Mina the Hollower Reviews
The game offers one of the best exploration systems I've experienced in 2D action-adventure games.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
Mina the Hollower is an amazing title from Yacht Club Games that everyone needs to try.
Mina the Hollower is a chilling action-adventure game that combines classic gameplay with an 8-bit aesthetic in the style of the Game Boy Color, adapted to modern times.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
An almost perfect retro adventure with a compelling story, cute characters, and incredibly captivating gameplay.
Review in Russian | Read full review
A retro-styled 8-bit action adventure, there's a lot to like about Mina the Hollower if you don't mind a challenge. But unforgiving combat, accessibility options that lock out achievements, and lack of any guidance makes this a more frustrating experience than it should be.
A gem of an 8-bit-style action adventure that pays homage to The Legend of Zelda, Castlevania, and Bloodborne
Coming in with high expectations, Mina the Hollower's tiny mouse masterfully fills some mighty big shoes. Needless to say, Yacht Club Games has another hit on its hands.
The combat stays varied, especially as you discover different weapons, sidearms, and trinkets to make your preferred build. This is a special game that was well worth the long wait. Hopefully Yacht Club Games gets to take this mentality to even more new frontiers in the future.
While Mina the Hollower might not play like the games it's clearly inspired by, Yacht Club Games has instead taken bits and pieces from all of its inspiration and combined it with its years of experience on Shovel Knight to create a masterpiece. The demo may not have sold the game's full potential, but the final product surpasses expectations. Going for a full 100% run is a ton of fun, and it’s taking all sorts of strength to not go back and play another full game.
Mina the Hollower does for Zelda what Shovel Knight did for Mega Man. It's a revival of a classic franchise in spirit while having enough of its own flavor and style to avoid coming across as a simple clone or copy. It's clever, creative, and an absolute delight to play from start to finish, while having enough bonus content and modifiers to keep the game exciting even after you complete its roughly 20-hour playtime. In a year that's already filled with amazing games, Mina still shines.
Mina the Hollower shines in its building of a detailed, complex world that rewards the attentive gaze of explorers with pleasant surprises and benefits. However, its many difficulty modifiers don't help much for those who have trouble figuring out the paths, since the game's main issue is the lack of a useful map. This demanding and meticulously crafted adventure may end up dividing the audience, pleasing those who find satisfaction in exploring and progressing on their own and alienating those who prefer a more directed and convenient experience.
Review in Portuguese | Read full review
After Shovel Knight, Yacht Club Games strikes again: Mina the Hollower is a dense, inspired and surprising action-adventure.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Mina the Hollower is one of the best games of the year and one of the standout indie titles of its generation. Its stunning 8-bit graphics conceal a wonderful adventure that keeps you feeling like you're constantly discovering something new.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Mina the Hollower is simply one of the best games you'll ever play. Between its outstanding world design, visceral sense of challenge, beautiful retro presentation, and absurd amount of content, you'll be burrowing into this gem over and over again. 🐭
Excellent dungeon design, a versatile digging mechanic, and rewarding progression make for an outstanding adventure. While the story falls short of its potential and the difficulty can be unforgiving, this is a must-play for fans of challenging action-adventure games.
Review in German | Read full review
Mina the Hollower succeeds because it understands that nostalgia is only valuable when paired with innovation. It borrows inspiration from Zelda, Castlevania, Bloodborne, and countless retro classics, but never loses its own identity in the process. The Hollowing mechanic is brilliant, the world is endlessly rewarding to explore, the bosses are unforgettable, and the presentation perfectly balances retro authenticity with modern craftsmanship. More importantly, it captures the magical feeling of discovery that defined gaming’s earlier generations while remaining unmistakably contemporary. Yacht Club Games built its reputation with Shovel Knight, and with Mina the Hollower, the studio proves that lightning can strike twice.
Mina the Hollower is perhaps one of the best-value Switch/Switch 2 games of recent times, which has to be applauded. I personally found it a bit too frustrating at times, but if you give it the patience it deserves, then the rewards are pretty handsome. The soundtrack, pixel art, level design and sheer breadth of gameplay make Mina the Hollower another hit from Yacht Club Games.
At its heart, Mina the Hollower is a message about the health of video games. More importantly, it demonstrates that the most effective manner of storytelling is not necessarily via long cutscenes or cinematic spectacle, but within gameplay itself, through the player’s actions, discoveries, struggles and triumphs. Mina the Hollower trusts the medium, and in doing so, it proves everything that makes video games unique.
Rarely has there been a game that I’ve immediately restarted in New Game+ mode upon seeing the credits roll. Mina the Hollower made me not only want to continue playing but also check out the games it was inspired by. It accomplishes what it sets out to do with tremendous success: combining old and new design philosophies into something fun, addictive and wholly unique.
Mina the Hollower is a a robust game that is a joy to play and proves Shovel Knight wasn’t lightning in a bottle for Yacht Club Games.