From the moment it was announced, Cairn looked like a niche project. It is a third-person action-adventure game about climbing with elements of survival and simulation, where planning, rhythm, and patience matter. The game is being developed by The Game Bakers, known for Furi and Haven, so no one expected problems with atmosphere. The main question was different — whether a game built around climbing could achieve success. Apparently, yes.
Cairn launched with a strong result: it has 87 out of 100 on OpenCritic. Such a score means that not only fans of niche survival games will hear about it, but also those who would normally have passed by a "climbing simulator".
Reviewers praise the freedom and quality of the climbing. Cairn offers a serious challenge and allows players to tackle the route in their own way, while the satisfaction from every meter conquered has to be earned. Reviews also highlight the atmosphere: meditative calm is combined with tension, where one mistake can ruin a perfect ascent. The light survival elements also play a role — they force players to plan and choose between risk and rest at camp.
There are drawbacks as well. Reviewers note the game's unforgiving nature, deliberately slow pace, and physics-based controls that do not forgive mistakes. There are also complaints about technical issues — performance drops and unstable operation. It is also not worth expecting a strong story.
Cairn is being called one of the first gaming surprises of 2026. Players expected a solid, highly specific project, but few were counting on such high scores and such a warm reception for its gameplay.
On Steam, the game has 94% positive reviews and 11 593 players at peak.