Cairn Review (PC): Onward And Upward

Cairn has a simple premise of a challenging task that has never been accomplished before. You must scale Mount Kami, which is something that could easily take the life of anyone foolish enough to not respect its severity. 

Everything in your arsenal is needed to accomplish this, from managing hunger, thirst, and body temperature, to scavenging for things on the mountain to keep yourself going. Doing all of this is part of the puzzle to keep climbing as it’s necessary to keep up stamina and overall health in your journey. Wrecklessness results in falls that have you dust yourself off for another go, or a fatal slip that ends in your demise. Cairn is a punishing game, but the narrative is all about perseverance, and finally achieving the impossible was a moment that will stick with me, and I’d recommend this as one of 2026’s first great games.  

Don’t Look Down

Cairn is first and foremost a climbing game, from scaling entire cliff faces, to dangling over the edge of a waterfall to find a hidden cave, holding on for dear life is how you spend the vast majority of your time. It’s a system that needs to feel good, providing enough challenge to string the player along, but not feel repetitive or annoyingly difficult to keep players from putting it down, and the developer, The Game Bakers, has nailed this balancing act. 

Climbing itself is a simple loop, you approach a wall, place your hand or foot into a gap or rock jutting out, and then find the next hold to move in the direction you see fit. Each limb operates independently, giving full control, allowing you to press one foot on a ledge, raise the other foot into a vertical crack, and then reach up to grasp with your hands for a higher point. It’s all a puzzle of angles, stamina, and proper routing, a formula that keeps you on your toes and engaged in each climb. When you nail it and finally pull yourself onto solid ground, that hit of accomplishment works every time. 

Of course, taking a wrong step, over-extending yourself, and straining so much you run out of stamina leads to big falls that can cause injury or death. Dying in this game can be incredibly frustrating, There were quite a few times that I had to take a break after losing a climb due to bad planning on my part, but the game encourages you to push ahead and persevere, in a feeling similar to Baby Steps. It lets you know it CAN be done, and with another go I would conquer, looking forward to the next challenge. Tools of the trade do help deal with frustrations, as pitons drilled into the rock serve as a sort of checkpoint, along with chalk and keeping your hands freshly bandaged provide additional grip to get you over the final hump.

The Battle Against Nature

In addition to dealing with climbing the mountain, Cairn also implements survival and resource gathering aspects. Keeping yourself fed, hydrated and warm all play into your ability to scale efficiently, but even that system is deeper than simply drinking from a canteen. At various points you’ll come upon campsites, serving not only as a place to save your progress and sleep to regain health, but it’s also a place where you can craft better items and organize your inventory. As you travel and explore, you’ll find new materials, a can of maple from an abandoned backpack, or powdered coffee found on the bones of a failed climber. These items can be cooked and combined for better effects, allowing your basic drink and food items to have added benefits, so when you brew that coffee you found, not only does it add to your hydration meter, it gives you a few minutes of burst movement, allowing you to climb faster. 

Simple and easy to deal with early on, finding materials and recipes becomes vital as the air gets thinner and you inch ever closer to the summit. These added survival elements add a welcome wrinkle to the usual climbing loop, while adding new stakes to the perilous journey. People looking for a more casual experience need not worry, Cairn has a ton of assists that can completely alleviate all headaches the more hardcore experience may give you. Personally, I loved the punishing and unforgiving nature of, well, mother nature, and feel that is the way it should be experienced.

It Is Not the Mountain We Conquer but Ourselves

Another point about Cairn I enjoyed over other recent climbing games is its dedication to story. You are thrust into the shoes of Aava, one of the world’s most decorated mountain climbers, who has the singular goal of scaling Mount Kami, a feat that has never been accomplished. That starts a journey all about her drive to overcome something that seemingly can’t be done, but the question of why she needs to push herself hangs over us the rest of the game, all leading to a satisfying conclusion to her journey. Environmental storytelling is excellently done, as every nook and cranny provides insights into other climbers, and even a rich ancient culture that used to thrive at these great heights. 

You won’t take this journey alone though, as your robot companion Climbot is with you from the very beginning, and once you start going upwards, a cast of characters pop up alongside you. It helps make a seemingly isolating task not feel lonely or empty, and the performances from all characters are excellent and heartfelt. I’m going to avoid spoilers on where things go, but the self discovery, heartfelt moments, and regrets these characters feel were affecting, and that narrative addition takes this from a fun and challenging game, to a truly moving experience through gameplay and story.

Final Verdict

Cairn is a difficult and sometimes punishing climbing game, forcing you to struggle with scaling a mountain, and what it means to survive doing a task that gargantuan. Those who keep at it will be treated to a great story about what people are willing to give up to achieve their goals, on top of a great sense of accomplishment once you finally reach the peak.

Cairn was reviewed on PC with a code provided by The Game Bakers. It is also available on PlayStation 5.

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