Another Steam Next Fest, another load of demos to dive into. My initial estimations have me up to 25 as things stand, but to keep things a bit more digestible I’ll be producing a series of write-ups on my favourites. Stay tuned for more thoughts on what else is out there I guess.

Jusant is the latest game from acclaimed developer/publisher Don’t Nod (Life is Strange, Harmony etc.) and from the trailer alone I was super keen to give this one a go. It plays as well as it looks, offering a delightfully devilish climbing system that reminds me of a similar mechanic used in Astro’s Playroom, anyone else remember the Monkey Mech that utilised the Dualsense triggers to brilliant effect?

Early indications point to this one being as narrative-driven as Don’t Nod‘s previous outings. Prolonged precious of carefully crafted climbing sequences are bookended by periods of momentary reflection, as you, and your character, absorb the world surrounding them. It’s a gorgeous world too, making these moments of pause a chance to take a breath, and enjoy the view. I’m sure there’s lots to be learnt about Jusant’s world, and the characters that inhabit it, but for now, let’s get back to the best part of this experimental title.

Christian Donlan wrote a brilliant article in Eurogamer that attributed similarities between Jusant’s climbing mechanic and that seen in the fantastic Grow Home, and as a huge fan of the latter I instantly recognised the comparison between the two. Stepping away from the typical Uncharted climbing gameplay that lets you absentmindedly lurch across surfaces without a care in the world, Jusant implements a complex control scheme that relies on understanding momentum and carefully timing controller inputs.

Each hand is associated with a trigger, with the left stick being used to ‘aim’ your arm. It instantly adds a degree of ‘danger’ to climbing sequences, especially when you consider the well-designed momentum system that exists with Jusant. There’s a jump too, which adds another layer of potential risk (or reward) and is controlled similarly to your characters hands. Just remember to actually use your hands when you stop flying through the air, I learnt that the hard way… There’s a carabiner and some pitons to make use of too, clearly highlighting how Jusant is heavily leaning into its climbing aesthetic, this isn’t no shallow climbing sim.

You’re also introduced to a stamina system, another potentially annoying mechanic (looking at you Breath of the Wild climbing) that manages to navigate itself into something rather clever. It adds another layer of trepidation to every journey, but is fairly easy to manage. Of course this could change later on, but during the demo I had no issues with dramatically running out of stamina.

Jusant’s overall loop is nearly entirely comprised of repeated climbing, so it’s a good job it all feels so good. I played the demo on my Steam Deck, and managed to get a solid 40FPS across the aboard. It feels great, and has been a refreshing world to step into when I want a break from Korok harassment in Hyrule and demon slaughtering in Diablo.

I can only describe Jusant as a standout experience not just at Next Fest, but across my entire catalogue of gaming moments across 2023 so far. Jusant is a great idea, and I feel like Don’t Nod are going to absolutely smash it out of the park. Sticking the landing will ultimately rely on whether there’s enough here to support a full game though, which questions will remain over until the full game is in my hands. I am excited to see where Don’t Nod go from here, the demo has me hooked, and I for one, am keen to get my hands on Jusant in a finished state (hopefully) later this year!