Even if you’re unfamiliar with the term ‘yokai’, the Japanese word for Eastern mythological creatures, such as m🎐onsters, demons, and spirits, you’ll likely still be aware of some of the most well-known yokai out there.

Yokai have appe🐽ared in many films, books, and games over the years, with some of the most prominent being the nine-tailed fox Kyubi no Kitsune, the flat-headed green water kami Kappa, or the Nekomata, the cat spirit often linked to death.

This leads me to Rayka Studio’s Yaoling: Mythical Journey, which will bring yokaiꦕ to life in an Eastern fantasy-inspired world that combines creature collecting and ba൩ttle gameplay with building and management elements. The game features over 300 yokai for players to collect, including evolutions, and while the team primarily created their own original yokai, they also included many from classic Eastern folklore.

“We drew inspiration from traditional Yokai found in Chinese classics such as ‘Shan Hai Jing’, ‘Sou Shen Ji’, and ‘Journey to t🌠he West’,” producer Yue She tells us. “We aim to interpret the richness and historical referen🌳ces of Yokai from different perspectives. Of course, we also included some fan favorites, such as the Nine-Tailed Fox to grace us with its magnificence.”

Players take on the role of a young Yokai Keeper travelling the Land of the Ancients. The story ꦇis fairly linear, but there are large open areas that you can explore to open up new objectives and discoveries. While the main paths are relatively safe, venturing into more remote areas will result in encounters with more dangerous enemies and yield more bountiful rewards. There are also the 13 schools of🅠 the Yokai Keepers to discover throughout the full game.

During your travels, you can capture various yokai, participate in battles, go fishing, and build and upgrade🐼 your own village. You’ll be able to rescue NPCs while exploring, who will then settle in your village and open 💦new buildings, such as restaurants, shops, or gardens, that can offer new benefits, such as training yokai or crafting items.

“As🔯 buildings are upgraded, their functions are further enhanced,” She says. “For example, shops not only expand the range of items for sale but also allow players to establish trade caravans and dispatch Yokai to protect them.”

The team wants players to be able to “easily and leisurely engage in the game while explo꧒ring the world”, and explains that the village enhances the adventuring experience and provides resources. The village management gameplay is, “more akin to the management style in Dave the Diver whꦰere construction leads to continuous profits and lighter operational costs.”

At launch, the village🍸 will have light customisation options for the buildings. In future updates, Rayka Studio plans to introduce more customisable content, such as being able♛ to decorate your home with specific items.

Players will battle yokai during wild encounterꦑs and be able to duel against other Yokai Keepers. In addition to deploying yokai, players can use charms, which effectively act like spells, to join in the combat alongside their little yokai buddies, as well as being able to seal or capture yokai. Charms can only be used in wild encounters, while Yokai Keeper battles allow more yokai on the battlefield with up to 12 vs 12 yokai battles.

“It’s rare to find creature-collecting games where you can watch and admire your monsters fighting together as a largeꦯ team, and this is one of the most unique aspects of our game,” She explains. “Players can freely switch in and out different combinations of Yokai to create new and different combat experiences. The game offers a unique experience where players continuously gain a sense o🔜f achievement from creating interesting lineup combinations, while the auto-combat helps it to be more approachable.”

Yokai have different strengths and w🔜eaknesses during battle, each possessing different elemental types and resistances that tie into their appearance and lore. Even if you have two yokai of the same type, they have unique combat skills, innate talents, and abilities. Every yokai also has its own speciality when assigned to the village, such as cooking or farming, and a breeding system is in the works so players can customise their perfect battle partner.

“We are proud of the world that we have built,” says She. “We aim to deliver a world full of unique and unforgettable creatures. This achievement is due to the heart ♒and soul behind the art and music, imaginative settings, and a carefully crafted narrative. It wouldn’t have been possible without the passion and dedication of every team member!”

Yaoling: Mythical Journey is .

This story was updated on May 1 2024 to reflect the name change from Home of the Yokai to Yaoling: Mythical Journey. The rest of the article is unedited since publication.