The Documentary Podcast New climbing video game
Feb 9, 2026
Sophia Elani, voice actor who plays Ava and specializes in physical, breathy performances. Emmerich, creative director guiding recordings and gameplay flow. Audrey Leprance, co-founder shaping Cairn’s design and production. They talk about limb-based climbing mechanics, recording voice to match unfinished animation, remote collaboration across studios, playtesting accessibility choices, and polishing and localizing the mountain world.
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Founder’s Childhood Around Climbers
- Audrey Leprance recounts growing up around climbing because her father was an alpinist and she watched him in Fontainebleau.
- Her father's expeditions and survival informed the studio's emotional tie to climbing and inspired the game's theme of freedom.
Prototype And Bring In Experts
- Prototype early to validate whether a unique mechanic can sustain a full game experience.
- Hire technical experts when needed to prove and refine complex systems like physics-based limb movement.
Vertical Slice Unifies Vision
- The team built a vertical slice combining gameplay, art, audio and story to prove the game's vision before full production.
- They integrated Mathieu Bablet's comic storytelling to shape Ava's arc across the climb.