In the indie game A Walk With Yiayia, the player takes his grandmother on a walk after a scary fall, working to rebuild her confidence, while also learning new things about himself, too. Solo developer Trent Garlipp deftly switches between casual conversation and deep introspection, accurately reflecting the kind of conversations that really do happen with families.
It’s a short game, not much longer than an actual long walk would take, and it’s best played in one sitting. For anyone who enjoys sentimental (but not depressing!) games, A Walk With Yiayia is an intentional and peaceful break. Perfect for anyone who’s, say, overworked during the end-of-the-year crunch and missing their grandma.
Deep Breaths
I am amazed at how much Garlipp fit into a one-hour game, and how natural of an experience it felt. While it may be short in breadth, it’s not lacking in depth. Throughout A Walk With Yiayia, I felt that Garlipp had a clear sense of the scope and what he wanted to achieve with the project. There were many moments that I found myself letting out a breath I had been holding, or whispering, “Oh!”
Unlike other super-short visual novels, A Walk With Yiayia knows what it’s here to do and sticks the landing. Because it’s such a short experience, I don’t want to spoil anything, but all I’ll say is that this is not just a walk around the block. There are, for lack of better words, mini-games and side quests, and all these activities feel natural and surprising.
The heart of the game lies in its conversations, all of which are overladen with a beautiful piano score. Players choose between different conversation paths with Yiayia, meaning there’s some replayability to learn more and take a quiet break together. The player-character is vulnerable with his grandmother, and there’s just the right amount of encouraging advice.
There is one moment where the unnamed young male protagonist gets to teach Grandma something—some meditative deep breathing. This resonated with me, as someone who’s often trying to teach family members about self-care and mindfulness. It wasn’t the only message that hit home.
A Walk With Grandma
Content warning: loss, but in a happy memory kind of way. If you want to skip this personal reflection, just scroll down to where you see Steam review screenshots 🙂
I used to drive my other grandmother’s car to pick up my grandma Debbie. She loved going out, but was trying to drive less. Grandma Debbie and I shared a favorite place in southern California—Seal Beach. It’s a small town on the outskirts of Los Angeles that used to be for hippies and sailors that was fast becoming dominated by the uber wealthy as its prime beach real estate was recognized. But for the most part, the charm was still there—it just meant that, along with kitschy t-shirts, we could also shop at boutiques that sold expensive linen shirts and hand-poured candles, too.
We used to walk all the way down the boardwalk, and all the way back. We’d stop and look at seals, visit the monument to real-life sailors who had perished or been lost in storms, say hello to fishermen, and pet other peoples’ dogs. We’d get too-big ice cream cones at Coldstone Creamery, omelets at The Hangover, and lattes at Bogart’s Coffee Shop (which I had discovered with my grandfather on the other side). She never really wanted to go on the sand, though, unsteady on her feet and unsure of the ocean up close.
Over time, though, she stopped walking much further than the guard station on the boardwalk. She had had a bad fall. In the later years, she took a break on the first bench, holding a hand on a walker to steady herself, while I pointed out surfers and birds. And later, we wouldn’t get out of the car at all, and I’d just drive her up and down the Pacific Coast Highway. We might stop for coffee, or we might not. She did, however, still let me go fetch us ice cream sundaes in cups.
My grandmother passed away too soon from COVID-19, before the vaccine came out. I didn’t get to take her on any last walks, but I still remember the ones we did take, and I treasure them.
A Walk with Yiayia reminds us to be present with the ones we love, while we’re with them, and to take joy in the memories.
Very Positive
It feels weird to put a review score on what is clearly a very personal and insightful game made by one person, but hey, numbers make the world go around, so I’ll do two things: 1) I’ll share what some other people said on Steam (where it sits at Very Positive with 68 reviews), and 2) I will indeed give it a score.
The only lament I have is that there aren’t achievements built into the Nintendo Switch version, though presumably there are some on Steam. I really liked the little microquests and I wanted to know if I “got” them! But then again, maybe that’s on me—should I not be trying to (overly) gamify a walk with Yiayia?
Just in Time for Big Feelings Season
Solo developer Trent Garlipp released A Walk With Yiayia two years ago on Steam, but the title just made its Nintendo Switch debut earlier this month (it’s 15% off until Monday, November 25!). It plays perfectly on the Switch, and it’s hard to imagine this title on a computer (where it’s also available). The pixelated art style feels reminiscent of old Game Boy titles, and the controls—holding ZL down to hold Grandma’s hand, for example—feel natural. The joysticks are more fun to walk with than, say, simply holding down an arrow key. This is one of many indie games that strongly benefit from finding the right platform, and more often than not, that platform is the Switch.
I was, and am, so impressed with this little game. As I played, I kept having moments of, How cool is it that one person made this! And then, Can I make things? I did some additional research, saw that the publisher is the Rochester Institute of Technology’s MAGIC Spell Studios, and found that Garlipp made the game in part at RIT’s annual Roc Game Fest. In the credits, there’s acknowledgments for Creative Commons Unity assets he used. He also later showcased it at Wholesome Games’ 2021 and 2022 presentations. This is all to say… I think it’s cool to see how people make things. It shows a kind of gratitude, and it makes sense, given that the game is dedicated to Trent’s grandmother in memory of his grandfather.
Trent reached out to our team with this code after he saw fellow Punished Backlog writer Allison McDaniel’s list of indie games releasing on Switch in October 2024, and I’m glad he did. Thanks, Trent—I’m grateful for having had the chance to take a walk with Yiayia, and for all the times I got to walk with my grandma, too. When I accepted the review, I was worried I’d be bawling the whole time—but mostly, I just smiled, remembering and appreciating.
A Walk With Yiayia is not a game for everyone (and certainly not anyone who has beef with interactive novels), but it is a game for everyone who has had deep affection for an elder and wants to sit with that for a little while. The winter holiday season is a time when memories and new experiences often collide, and if you find yourself needing an hour to process that, then A Walk With Yiayia is well worth your time.
Score: 8.9/10
A Walk With Yiayia, developed by Trent Garlipp, is available now on Nintendo Switch, Windows, Mac, and Linux. MSRP $7.99.
Disclaimer: A review code was provided by the developer.
