Mina the Hollower: everything we know about the new game from the creators of Shovel Knight
Mina the Hollower
Those have been busy years for Yacht Club Games. The authors of Shovel Knight have spent a lot of time and energy taking care of their little boy, who has grown and expanded, reaching perhaps unexpected levels of success even for the team, which had believed in him a lot. Yacht Club Games is however ready to look to the future and, of course, it always does so with a look towards the past. The team's next game (and maybe even franchise?) Will be Mina the Hollower.For the moment it's impossible to know if the new character will be able to dominate the indie scene as the faceless, shovel-wielding knight , but surely there are many reasons to keep an eye on the new work of Yacht Club Games. Here's everything we know about Mina the Hollower.
The Hollowers
Mina the Hollower talks to a coachman What exactly is Mina the Hollower? The team responds first by stating that she is a "love letter to the Game Boy era". This is a top-down action adventure with an 8-bit aesthetic, typical of the Game Boy Color.This means that the whole game will be built trying to keep it as faithful as possible to the game. original hardware. The screen aspect ratio will be modern, quiet, but each box will be exactly 8x8 pixels and each sprite will be limited to four colors like on the Game Boy. The color palette also echoes that of the Nintendo console. The limits of the past, in other words, become the strength of Mina the Hollower.
We are Mina, an inventor who has created a technology linked to electric sparks, based on an experimental energy source. Mina receives a letter from a close friend, Baron Lionel, who explains that the generator she invented is losing power. Mina then sets out to find out what is happening. However, Mina is also a Hollower, that is a member of a society devoted to the study of the elements and the art of excavation, a characteristic that will also be central to the gameplay.
The setting is Gothic-Victorian, of the late nineteenth century. Consistently, one of the themes is the clash between technologies and nature, but also a deep passion for the world and the study of what surrounds us. The sources of inspiration are after all Frankenstein, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and Dracula.
The tone of the adventure is also changing, which will be a little darker and more sinister. An easy example is one of the first secondary missions in which we have the task of guiding the Duke, a kind and loving soul, from his beloved by him, the Duchess. It all starts in a cheerful way, but in the end we find ourselves fighting with the Duchess and finally we discover that she is already dead. We are then taking the Duke to the woman's grave and the mission ends sadly.
Gameplay
Mina the Hollower attacks enemies with her whip Put aside the narrative, let's analyze the basics of the gameplay, which takes inspiration from games like The Legend of Zelda Link's Awakening, Castlevania and even Bloodborne. front view). In fact, Mina has a whip - Nightstar -, a weapon also typical of the Konami series. Together with it he will be able to use various tools such as the Volt Hatchet - capable of attacking multiple enemies with an area hit - or the Gyro Dagger - which acts as a boomerang that can hit enemies multiple times -.Mina he is also able to jump, grab objects to throw at enemies and, above all, dig into the ground to become invulnerable for a few seconds and overcome obstacles and traps. This mechanic is useful both during fights, for dodging blows and repositioning to attack opponents, and during exploration. Mina moves faster underground and once she emerges she is able to take a longer jump than normal. Finally, by digging it is possible to unearth objects or find secret areas full of treasures.
Mina the Hollower can grab objects to throw Digging does not make us invulnerable forever, however, and death will always be ready to take us. In case of defeat, a globe will remain where we suffered the game over: reaching it without dying a second time, we will get back the Bonestones we had collected up to that moment. These are the main currency of the game and are used to buy items or level up. The checkpoints of the game are represented by the accesses to the underground laboratory of Mina, a sanctuary in which it is possible to recover the healing and to make the enemies reappear in the area, similar to the soulslike of Miyazaki.
Mina the Hollower will have even simple RPG mechanics, including the ability to level up, boost character stats (life, defense, magic ...) and equip a variety of accessories that trigger secondary effects (like an explosion when after you comes out of the ground), so as to create a version of the character that best suits our style.
Mina the Hollower will offer a mix of exploration, platforms and fights in which not only will be quick to press the keys. The battles will require attention and it will be essential to act strategically so as not to be overwhelmed.
Mina the Hollower Level Up system Mina the Hollower is expected not before the end of 2023, but for the moment Yacht Club Games has not yet decided on a specific release date. The team will take their time to complete the game in the best possible way before releasing it. The confirmed platforms are for now Windows PC, Mac and Linux, but there are no definitive confirmations for the console versions. Nintendo Switch, PS5 and Xbox Series X | S should be discounted, but PS4 and Xbox One versions could also pop up, as there will be hardly any optimization problems.
Mina the Hollower is exactly the type of product expected from Yacht Club Games. The Shovel Knight team continues by looking to the past and blending the classics with new ideas. In this mix between Castlevania and Link's Awakening, we will have the opportunity to explore, fight and experience a probably intriguing narrative world. The release is still a long way off and the team has deliberately limited the amount of details shared, but retro lovers (but not only) should note Mina the Hollower on the list of games to watch.
