Mina the Hollower Preview – A New Look At The Promising Love Letter To The Game Boy Era

Retro love-letters are everywhere. Retro experiences can be found in all areas of the gaming industry, from titles that are too similar to their source material to those that expand the original idea into new realms. Yacht Club Games led the way with Shovel Knight. This 2D action platformer took the genre of 8-bit graphics and made it fun with a few twists. Mina the Hollower is a similar game that looks like an homage to The Legend of Zelda Link’s Awakening. But as I discovered during my one-hour play, this game offers much more than just a nostalgic experience.

Mina the Hollower’s Game Boy Color graphics will undoubtedly draw comparisons with titles such as Link’s Awakening. But that is by design. It’s clear that the team responsible for this game is a fan of games from that time period and they haven’t tried to conceal their inspiration. And the combat does feel similar at first; after choosing your weapon – a pair of nimble daggers, a Castlevania-style whip, or a heavy hammer – you embark on a top-down adventure full of dangerous monsters, clever puzzles, and harrowing locales. 

Mina has the same ability to jump as Link did in Link’s Awakening. But she is also a top-down star with a unique gameplay style. In true Yacht Club fashion, Mina can dig. She doesn’t only dig; she also burrows. Mina can instantly burrow and sink into the ground as a hollower. The ability to burrow can be useful for a variety of reasons, including avoiding enemy attacks almost as if you were doing a dodge roll or to get underneath obstacles. You can fly further forward if you quickly burrow towards the gap. The burrowing mechanic can be a lot of fun, but you’ll need to learn it to progress. It’s easy to use, but the designers have also built in clever features around it. 

Once I got past the obvious visual pedigree and the core gameplay tenets, I found Mina the Hollower perhaps has more in common with Bloodborne than it does with Link’s Awakening. In addition to choosing your weapon, you also carry around healing vials that you can use at your discretion (though, strategy definitely comes into play – more on that later), plus various collectible Trinkets to buff your character. The Trinkets range from boosting your attack or defense power, to deploying a spider in order to create a web to cover an otherwise impossible pit. One of my favorite Trinkets is the ability to dig deeper and longer, combined with another which has Mina attacking as soon as she appears from beneath the surface. There are two Trinket slots available to players at the beginning of the game. However, there will be a way to increase this.

You can upgrade Mina’s stats by leveling up as you collect more bones. The number of bones that you keep as currency or convert to experience can be adjusted. You will need to try out all these features in order for you to discover your own preferred style of play and also which style works best for the different areas.

Following a tutorial, I was taken to Bone Beach. A mid-game that’s much harder than the area I started with. The giant carcass of a monster washed onto the shore and inspired bone miners to gather what they could from it. You can imagine that this has attracted some unsavory monsters and characters.

The Whisper and Vesper were the daggers I wanted after experimenting with the Nightstar whip, the Blaststrike hammer and both. Using these, I can attack with a standard sword melee, or I could even toss one at an enemy to deal damage – I just have to remember to go retrieve it. As I cut through all enemies, including miners who throw pickaxes and floating skulls which belch poisonous clouds, as well as haunting birds, that dive bomb you, it’s important to remember that they need to be retrieved. 

Mina will reward you with side weapons, bones and Trinkets for venturing off-the-beaten track. My favorite side weapon is the projectile ax, although I can also imagine a portal you could warp into and a knife. Each weapon has its own ammunition and you can only have one of them at any given time. 

To be judicious: the healing vials, while extremely beneficial, are also limited. It does not refill your health every time, but only the yellow part of it. This is what you get by doing damage to your enemies. If you’re looking to make the most of your vials, it is best to use them to replenish the yellow part of the health bar, then consume the vial. You can refill your vials and your health at a checkpoint. This will help you learn how to time your healing.

Mina The Hollower was an amazing experience for me, even if I am not as nostalgic about the Game Boy visual style. It’s a game that plays as if it was released more than 30 years ago, but the mechanics are so fresh. Mina the Holler could one day join the Shovel Knight as the first icon of Yacht Club Games. Unfortunately, there is no date for the release of this game. I will have to wait a little while, but I am eagerly awaiting it when it does come out.

Visit our video on the creation of the game to find out more. For more of the best games from PAX West 2023, head here.