Slavic Folklore Inspire Game YAGA Coming November 12th

Now here’s a little indie gem I’m glad didn’t fly under my radar. With all the various interpretations of this and that lore coming out nowadays, I still haven’t seen any retellings of that old classic Baba Yaga. The name might be unfamiliar to those who grew up in the west, but anyone with Russian grandparents/wives will surely have heard the tale of the evil forest witch and her house with legs. It’s like the Eastern European version of La Llorona. And hey, the world is full of great ghosts and ghoulies. Why keep defaulting to regular ol’ Satan when you have a host of child devouring witches!

So when I saw YAGA, two things stood out. First, ARPG combat with dodging, weapon combos, and giant bosses. That reminds me of Dark Souls, and I’m basically sold on anything that reminds me of Dark Souls. Second, a whole slew of baddies based on Slavic folklore. As a master demon slayer, I relish the opportunity to slay demons from any corner of the world. Wrap it up in a package of uniquely cartoony art style and top it off with a bow of bickering witches, and I’m in.

There’s plenty more to the game than just that. Honestly, the more I learn, the more delightful it sounds. Instead of rambling, I’ll just let you get it from the Official Press Release:

Independent games publisher Versus Evil in partnership with Breadcrumbs Interactive today announced that on November 12th, its action role-playing game Yaga will be available simultaneously on PC, Nintendo Switch,PS4, and Xbox One. That’s not all, PC, Xbox One and Nintendo Switch players will also have a chance to enjoy a pre-order 20% discount. The pre-order discount is currently live on the Epic Games Store, while the Xbox One and Nintendo Switch pre-sales will go live November 4.

Yaga tells the story of Ivan, a one-handed blacksmith with incredibly bad luck, who must take on the impossible tasks given to him by the Tzar. All the while the mysterious witch, Baba Yaga, watches over Ivan’s fate as he smashes and clobbers a variety of nefarious monsters and legends inspired by Slavic folk tales.

In Yaga, players will dive into a deep forging system to make weapons like teleporting lightning hammers and hookshot pitchforks, in order to defeat the murderous legends of Slavic folklore. With multiple endings, multiple ways of solving encounters, procedural map, lots of characters to encounter, and hidden secrets mean Yaga is meant to be played over and over again.

You can check it out now out more over here on the Epic game store. Let me know what you think, and what other indie games you’re excited about below!