# Cairn ‘Belongs’ Next to Death Stranding in ‘History of Grand Adventure Games’

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/cairn-belongs-next-to-death-stranding-in-history-of-grand-adventure-games/
- Published: 2026-11-08T14:05:44+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-08T14:20:35+00:00
- Original publisher: Polygon
- Original article: https://www.polygon.com/cairn-game-bakers-interview/
- Topics: Gaming

## Key points

- Cairn turns a mountain climb into an adventure about obsession and survival.
- Its climbing physics aim for believable play, not a full simulation.
- The developers say a climbing-only game was difficult to sell and build.

## Summary

Cairn’s developers set out to make an adventure about climbing an impossible mountain, rather than a sports simulation. Producer Audrey Leprince says the game uses climbing to explore survival, obsession and sacrifice, and argues it belongs alongside games such as Death Stranding in the history of grand adventures.

The climbing system aims to feel convincing while remaining intuitive and serving the story, rather than reproducing the sport perfectly. Leprince says building realistic-looking, physics-based climbing that is also controllable was technically difficult, and that the team initially had to prove a game focused almost entirely on climbing could sustain a full experience. The interview coincides with the release of the On the Trail: Deep Water DLC.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.