Yaga has more twists than Chubby Checker sucking on a lolly while riding the Twisted Colossus. Not only is that reference barking up the wrong tree for gamers, but it took me much longer than you’d expect to come up with it.
Aside from being dissatisfied with that analogy, I’m also a bit on the fence with this game. On the one hand, it has created a world that begs to be explored, but a few mechanics hinder that freedom.
In this RPG from Breadcrumbs Interactive, we follow the tale of Ivan, a blacksmith who’s been dealt a bad hand – in fact, he’s lost one after facing a demonic creature. Luck is not on his side, which functions as a mechanic of the game.
Yaga PC Review
The Tzar tasks him to run a few errands (read: perilous quests) or face exile, death, syphilis – that sort of thing – if he doesn’t. Without giving too much away, the titular Baba Yaga is pulling strings here, and visually, it looks like you’re playing an animated children’s picture book. With the odd grotesque image, of course.
Those glorious visuals are regrettably marred by some limited animations, which make it look like the game is lagging or in slow motion. A cursor remains on screen while you directly control the blacksmith, allowing you to lob stuff at enemies. This bit is good as it helps shred bosses, who’ll end up joining your cause.
Yaga uses the conventional health and stamina gauges while wandering Baba Yaga’s playground, and coming back to that luck reference from earlier, yes – he has a luck gauge. Each time you consume a magic item, you’ll bad luck increases, and the weapon you wield will be broken and lost forever. Shiiiiiit.
Rays of Sunshine
This mechanic sucks, and is one of the reasons why I never committed to Zelda: BOTW. Still, you can counter the bad luck and count your blessings by visiting shrines and potentially Baba Yaga – a fantastic character that could have been devised by Terry Gilliam after reading the works of Hans Christian Anderson, washed down with some questionable mushrooms found in the woods.
Yaga isn’t just about looks, but it features an eclectic soundtrack of folk and techno, which sometimes contradicts the action on screen and is somewhat overwhelming for the wrong reasons. It’s like beer on your cornflakes. I like both, but they don’t go well together. Unless already shit-faced.
A note on sounds: it’s voice-acted, too, and the dialogue has plenty of rhyming couplets. This can be at the detriment to the story for the sake of an easy rhyme, but it all adds to the fairy tale element. Additionally, Ivan has a dialogue tree that’s meaningful – pick a phrase that’s not consistent with his traits and you’ll be penalised for it. Woo-hoo!
Yaga Review Summary
Yaga is a stunning title. The visuals, superb score (despite my reservations) and voice talent make it unique. However, the quirky characters and folklore are even better. Unfortunately, it’s marred by the uninspired combat and breakable weapons/luck system, which could be a deciding factor for some.
