Mina the Hollower was provided by Yacht Club Games for review. Thank you!
“If Shovel Knight is our Mario, Mina would become our Zelda.”
It is the kind of statement that should collapse under the weight of its own ambition. A comparison so brazenly self-assured that, from almost any other studio, it would sound absurd. But Yacht Club Games is not just any studio. Shovel Knight was not simply a successful retro revival; it was one of the defining indie games of its generation, a masterclass in understanding the language of classic game design without becoming shackled to it. It understood precision, pacing, challenge, and above all else, joy.
Mina the Hollower proves that it wasn’t lightning in a bottle.
It is bigger, darker, stranger, more ambitious, and in many ways, even more impressive than Shovel Knight ever was. Where that game perfected the side-scrolling action platformer, Mina the Hollower turns its attention toward top-down adventure games with almost terrifying confidence, carving together elements of Zelda, Castlevania, gothic horror, Soulslike tension, and arcade-era immediacy into something that feels both reverently nostalgic and startlingly fresh. And it absolutely rules.
From the moment Mina bursts underground in a shower of dirt and teeth, the game establishes an identity all its own. The burrowing mechanic is more than a gimmick; it is the foundation of the entire experience. Used for traversal, combat, evasive movement, puzzle-solving, and exploration, it gives Mina a fluidity unlike almost anything else in the well-trodden genre. There is a wonderful rhythm to movement here, a constant dance between aggression and escape, where every encounter feels joyfully kinetic and deliberately tactile.
Combat is fast, vicious, and remarkably expressive. Mina’s arsenal grows steadily throughout the adventure, introducing new weapons, secondary tools, trinkets, and modifiers that radically alter how encounters play out. One moment you are darting beneath enemy attacks to strike from behind with surgical precision; the next you are unleashing screen-filling chaos while desperately managing positioning against overwhelming odds. The game demands attention without ever feeling punishing for punishment’s sake.
What makes Mina the Hollower so compelling, however, is its astonishing sense of scale. This is not a compact homage to old handheld adventures. It is sprawling. Regions unfold into labyrinthine tangles of hidden routes, cryptic shortcuts, forgotten ruins, and secret encounters that constantly reward curiosity. Every new area feels dense with possibility, packed with optional discoveries and environmental storytelling that gives the world a genuine sense of place. There is an old-school opacity to the adventure that feels deeply refreshing in an era terrified of letting players miss things.
And you will miss things, like entire optional bosses, strange NPC questlines, hidden items, bizarre secrets tucked behind suspicious walls or buried beneath the dirt. The experience feels gloriously unconcerned with guiding players neatly through its world. Instead, it trusts you to explore, experiment, and occasionally become hopelessly lost. That trust is rewarded constantly.
The world itself is stunning. Yacht Club’s pixel art has evolved from impressive to genuinely breathtaking, with some of the finest animation work in modern pixel-based games. Mina moves with astonishing personality, enemies twitch and lurch with grotesque charm, and environments drip with atmosphere. There is a theatrical quality to everything, as though the game exists somewhere between a forgotten gothic horror serial and an unearthed masterpiece from an alternate gaming timeline.
Yet for all its visual brilliance, it is the soundtrack that truly elevates Mina the Hollower into something special. Jake Kaufman’s work here is extraordinary.
Shovel Knight’s score earned its legendary reputation through sheer melodic brilliance, delivering one unforgettable theme after another. Mina somehow surpasses it. The soundtrack is richer, moodier, and more textured, equally capable of explosive triumph and oppressive dread. Every area possesses a distinct musical identity, with tracks that burrow into your brain long after the console is switched off.
There are moments where the score swells into eerie grandeur that feels almost overwhelming, transforming simple exploration into something hypnotic. Elsewhere, minimalist melodies and unnerving basslines create a constant undercurrent of tension, reinforcing the game’s darker tone without ever sacrificing its sense of adventure. It is an astonishing achievement, and one of the finest soundtracks Yacht Club Games have ever produced. Dare I say it: it is better than Shovel Knight’s. Without a shadow of a doubt. Not because it abandons the infectious hooks that made that soundtrack iconic, but because it expands upon them with greater emotional range and atmosphere. Mina the Hollower’s music does not merely accompany the game; it defines it.
On Steam Deck, Mina the Hollower feels nothing short of exemplary. In an era where “playable” on handheld often translates to compromise, Yacht Club Games instead deliver an experience that feels purpose-built for Valve’s portable powerhouse. The game’s gorgeous pixel art and razor-sharp responsiveness translate beautifully to the smaller screen, creating the kind of dangerously moreish “just one more area” experience that handheld gaming thrives upon.
More impressively still, the performance is virtually flawless. Across exploration, combat, and some of the game’s more chaotic encounters, the framerate never meaningfully falters, holding a perfectly stable and immensely satisfying 90fps throughout. Combined with an astonishingly low 7W battery draw, Mina the Hollower becomes an absolute dream on Steam Deck, comfortably offering upwards of six hours of blissful, uninterrupted gameplay on a single charge. It is the sort of optimisation work that feels increasingly rare; thoughtful, efficient, and clearly designed by developers who understand exactly how people want to play their games.
Quite frankly, it may already stand among the very best Steam Deck experiences available.
What is perhaps most impressive about Mina the Hollower is how effortlessly confident it feels. Many retro-inspired games are content to imitate the aesthetics of the past while sanding away the rougher edges. Yacht Club Games understand that the magic of those older games came not just from how they looked, but from how boldly designed they were. Mina embraces mystery, difficulty, experimentation, and discovery with absolute conviction.
It never feels cynical. Never calculated. Never designed by committee. It feels meticulously handcrafted, proudly seeping with character and deliberate thought throughout.
That craftsmanship extends everywhere: the responsiveness of movement, the density of secrets, the immaculate pacing of exploration and combat, the unforgettable boss encounters, the perfectly judged difficulty curve, and the sheer generosity of content. This is a game overflowing with ideas, yet somehow never loses focus. Shovel Knight cemented Yacht Club Games as one of the great modern indie developers. Mina the Hollower feels like the moment they transcend even that reputation.
If Shovel Knight was their Mario, then yes, Mina the Hollower may very well be their Zelda to an entire new generation.
このレビューはPC版に基づいています。
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What is perhaps most impressive about Mina the Hollower is how effortlessly confident it feels. Many retro-inspired games are content to imitate the aesthetics of the past while sanding away the rougher edges. Yacht Club Games understand that the magic of those older games came not just from how they looked, but from how boldly designed they were. Mina embraces mystery, difficulty, experimentation, and discovery with absolute conviction.
It never feels cynical. Never calculated. Never designed by committee. It feels meticulously handcrafted, proudly seeping with character and deliberate thought throughout.
