In Youkai Yashiki, you control a boy armed with a flashlight who must explore five stages and locate five talisman before locating and gaining access to a stage boss. The flashlight serves as a weapon against the monsters which inhabit each stage. Your life meter takes the form of a set of batteries. As your life diminishes, the batteries drain and the power of your flashlight, that is the distance that the beams can travel, decreases.