce rage, [9] [16] and that the game was designed to encourage players to persevere and come back from failure. [15] Thoa further added that Cairn was about putting effort into conquering insurmountable odds, and that players are encouraged to try, learn, and improve. [27] To prevent overwhelming players at the beginning of the game, the team also added many accessibility features. [15] Each rock face and its handholds are handcrafted by the team. Thoa added that creating the game's technology was challenging, as the climbing movements were determined in real time using game physics and mathematical algorithms, meaning that a small adjustment to the level will bring about a cascade of other changes to other areas. [12] The team took over three years to create and refine the climbing simulation. [27]

The team collaborated with Lukas Julian Lentz (known for his work on Cocoon ) and Martin Stig Andersen (known for his work on Limbo and Inside ) for Cairn's audio. [15] Andersen, alongside French DJ The Toxic Avenger and Franco-Brazilian singer Gildaa, composed the game's soundtrack. Gildaa also recorded the efforts of Aava while she is climbing, including her breathing and screaming sounds. [28] The team felt that screaming was a signature feature of mountaineering, and that it helped create a "shared feeling of exasperation" between the player and Aava. [15] To create a contrast between the serenity of nature and the intensity of rock climbing, the audio team implemented a dynamic system called "mountain intimidation," which shifts the soundscape based on the player's camera angle. [15] Music plays primarily while the player explores Mount Kami in safety; the team used these melodic cues to reinforce emotional moments without distracting the player during the intensity of a climb. [15] Sophia Eleni provided the voice for Aava, and Hyoie O’Grady, Adam Howden, Aaron Neil, Rebecca Benson, Alexandra Boulton, and Rich Keeble are featured in supporting roles. [29]

Reception

Cairn received "generally favorable" reviews, according to review aggregator website Metacritic. [30] [31] Fellow review aggregator OpenCritic assessed that the game received "mighty" approval, being recommended by 92% of critics. [32]

Will Borger from IGN wrote that summiting Kami was an "exhilarating" and "rewarding" experience, noting that players need to manage Aava's health and stamina, as well as her hunger and temperature, to succeed. [13] Keza MacDonald from The Guardian wrote that Cairn is a "punishing, beautiful survival game that turns mountaineering into an intimate test of endurance, fixation and emotional resolve". She felt that climbing the mountain was a tense experience, and reaching a safe point provided relief that was "intoxicating". [41] Matt Miller from Game Informer compared Mount Kami to a massive puzzle and long boss fights, and praised the game for having many alternative paths for players to reach their objectives. [33] Lewis Gordon from Eurogamer wrote that Cairn and Baby Steps , as opposed to combat-heavy games, provided a "kinder, more generous masocore" experience where arduous, incremental progress still yields euphoric satisfaction. [42] Several critics remarked that the game had successfully captured the joy and the thrills of rock climbing. [36] [3] In a more negative review, Ali Jones from GamesRadar criticized the climbing mechanics for being "clumsy". [35]

The art direction and music were praised for elevating the gameplay. [33] [36] Zackery Cuevas from PCMag wrote that the game was "visually striking", commending how its stylized art is used to depict natural scenery. [37] Several critics remarked that the game had a strong sense of place, noting that the game is filled with unique locations of interest and stunning vistas. [33] [34] [43] Shaun Prescott from PC Gamer described Cairn as "a game of strange encounters", noting its "surreal" and "meditative" qualities. [36] Chance Townsend from Mashable , while praising the art direction by comparing it to graphic novels and minimalist animated films, criticized that the climbing animations can be awkward at times, thus breaking players' immersion. [11] Several reviewers also criticized the game's technical issues. [11] [38]

The game's story received strong praise from critics. James Pickard from TechRadar noted that the story was well written and that its characters were "compelling". [40] Borger noted that the game's environmental storytelling was "moving", and noted that they "recur and build on themselves" as players progress. [13] Several critics praised the game's themes and how it explored the consequences of chasing ambitions and the human cost of mountaineering, [43] [13] [11] [33] [39] and noted that the game had a very memorable ending. [33] [13] Oli Welsh from Polygon added that the game had "interesting" pacing, praising how the game balanced sections with difficult gameplay and more relaxed exploration. [43] Some noted that the challenging gameplay further elevated the game's story and its messages. [41] [13] Townsend, however, felt that the narrative was "sparse". [11] The character of Aava received a mixed response. Borger described Aava as a "complicated, complex, imperfect" character, [13] while Moises Taveras from GameSpot also praised Aava for being a person with "real struggles and a real lack of answers". [34] However, Jones called her "unrealistic" and "unsympathetic", while Stephen Tailby from Push Square criticized Aava's confrontational attitude towards other characters throughout the game, which resulted in a narrative that felt "frustrating". [38]

Sales

The Game Bakers estimated that the game would sell between 300,000 to 1 million units in its first year of sales. [17] Over 200,000 copies were sold within the first three days of the game's launch. [44] Later, a week after launch, the game sold more than 300,000 copies, [45] reaching the minimum goal of the estimated target.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Romano, Sal (7 June 2024). "The Game Bakers announces survival climbing game Cairn for consoles, PC". Gematsu. Archived from the original on 23 September 2024. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  2. ↑ Morton, Lauren (6 December 2024). "'Survival-climber' Cairn just dropped a demo so you can go hands-on with the insurmountable Mount Kami". PC Gamer . Archived from the original on 17 January 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  3. 1 2 Gordon, Lewis (29 January 2026). "The Thrill of Climbing From the Comfort of Your Couch". The New York Times . Archived from the original on 30 January 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  4. ↑ "Cairn Wants To Be 'The Dark Souls Of Climbing Games'". GameSpot . 23 August 2024. Archived from the original on 16 February 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  5. ↑ Chandler, Sam (29 January 2026). "How to climb - Cairn". Shacknews . Archived from the original on 29 January 2026. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Hornshaw, Phil (29 January 2026). "Cairn — 8 advanced climbing tips to make it to the summit". PlayStation Blog . Archived from the original on 7 February 2026. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  7. ↑ Luddy, Lex (31 August 2025). "Preview: Cairn PS5 Proves Much More Impressive Than Just a Realistic Version of Only Up". Push Square . Archived from the original on 14 January 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  8. ↑ Tucker, Jake (3 September 2024). "Cairn might be the best climbing game I've ever played, and I wish it was released already". PC Gamer . Archived from the original on 20 February 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  9. 1 2 Gordon, Lewis (19 July 2024). "The Dark Souls of climbing games: Cairn leans into the challenge of mountaineering". The Guardian . Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  10. 1 2 Watts, Rachel (8 January 2026). ""We wanted to explore that longing for absolute freedom": Cairn is a survival climbing game about human will, endurance, and sacrifice". GamesRadar . Archived from the original on 3 February 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  11. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Townsend, Chance (29 January 2026). "'Cairn' review: It's 'Peak' for the real climbing freaks". Mashable . Archived from the original on 30 January 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  12. 1 2 3 Kemp, Luke (12 January 2025). ""Climbing is in itself a game, with rules everybody knows": Cairn's tense, strategic ascents are making our palms sweat". GamesRadar . Archived from the original on 10 February 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Borger, Will (29 January 2026). "Cairn Review". IGN . Archived from the original on 29 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  14. ↑ Koreis, Justin (7 January 2026). "Cairn Preview: Face Beauty and Danger Atop the World's Most Dangerous Mountain". IGN . Archived from the original on 12 January 2026. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  15. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Thwaites, Sarah (30 January 2026). "'Why do they climb mountains? Why do they sacrifice everything and take so many risks just to climb a rock – nobody asked them to?' — Cairn's creative director unpacks the studio's survival-climber". TechRadar . Archived from the original on 2 February 2026. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  16. 1 2 Francis, Bryant (3 October 2024). "Cairn's manual climbing system is like a 'vertical Death Stranding'". Game Developer . Archived from the original on 19 February 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  17. 1 2 3 Trabuchet, Ludovic (29 January 2026). "Après le succès mondial de "Clair Obscur", un autre studio montpelliérain vise le sommet avec le jeu d'escalade "Cairn"". Midi Libre (in French). Archived from the original on 2 February 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  18. ↑ Reuben, Nic (5 December 2024). "You can play the demo for heavy-breathing open world mountain climber Cairn now". Rock, Paper, Shotgun . Archived from the original on 16 January 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  19. ↑ Hopley, Alex (1 October 2025). "Survival climbing game Cairn delayed to Q1 2026". Gamereactor. Archived from the original on 1 October 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2026.
  20. ↑ Adam, Khayl (19 March 2025). "The 'Dark Souls of Climbing' Cairn Ascends PS5 in 2025". Push Square . Archived from the original on 19 March 2025. Retrieved 19 March 2025.
  21. ↑ Thoa, Emeric (4 June 2025). "Survival climber Cairn ascends to PS5 November 5". PlayStation.Blog. Archived from the original on 4 June 2025. Retrieved 4 June 2025.
  22. ↑ Wickens, Katie (4 December 2025). "Cairn finally has a release date, so get ready to scramble your way through this atmospheric climbing game". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 8 December 2025. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
  23. 1 2 LeClair, Kyle (7 June 2024). "The Game Bakers Conclude a Trilogy With the Debut of Their Next Game, Cairn". Hardcore Gamer. Archived from the original on 24 November 2025. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  24. 1 2 Thoa, Emeric (4 December 2025). "Cairn: the climb of a lifetime starts January 29 2026". PlayStation Blog . Archived from the original on 9 December 2025. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  25. ↑ Pastor, Luiza (4 February 2026). "Escale uma montanha de 9.000 metros sem sair da poltrona". Folha de S.Paulo (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on 6 February 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  26. ↑ Wood, Austin (26 August 2024). "I've never seen a survival game like this mountain climbing sim from the developers of Furi, one of my favorite boss rush games of all time". GamesRadar . Archived from the original on 19 September 2024. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
  27. 1 2 3 Pieterse, Areille (28 January 2025). "Cairn Interview: Scaling Emotional And Physical Peaks". NAG. Archived from the original on 23 July 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2026.
  28. ↑ Cauduro, Lauranne (26 May 2025). "The award winning team behind Cairn's music". The Game Bakers. Archived from the original on 21 August 2025. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  29. ↑ Cauduro, Lauranne (11 June 2025). "Cairn – meet the cast!". The Game Bakers. Archived from the original on 18 January 2026. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
  30. 1 2 "Cairn for PC Reviews". Metacritic . Archived from the original on 1 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  31. 1 2 "Cairn for PlayStation 5 Reviews". Metacritic . Archived from the original on 12 February 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  32. 1 2 "Cairn". OpenCritic. Archived from the original on 30 January 2026. Retrieved 30 January 2026.
  33. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Miller, Matt (29 January 2026). "Cairn Review - The Price Of Persistence". Game Informer . Archived from the original on 29 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  34. 1 2 3 Taveras, Moises (29 January 2026). "Cairn Review - An Uphill Battle Worth Taking On". GameSpot . Archived from the original on 30 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  35. 1 2 Jones, Ali (29 January 2026). "Cairn review: "This climber has a grip on me – even when it loses its footing with awkward systems, the challenge remains surmountable"". GamesRadar . Archived from the original on 29 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  36. 1 2 3 4 Prescott, Shaun (29 January 2026). "Cairn review". PC Gamer . Archived from the original on 29 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  37. 1 2 L Wilson, Jeffrey (29 January 2026). "Cairn Review: Manual Climbing Meets Heart-Pounding Tension". PCMag . Retrieved 14 February 2026.
  38. 1 2 3 Tailby, Stephen (29 January 2026). "Cairn Review (PS5)". Push Square . Archived from the original on 29 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  39. 1 2 Chandler, Sam (29 January 2026). "Cairn review: Reaching for greatness". Shacknews . Archived from the original on 30 January 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  40. 1 2 Pickard, James (29 January 2026). "Cairn's complete dedication to its arduous climb may turn off many, but I found it to be a fulfilling, gratifying, and thoughtful adventure". TechRadar . Archived from the original on 29 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  41. 1 2 3 MacDonald, Keza (29 January 2026). "Cairn review – obsession, suffering and awe in a climbing game that hits exhausting new heights". The Guardian . Archived from the original on 29 January 2026. Retrieved 29 January 2026.
  42. ↑ Gordon, Lewis (7 February 2026). "Difficulty done differently: Cairn and Baby Steps deliver kinder, more generous masocore". Eurogamer . Archived from the original on 8 February 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  43. 1 2 3 Welsh, Oli (29 January 2026). "Cairn has no guns, no clock, no competition, but every second is completely intense". Polygon . Archived from the original on 6 February 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
  44. ↑ Ruiz, Fran (2 February 2026). "Indie critical darling Cairn climbs Steam charts, reaches 200k copies sold on PC and PS5 in first weekend". Eurogamer . Archived from the original on 7 February 2026. Retrieved 8 February 2026.
  45. ↑ Harradence, Michael (9 February 2026). "The Game Bakers Confirms Cairn Has Now Sold 300,000 Units". PlayStation Universe. Archived from the original on 12 February 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.