The Game Bakers will release Cairn’s first free DLC, On the Trail: Deep Water, on October 29. The expansion adds three new climbing locations, gives players control of Marco for the first time and introduces new challenges built around smaller climbing areas with limited energy. A free update launching alongside the DLC will also add a Free Roam mode for Mount Kami.
On the Trail: Deep Water was originally revealed in April as the first entry in a planned series of free Cairn expansions. The Game Bakers initially described it as a summer 2026 release and later announced an August 13 date, but the developer’s latest update now places it on October 29. The studio has not detailed the reason for the schedule change in its new announcement.
The DLC’s three locations are smaller than Mount Kami, so The Game Bakers is introducing an energy restriction to change how players approach each climb. Effort and mistakes will gradually tire the character, forcing players to think more carefully about routes and equipment instead of relying purely on persistence. That gives the new areas a different rhythm from the longer expedition structure of the base game.
Deep Water also retains the water-soloing mechanic announced when the expansion was first revealed. Players can climb directly above water without the same consequences associated with falling onto solid terrain, opening up a different style of risk-taking and route planning. The mechanic fits the DLC’s focus on shorter, more concentrated climbing challenges rather than another mountain-sized expedition.
Marco is another major addition. While Aava remains Cairn’s central protagonist, Marco will have his own climbing style, with different physical characteristics affecting how he moves across rock faces. The Game Bakers says he is not as tall or flexible as Aava, but compensates with greater reach, stronger arms and a newer Climbot model, meaning players familiar with the base game will need to adjust their technique.
The accompanying Free Roam update expands the scope beyond the DLC itself. Players will be able to return to Mount Kami as either Aava or Marco and explore routes without progressing through the original story structure. That gives experienced climbers a way to revisit the mountain, experiment with alternate paths and use Marco’s different movement profile across familiar terrain.
Cairn launched earlier this year on PC and PlayStation 5 after several delays during development. The survival-climbing game centers on Aava’s attempt to scale Mount Kami, with players manually controlling limbs, managing gear and resources and choosing their own routes across the mountain. The Game Bakers has continued supporting the game after release with quality-of-life updates and additional features, and a Nintendo Switch 2 version is also scheduled for early 2027.
The studio is treating On the Trail as an ongoing format rather than a one-off add-on. Deep Water is the first entry in that series, which is intended to introduce new climbing locations and handcrafted problems while keeping Cairn’s core free-climbing systems intact. The three new areas, Marco’s playable debut and Free Roam mode make the October update a broader expansion of Cairn’s climbing sandbox rather than just an additional set of levels.
Cairn: On the Trail – Deep Water launches October 29 as a free DLC for PC and PlayStation 5. The accompanying Free Roam update will arrive at the same time, allowing players to explore Mount Kami as either Aava or Marco while the new DLC adds three dedicated climbing locations and its limited-energy challenge system.
