Jusant

Lots of modern blockbusters pride themselves on how effortless they make open-world traversal. Hold a button, start running, and a new Assassin’s Creed will let you parkour over any obstacle and scale any building. Jusant flips that power trip on its head, asking you to climb an impossibly huge tower using just your hands, some rope, and the nearest foothold you can find. Its subtle but effective approach to climbing makes for an engaging and rewarding journey, while the colorful but desolate world around you tells the story of a past abandoned for brighter horizons.

Jusant is incredibly brief but worth every minute, needling you through dark tunnels, across giant chasms, and up sheer rock faces as you uncover what others tried to leave behind. It’s beautiful to look at and melancholic to experience, with climbing puzzles that tug you along without ever making you feel completely lost or frustrated. It’s also the rare adventure game where I actually enjoyed reading every single one of the dozens of notes I found along the way. — Ethan Gach