I didn't expect this game to be one to prove my PS5 Pro's worth again
It isn't always the obvious games that stretch a console furthest
It's not always the games you expect – when I bought my PS5 Pro (at some expense, despite selling a launch PS5 in the process), I knew that it would come in handy for the biggest releases. Since then, that's been confirmed by a series of massive titles that perform better on the more powerful hardware.
Cairn is a climbing game, a little like the excellent Jusant from 2023, but with a far more intense focus on the actual mechanics of how you make your way up a cliff-face. In fact, where Jusant was extremely forgiving, Cairn can be brutal at times, tasking you with moving each of climber Aava's limbs one after the other.
You need to pick not just the right broad route up a climb, but also each and every handhold, foothold, clinch and piton point as you go. You might find an easy route, if you're careful and plan well, or end up stranded with no stamina or grip left and no choice but to reset and try a different approach.
That brutality (even on standard difficulty) does mean that Cairn can be frustrating at times – you might have to abandon an hour's progress if you realise that you don't have the pitons to make a final stretch, for instance. Still, it's also pretty clearly telling a story about single-minded determination that makes these setbacks very much an intended part of the experience.
The game's visuals are cel-shaded and, at times, really lovely, although it's not the most high-fidelity of experiences, which makes it a little surprising that it actually occasionally chugs on the PS5 Pro. It's not that easy to isolate these moments, although they often come when moving the camera across more complex scenes.
In fact, the frame rate is simply relatively unstable fairly consistently, which again is really surprising given the visuals at hand. I suspect the physics engine at play is quite complex, to account for some of that, but it all makes me wonder how the game plays on a base PS5. My guess is not brilliant – and that makes the prospect of a port to Nintendo Switch 2 look a little ropey, too.
This makes it quite a fascinating game to experience on this hardware, one that seems to underline the way that the PS5 Pro can be an investment in stable performance even when you don't expect it.
If you want a game that'll test your grit and determination without necessarily requiring split-second reactions and instincts, check out Cairn. It's a pretty unique experience.
You must confirm your public display name before commenting
Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.