On the Trail: Deep Water has a release date! So time to chalk up, gear up, and mark your calendars: cragging starts on October 29th!
The free DLC will bring you 3 new locations filled with fresh problems and discoveries. But since the new areas are smaller than Mt Kami, we’ve added a twist to keep you challenged: you will now have a limited amount of energy to complete your climb! Efforts and mistakes tire you, so you’ll need to choose your gear and route carefully.
You will also get to experience Marco’s own climbing style: he may not be as tall or flexible as Aava, but makes up for it with his reach, strong arms, and newer climbot model. His climbing style may throw you for a loop even if you’re an experienced alpinist!
Alongside the DLC we will be releasing a free update with the Free Roam mode. You can return to Kami as Aava or Marco and explore every path the mountain has to offer!
When Cairn came out in January, we were overwhelmed by all the love we got from you. It meant a lot to see you challenge yourself on mount Kami, and experience the ups and downs (litteraly and figuratively) of alpinism.
We heard loud and clear that you want Cairn on more platforms, and that a lot of you haven’t been able to play it yet. We’re super excited to confirm the first new platform: Nintendo Swich 2! Starting early 2027, you too can take on the peak that splits the Heavens
Summer announcement season is upon us, and we’re not ones to skip it!
It is our great pleasure to reveal Cairn’s first DLC, On the Trail: Deep Water, will launch on August 13th 2026. And it’s still going to be free!
It packs a punch with three new climbing locations, Marco becoming playable with his very own climbing style! and fresh cruxes, handcrafted by our level design team.
Cairn’s first DLC launch window is fast approaching (this summer!) and we’re showing off a little bit more about the Free Roam mode dropping alongside.
If you want to explore the corners of Mount Kami you rushed past on your way to the summit — or tackle the climb with Marco, the Free Roam mode is for you. A lot of you requested it, and it’s coming soon.
The video is available in both french AND english!
You can now immortalize your very own Kami ascent on a T-shirt! Simply finish the game, head to the Extra menu and customize your Cairn T-shirt. Perfect to show off your unique route to the peak during your digital and physical climbing sessions!
Update the game to access the shirt creation menu in Extra.
Cairn is partnering with the ONF to protect and reforest the Massif des écrins in the Alps.
Cairn is a love letter to alpinism, and to the beauty of the mountains. This why we have chosen to partner with the French forest protection fund ONF, and fund an action to reintroduce and safeguard mountain elms in the Alps in France. These trees have been wiped out by a fungal infection, but they play an important role in the region’s ecosystem.
This action is part of our studio commitment to the protection of our beautiful planet, we’ve touched about our other actions here. Learn more about ONF-Act for the Forest here. And remember, make Pick up Pika proud by keeping the mountains clean.
Are you itching to get back on the walls? Do you miss the fresh mountain air already? We for sure do, and that’s why we’re already at work on Cairn – On the Trail: Deep Water, Cairn’s first free DLC. It brings new climbing spots, fresh problems, but doesn’t change what made Cairn so special.
Have a look at the reveal trailer!
On the Trail is a series of free DLCs bringing you new climbing spots and challenges. Find your route freely, solve fresh climbing problems and explore new iconic locations as you follow the trail of a legendary climber. On the Trail – Deep Water, the first of the series, brings you 3 new climbing spots, and introduces water soloing: you can now climb over water, without the consequences when falling!
There might be a few more surprises in the DLC, but we will share more later on… Check it out here!
The DLC will be available this summer for PC and PS5, for free!
We’re releasing the Quality of Life update for Cairn with a bunch of adjustments, new features and bug fixes that will make your experience with Cairn even smoother. In particular we are bringing tweaks to accessibility, features you asked for like the automatic finger tapping, a new feature to visualise Aava’s efforts, improvements to Aava’s getting off walls, Climbot’s behaviour and much more.
Here are the major changes:
Tweaks to accessibility:
Ticking the No survival option will refill your survival gauges, helping you get out of a difficult situation
When you’re in difficulty, you now have more chances to find useful loot for your survival
On your PS5 you can now chose a Performance mode prioritizing framerate
You can now automatically tape your fingers
The breathing feedback option lets you visualise Aava’s efforts. We’re hoping this feature can help climbers with hearing disabilities, let us know if it does and how we can improve!
Photo mode additional options: remove Aava’s hood, change damage level, add logo… We’re ready to see your new pictures!
We have also improved some behaviours – in particular regarding Aava getting down from a wall without falling. and Climbot’s general behaviour so he gets less close to you especially in Free Solo mode.
We have also fixed a significant quantity of bugs!
Read the full update here: https://bit.ly/Cairn-FAQ
Thank you for your feedback so far, we’re still working on features and improvements that will make their way to the game later this year.
Aava’s new outfit and no hood option in the Photo Mode
The breathing feedback option lets you see Aava’s efforts
I hope your gear is ready, because now’s the time for you to take on Mount Kami! We’re beyond excited for you to start your climb, explore the mountain, and find out more about Aava’s expedition.
Grab the game on Steam, PlayStation, GOG or Epic Game Store (or the store of your choice), and start the ascent of a lifetime!
Check out the Deluxe Edition with its handy mountain guide and exclusive keepsakes.
As you prepare for your first ascent, here’s a reminder of what’s waiting for you on the slopes of Kami:
As pro climber Aava, you attempt the first ascent of Mount Kami. Experience the challenge and the exhilaration of climbing as you scale the vertiginous cliffs. The whole mountain is yours to explore, filled with unexpected encounters and long lost mysteries. This is what you trained for: pushing beyond your limits, in a quest for absolute freedom.
Cairn climbing system is natural and intuitive. You’re attempting the ascent at the top of Aava’s skill, and you’ll feel it as you climb! She’ll wedge her foot in crevices, grip the tiniest crimps… You’re in charge of the route, but you can trust her to do the best with the holds you give her, and pull off impressive climbing moves.
Cairn gives you complete freedom in the mountain, you can climb anywhere, make your own decisions on the path to take and how to approach a wall. You create your own unique route to the summit. Take Kami on however you see fit (and can manage!).
It will take days to make it to the summit, and there’s only so much you can fit in your backpack. You’ll need to forage for food, find water sources, and keep yourself warm through the night, rain or snow. It’s up to you to decide when you set up camp to recharge your batteries, and when you push forward at your own risk.
Foraging isn’t the only reason to explore! You’re climbing a mountain that’s been inhabited for hundreds, if not thousands of years and the elusive troglodyte people are living in the area. Many other alpinists have tried to ascend Kami, and you can retrace the steps of their past expeditions on her slopes.
We work hard to make our games as accessible as possible and for Cairn we have some features like the Rewind that will make a big difference. Here’s a short video presenting Cairn’s accessibility features, as originally shown in the Access-Ability showcase. Watch the video below, and keep reading to get a more in-depth list.
Fall Rewind
Rewind is our key accessibility feature. Climbing is challenging, and everything can change in the blink of an eye. With rewind, you can get back to where you were before you made a mistake. This allows you to try again right in the midst of the action, and also to experiment!
Rebind All Inputs
Another feature we know players will appreciate is the ability to rebind all inputs. While the climbing inputs are simple, we know everyone has a preference on how to map their controller or keyboard. This will also allow Cairn to function on most adaptive controllers.
Difficulty levels and Assist Mode
There are 3 different difficulty levels: Explorer, Alpinist, and Free Solo. In Explorer and Alpinist there is an Assist Mode, with different options which greatly reduces difficulty. You can chose to toggle:
Fall Rewind – to recover from any fall
Infinite climbing gear resources – you have infinite supply of pitons, chalk and tape
Auto-saving – saving when you reach solid ground
No survival – you will never be hungry, thirsty or cold.
Cairn also lets you select your route, which also allows you to control the difficulty level of your ascent.
Breathing Feedback
The breathing feedback option lets you visualise Aava’s efforts. We’re hoping this feature can help climbers with hearing disabilities, let us know if it does and how we can improve!
More accessibility options
Here’s a list of more accessibility options what we implemented:
The UI never relies on color only. There’s always an accompanying animation or design that allows the game to be played without color perception.
You can automatically tape your fingers
Our UI texts are large (there’s no option, but the smaller text in Cairn is approximately as big as the biggest text in most other games)
The game is localized, fully subtitled, with subtitles designed for readability
Cairn’s UI is minimal, but the climbing cues are both visual and auditory. When your stamina runs low, the breathing changes, the limbs start to shake, and the camera zooms in.
And many other options that will enhance accessibility:
Option to skip the piton mini-game that requires timing
Option to highlight limbs when climbing, which improves visibility
By Lauranne Cauduro
By Audrey
