Review: Yaga (PlayStation 4)

by Jim Smale · July 18, 2020

Yaga is an action RPG with a charming narrative that adapts to your choices, set in the world of Slavic folklore. Play as Ivan, a one-handed blacksmith cursed with incredibly bad luck.

Pros:

Hand-drawn style graphics.
2.68gb download size.
Platinum trophy.
Two save slots.
3 difficulties-Story/normal/hardcore.
Excellent voice work.
Opening tutorial section.
ARPG gameplay.
Cool charming soundtrack.
Charming hand-drawn cutscenes.
Find broken down ovens and fix them up to get rewards.
In between areas/events you are in a small camp and can talk with the Crow and ask for items or give items, pick where to go next.
Hook-used for traversing the land or grabbing enemies and dragging them to you.
Forge-craft/repair and salvage/upgrade anvil.
The Witches-show up when you are about to go to a location, here you can set the task and time of day which states what you buff you get like more cash or fewer enemies, etc.
Map uncovers as you play.
Combat is real-time self-contained arenas, you can roll dodge/stun and grab and of course attack.
Multiple choice interactions.
Complete a task and get a choice of 3 upgrades.
Fast-paced gameplay.
Find and do side quests.
Big boss fights.

Cons:

Really slow-paced.
Initially, you feel alone and it is very open-ended.
Combat is basic.
Doesn’t explain everything very well or at all in some cases.
A lot of needless loading and cutscenes that don’t really add to the game.
Same enemies over and over.

7/10

Sound - 7/10
7/10

Accessibility - 7/10
8/10

Length - 8/10
8/10

Fun Factor - 8/10

6/10

Summary

Yaga is a game that has strong visual appeal, the gameplay was weird for me as it honestly felt to me like a straight forward adventure game but soon turned into an ARPG Diablo like game. Encounters will lock you into an area and unlocks once you clear the enemies which brings me onto combat, it’s rather good with its dodging and abilities meaning you can mix it up and get a lot of satisfaction from it. Quests are not that fun and are just long winded fetch quests or kill contracts but who cares, you get to travel the expansive world and mess stuff up. It has a lot of cool little quirks like the camping stage in between missions where you can talk with your bird friend, get drops from him and upgrade your equipment. Whilst the loot list is not as high as a Diablo the core mechanic of combat and progression is there, it makes for a light yet satisfying game.The devs are adding new features and content often so it’s very much an evolving world. In short it’s a game that has good combat but little loot lust and a forgettable story but it slowly claws its way into your library.