Alright. Jusant is done and dusted. I was pretty thorough and still missed stuff, but all told, my playthrough was right at six hours. This was made with Unreal 5, and you can really tell.

At its core, this is exactly a parkour game. Your goal is to climb to the top of a mountain known as The Tower to try and restore rain to the world, which has been in an extreme drought long enough for the people of the world to either die or move on to try and find new places to live. The people had been a seafaring society, so when the oceans dried up, they gathered at The Tower, using their ships/boats to rebuild society up and down the mountain.

And that is what you, the nameless protagonist, and your friend, a tiny creature known as Ballast, will explore as you make your way up the mountain. Because there are no people left in The Tower, it’s got a very real sense of loneliness to it. There are however a number of animals who have managed to keep on living and thriving in the remnants of this abandoned world.

The parkour does have some nuance to it. You are armed with a rope, and ascender/descender, and pitons to assist in your climbing. And actually, you can’t ever fall to your death, so mission accomplished with the gear, lol. Along the way, Ballast can sing a song that encourages plants to grow, which will assist in your climbing; and here and there, new climbing mechanics will be introduced to help or challenge you.

You will also explore the abandoned settlements, reading notes left by previous inhabitants, old newspaper clips. You can find old shrines that will be brought back to their glory via Ballast’s song or by you spinning them (two types of shrines). You will also find old seashells that hold a set of brief memories you can relive. And finally, you can complete some rock stacks here and there. Each chapter features and final location where you will blow a massive horn that wakes up part of the mountain and encourages new life to bloom.

That’s pretty much the game. Although mostly linear, the game does offer some hidden areas and exploration. I thought I had been pretty thorough, but still missed some stuff. After you finish the game, chapter select unlocks, allowing you to go back and explore to your heart’s content.

There is no dialogue. This is similar to games like Journey or Abzu, where the music, the graphics, and the exploration really tell the tale. In the end, a nessage of hope rings forth. However, you are still keft with the mystery of whether the people of The Tower found a new life elsewhere or simply all died off due to a lack of water.

I played on the Steam Deck with no adjustments necessary. Battery life with default settings was right at ninety minutes.

This was a very pleasant experience with decent climbing chalkenges and a world filled with both longing and mystery. I received this as a gift, but I think it more than earns its asking price. Definitely give this game a look.