Tap the game to open it fullscreen. On a computer, Esc exits; on a phone, use the ✕ button.

How to play

Rurik and his men row upriver. Tap (or use the arrows) on the left and on the right, alternating, to take strokes: each alternate tap gives full power. Repeating the same side gives less power but turns the boat toward it. The current pushes the boat; the third bump on the bank ends the game. Reach the end of the river before time runs out.

The story behind it

The Primary Chronicle says Rurik arrived at Ladoga and Novgorod around 862. The strokes in the game are made up. Read the story in Rurik and Oleg: how the Primary Chronicle tells of the call to the Varangians that gave rise to Kyivan Rus’, and what archaeology adds.