There have been a few Indie games that have made a point of ensuring their climbing mechanics are fun to play around with. However, we can say with some clarity that no game to this day has offered as authentic of a mountain climbing experience as the charming meditative indie, Jusant.
Jusant offers a story told through notes, journals, and the environment you explore, left behind by those who experienced the final days of this mountain civilization as the drought took its toll.
The game offers incredibly satisfying climbing mechanics, a gorgeous set of levels to explore, and, as is custom with platformers (because when you boil it down, that’s what this game is), there are lots of collectibles. There are notes, Journals, Altars, Cairns, and Frescos to find, but today we are focusing on the games only other collectible I haven’t listed, is Shells.
These Seashells are windows into the past, and offer a moment of reflection where you can stop for a while, rest your weary bones, and get ready for the next climb. However, they are pretty well hidden, so to help you find them all, this is Indie Game Culture’s Jusant All Shell Locations Guide.
What Do Shells Do in Jusant?
In Jusant, shells are just a collectible like any other, but much like the other items you’ll find on your travels, these Shells help you piece together the mystery of how inhabited this world before you came along.
You’ll find these shells in places where people used to live or congregate, and by listening to the Shell, the camera will pan out to show cinematic shots of the area you find yourself in, and audio will play from the past, allowing you to hear the sounds that past residents would have heard before the drought.
It’s a neat window into the past and makes tracking down these items all the more rewarding.
Jusant all Shell Locations Revealed
Shell #1
- Chapter: One
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 20-30%
The first shell is on the way up the tutorial path after the initial abseiling sections; you can’t really miss it.
Shell #2
- Chapter: Two
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 10-20%
After climbing up the first section in chapter two, which has you test your newly acquired ballast powers, you’ll get to an area where you activate an Echo Flower to continue, but instead, hook left and double jump to access an abandoned restaurant. Here, you will find another shell.
Shell #3
- Chapter: Two
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 60-70%
This one is directly on the main path of progression in chapter three. After you climb out of the area with the Fresco, you’ll come to an area where you’ll find a makeshift farm of sorts, with some mud flats. Literally, as soon as you get there, you’ll find a shell. Again, it’s hard to miss. If only they were all like that.
Shell #4
- Chapter: Three
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 40-50%
When you get to an area with broken blue mosaic Tiles, keep climbing until you reach a patch of outdoor broken tiles. Below this platform is a lower hidden area. Rappell down here, and you’ll find a hidden area with toy boats, stuffed animals, and your next shell.
Shell #5
- Chapter: Three
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 60-70%
This one is one of the toughest shell collectibles to reach. You’ll find this one in the third chapter during the first really taxing climb of the game, where you need to use rock bugs and rest zones to get up the cliff.
To find this shell, take the path to the right, climbing up until the rock bugs take you to a small ledge, and you will find a new shell in a small cave with lots of much larger shells and mollusks.
Shell #6
- Chapter: Three
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 80-90%
You’ll need to get to an area just above the landlocked boats, which comes after the leap of faith from the mineshaft section. When up there, you’ll find a lamp you can drop as a shortcut. But you can also climb over it to a secret watering hole.
Then just in a room to the left is another shell. You can also climb to the main area and then climb down into the dried-up docks if that feels more comfortable.
Shell #7
- Chapter: Four
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 10-20%
After you open the first of the mechanical doors with the switch, go through, then climb the ladder to the right. Proceed until you reach the area with the spark bugs on the wall and a bridge overhead. Here, you’ll find a Shell by an abandoned workshop.
Shell #8
- Chapter: Four
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 30-40%
After using a Zipline, followed by an elevator, you’ll reach an area with a drained lock gate. Go through the lock, and in a boat, on the other side, you’ll find a shell.
Shell #9
- Chapter: Four
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 70-80%
Mercifully, this is another shell that pretty much pops up on the main path. As you work your way through the Great Basin area with the Jellyfish, you’ll get to a point just after a bridge you lower that will require you to swing over to the next area. When you do, on the other side, you’ll find a shell next to some pots and pans.
Shell #10
- Chapter: Five
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 30-40%
After climbing for a little while and coming to grips with the ‘gust of winds’ mechanic used to leap large gaps, you’ll come to an area with Windmills, and the player can either go left or right. Left is the way to go to keep progressing up, so go right first.
With a combination of well-timed leaps, and precise use of your Pitons, you’ll be able to reach a hideaway on the far right with a rope swing at its entrance. Enter here, and you’ll find a shell, as well as a Fresco, a Cairn, and a Bianca Journal.
Shell #11
- Chapter: Five
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 30-40%
As you navigate the windy climb, you will eventually come to a fork in the road of sorts. You can use a resting point to abseil down and use the gusts of wind to jump to a turning windmill on the left.
The camera will rigidly face that way, urging you to make the leap. Grab this, keep moving across, and you’ll get to a ledge and a small hideaway where you will find the second shell of Chapter Five.
Shell #12
- Chapter: Five
- Percentage Through Chapter (approximate): 80-90%
Chapter Five is pretty short when compared to the others, and before you know it, you will reach a climb that has you climb straight up a vertical slice in the cliff face to the area where the chapter concludes.
So if you reach a monument where you can blow on your shell to conclude the chapter, you need to climb back down. Use a Piton, allowing you to wall run across the cliff face to the right, and you will come across a small opening where you will find an altar, and in the same room, you’ll find your last shell.
A Shell of a Time
As you can see, there aren’t that many shells within Jusant, and some of them are practically handed to you along the way to help with worldbuilding. However, there are a few very well-hidden ones in later chapters that might stop you from completing the set.
However, with the help of this guide, you should be able to get your hands on them all pretty easily. I hope this helped, and as always, thanks for reading Indie Game Culture.
FAQ Section
Question: How Long is Jusant?
Answer: Jusant is about 5-6 hours, provided you get comfortable with the climbing mechanics within this game. However, if you want to collect all the collectibles within this game, assuming you are perceptive enough to avoid repeating full chapters, you’ll be looking at playtime closer to 8 hours.
Question: How Many Shells in Total?
Answer: There are a total of twelve shells in Jusant. One in Chapter one, two in Chapter Two, three in Chapter Three, three in Chapter Four, and three in Chapter Five.
Question: Is Jusant Free?
Answer: It’s a full-price game for all PC and PS4/5 players, but those who subscribe to Xbox Game Pass will be able to play this game for free on the day of release.
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