I suppose if you’ve never heard of the Baba Yaga, you’re either not Eastern European, not familiar with tales of a supernatural bent, or haven’t seen the latest Hellboy movie. Baba Yaga is easily one of the most well-known Slavic folktales, of which there are many. Regardless, Yaga from Breadcrumbs Interactive and Versus Evil takes liberally from Slavic folklore to bring a rather unique gaming experience with a decidedly Eastern European flair.
Yaga is the story of a blacksmith. Bored yet? You won’t be. Nothing is as it seems in this type of folklore and everything is dark and disturbing! You’re Ivan the blacksmith, and things tend not to go your way. In fact, due to an incident with a witch, you’re short an arm! This is a rough circumstance for a blacksmith to be in but you tend to manage. Greater powers have their eyes on you though, and the Baba Yaga herself is using you against the Tsar who slighted her. She prophesizes that you will be the one to dethrone the Tsar and he immediately summons you and sends you on some incredibly dangerous quests. Of course you have no idea why you’re being summoned, and things aren’t exactly above board here, but being the good-natured one-handed unlucky blacksmith that you are, you go along with it.
This is the beginning of Yaga and it is surprisingly dark and immersive. You’re immediately both drawn to and irritated by Ivan, who is odd, awkward, and naïve, as many characters in this type of folklore are. Everyone seems to be either suffering or insufferable along your journey too. European folklore in general is pretty heavy, and the stories that Yaga is based on are as dark as they come, and always with a moral of some sort. Many of the local villagers are suffering plights that you can assist with as well, allowing a variety of side missions and you’ll learn a few things about yourself and them along the way. After wandering around town for a bit, you’ll exit the village walls and the game begins in earnest. There’s a prep screen / campsite where you can craft a wide assortment of weapons and shields, ask for help from a saucy crow, or head back to the town. After that, it’s on. Your first task for the Tsar (and they get definitely get tougher) is to find a golden apple that grants strength without measure to its bearer. There are a few ways to accomplish this quest, but first, you’ll have to get the damn apple.
Gameplay maps are procedurally generated so don’t expect to be memorizing this one. As you walk, barriers pop up and Ivan has to fight a wide variety of natural and supernatural enemies. You’ll definitely get your ass handed to you at first. I sure did, until I realized that sitting back in your village home was a wagon wheel that I could forge into a shield to block most of the heavier blows from enemies. Early on, you can also turn a rake into a replacement hand that functions very similarly to the hookshot in The Legend of Zelda. Every weapon and armor item that you get can also be forged to add properties to it, and as the game progresses, you’ll be able to add multiple ores and enchantments to allow you to blow through the game. Some of them have amazing effects and drastically change how Ivan can manage.
There are some rather hefty negatives in the game too, though. Not in terms of gameplay, but rather consequences. Things are not easy for poor Ivan, as he’s literally cursed with bad luck. The more enemies you fight and hits you take, the more your luck meter fills with bad luck. Max it out and a witch with a serious grudge comes after you and ruins your equipment. Luck can also be affected by the choices you make in dealing with situations in the game. Be greedy or violent and your bad luck meter rises. Stay pure of heart and it stays the same. It’s a tough call, especially when being bad makes the game a lot easier, but you’ll definitely pay for it. There are ways to bring your bad luck down, such as consumables, but they’re not all that common. Get cursed and any number of terrible things can happen. In the long run, it doesn’t always pay to be righteous either, so balancing out your choices with your needs is a solid strategy.
Death is ever-present in Yaga, and Ivan can be defeated fairly easily, especially at first. The Yaga and her fellow witches are always watching and when you die, they offer choices as to what happens. You’re too important for their plans to let you actually die, but you can lose all the items you’ve gathered and weapons you’ve forged, which definitely slows you down. You can choose to get a second wind if you think you’ve got a chance, but as often as not, you’ll just die again because you’re simply not prepared for what’s coming. Bosses are vicious too, requiring more than a small degree of strategy if you wish to defeat them. Combat in general was significantly more tactical than expected, requiring patience, planning, and some clever attacking. As you increase your weapon repertoire, you’ll have a large number of available options to forge with multiple additions, making them significantly more powerful.
If there’s one thing to take away here, it’s that this is one excellent game! Combat is gratifying and interesting, gameplay is solid and well-balanced, and Ivan controls incredibly well, especially for a fat one-handed blacksmith. In addition, the animation and visuals are simply gorgeous. Yaga is a visually unique game that oozes character from every pore. The music is complementary and well-suited to the levels and really adds some spice to the game, especially in combat, and character design is utterly fantastic. Seriously, I wouldn’t mind a download of the soundtrack for this one. It’s pretty great! Add in some unique moral choices and an RPG-like system of crafting and leveling and you’ve got yourself a Slavic folklore video game that’s not only worth playing but its damned fun! I don’t want to ruin the storyline here, so I won’t give away much. Suffice it to say that you’re going to have a great time with Ivan and maybe even find him a wife! There a slight issue with load times being a hair longer than I’d prefer, but honestly, that’s pretty minor considering how enjoyable the game is. It’s fun, it’s unique, it’s got catchy music, and it’s a great way to be introduced (or reintroduced) to the folklore of Eastern Europe! For $25, it’s not the cheapest digital title out there, but you’ll definitely get your money’s worth out of Yaga. Just do yourself a favor and give her a loaf of bread if she asks for one. It’ll save you a lot of hassle!
This review was based on a digital copy of Yaga provided by the publisher. It was played on a Nintendo Switch in both docked and undocked modes and was equally awesome on both. Yaga is also available for Steam, Epic, Xbox One, and PS4. All screenshots are from actual gameplay and only earlier scenes are shown to avoid too many spoilers! Read your kids fairy tales and old folklore. This stuff is awesome and teaches some great morals to boot! Sure, it’s a more than a little dark, but what isn’t these days?
