Game Information
Developer: | Don't Nod | Date Started: | 25/11/2024 |
Platform: | Steam | Fresh Play / Continuation: | Fresh Play |
Genre: | Action / Adventure | Time Played: | 6.2 hours |
Theme: | Nature / Exploration | Date Finished: | 12/12/2024 |
Difficulty Rating: | Casual | Recommendation: | Highly Recommended |
I received Jusant as part of a Humble Bundle, and up until that moment, I had never even heard of the game. In fact, originally I had a different game planned for my J playthrough, but after reviewing Jusant I was intrigued enough to swap it around.
The first question I had, was if there was any significance to the game's name. And that was answered in the opening introduction. Apparently, Jusant is a French word for the ebbing of the tide.
This was useful to know because right off the bat, you realize that the 'desert' your character walks through is actually a dried-up ocean bed. And the tower you plan on climbing is a dried-up reef (at least the lower sections).
Playing the game, I immediately became reminiscent of another title - Journey. It also reminded me of the game The Climb, for obvious reasons. However, it was with the former that I made the most comparisons. In both games, you have a silent protagonist on a journey to reach the top of a mountain. Both games involve platforming and path-finding to progress further, culminating at the peak of a mountain. In both games, the story is never explained via dialogue, but rather by murals, letters (in the case of Jusant), and the landscape itself. Even the music in both games could be reminiscent of one another.
As I was playing it, and familiarizing myself with the climbing mechanics, I got the impression that this game would look and feel amazing in VR. There was a lot to see in the world, and the mechanics would have been very similar to The Climb. However, I do believe that in VR there would have been some sections that may have been disorientating. I would still have been tempted to play it though.
As I played, at no point did I find the game hard or tricky (excluding the collectible hunting, which was tricky because some of those were tricky to find). If anything, the game felt relaxing, and all I really needed to concern myself with was finding the path to the next section.
As the game progressed, through the presence of letters and diaries, I learned more about the story's lore and what had happened. However, saying that there were still some unanswered questions. For instance, it never gets explained who the main character is - though through a letter it is implied he is the Piper. But even still, the letter talks of a myth. So is the character a living myth? Or is he someone who came across the horn? And if he came across it, when and how did he? And how did he know what he needed to do with the horn? There are other unanswered questions as well, but I don't want to bring them up here as they would reveal story details - and these details should be experienced to appreciate the game more.
Overall, I enjoyed playing the game, and as a casual adventure game with simple climbing mechanics, I would recommend it to anyone who asks me about it. Now, it's on to K with... Kao the Kangaroo.
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