The occasional bug, stutter, or moment of frustration only briefly interrupt Jusant’s aura of calm.
To accomplish any of that, though, you’ll have to climb.
Accompanying you is the Ballast, an even more enigmatic creature made of water.
No matter what you’re doing, Jusant almost always runs buttery smooth.
Here’s my full review.
Disclaimer:This review was made possible by a review code provided by DON’T NOD.
The company did not see the contents of the review before publishing.
No matter what you’re doing, Jusant almost always runs buttery smooth.
What is Jusant?
Jusant features no spoken dialogue or branching narrative, and instead focuses on exploration.
Climb The Tower and uncover its secrets.
Jusant is quite the looker on Xbox, but it’s even more so on PC.
The journey alone is worth it.
For the vast majority of my playthrough, there were no issues.
It’s not perfect, though.
Jusant is at its most beautiful when the camera opens up and the music begins to swell.
Fortunately, this never lasted more than a minute or two.
Jusant does an excellent job making you feel its verticality and pulling you into the world it creates.
It’s all very well done.
I love the art and world design of Jusant.
Playing the full game shattered them again, taking me in directions I didn’t quite expect.
Jusant does have a narrative, one that’s intrinsic to the world you’re exploring.
There is wonder and mystery in Jusant, and more than a little bit of magic.
It’s you and the Ballast against the Tower.
It’s a surprisingly emotional, subtle narrative that I won’t spoil.
Jusant’s gameplay is designed to be relaxing and approachable, with even its puzzles being fairly straightforward.
The gameplay is climbing, and exploring.
Alright, the Ballast is pretty cute.
Any way forward either leads to a secret, or to the next place you gotta go.
These moments shatter the calming magic a little bit, but they’re fortunately few and far between.
However, there is one area where Jusant doesn’t feel very accessible.
If you’re deathly afraid of heights, even in games, this may not be for you.
Overall, Jusant is a step above a lot of other indie games I’ve played recently.
Approachability wise, it’s a similar story.
The Tower is wondrous and filled with secrets and beauty.
All paths lead to something… Often secrets.
The accompanying music is full of emotion.
And the story comes with a surprising amount of magic.
You should not play this if …
You want action and challenge in your games.
What used to be an ocean is now a desert, and what used to be a home is now a shell.
Jusant isn’t out to challenge you, even though it does have puzzles.
It’s also not packed with action, with not an ounce of combat anywhere in sight.
If you need either (or both) in any game you play, Jusant isn’t it.
Jusant requires that you hold down the triggers for most of the game, while simultaneously manipulating the joysticks.
This may cause fatigue or pain for some players, and there’s unfortunately no way to change that.
Granted, that list is unbelievably long.
2023 has been an incredible year for gaming in general.
Still, Jusantisa great game, and one that I can see a lot of players immensely enjoying.
It’s relaxing in the kind of way that it makes the stress melt off of you.
It’s the perfect way to end a long day of work.
Jusant is exactly what I hoped it would be during my preview, and that’s amazing.
It’s relaxing and low stakes, but enrapturing with its visuals, soundtrack, and world.
