Mina the Hollower was supposed to be out last October, but it got delayed at the last minute as Shovel Knight maker Yacht Club Games pulled out all the stops to try to make its upcoming retro mash-up of Castlevania and Link’s Awakening as good a game as possible. It’s now back with a new release date that’s just around the corner and I’m looking forward to it more than ever.
The new day of reckoning is May 29. Mina the Hollower will bring its top-down dungeon combat and puzzles to consoles and PC for just $20. That’s the unofficial new price ceiling for 2D indie action games as set last fall by Hollow Knight Silksong‘s launch, a GOTY contender fans couldn’t believe was as cheap as it was. Some other recent gems have struggled when going above that threshold like March’s Scott Pilgrim EX, an excellent River City Ransom-style beat ’em up that has stalled on Steam at $29.
I wouldn’t normally engage in pre-launch armchair analysis of the business dynamics facing a new indie game but Yacht Club is a great studio and Mina the Hollower is a game I really want to see succeed.
TRUE FINAL RELEASE DATE!! 🐭🙌
Mina the Hollower launches May 29 for only $19.99!
Prepare yourself for one of the greatest top-down adventures ever to be delivered directly to your soul for less than 20 bucks.
Mark your calendars. Tell your friends. Wishlist now – links below!🧵 pic.twitter.com/exCI1cFwSg— Yacht Club Games (@YachtClubGames) May 6, 2026
“It’s make-or-break for sure,” studio founder Sean Velasco told Bloomberg about the game’s launch last December. “If we sold 500,000 copies, then we would be golden. If we sold even 200,000, that would be really great. If we sold, like, 100,000, that’s not so good.”
When I demoed the game at PAX West months before that in September, the game seemed in a good place, but these days anything short of exceptional can be a big dice roll. Even great games don’t always break through anymore. Shovel Knight was one of a kind back when it came out in 2014. The bar for standing out in 2026 has risen exponentially.
Fortunately, it feels like Mina the Hollower is coming out at just the right moment to capitalize on the post-spring lull and the peak summer nostalgia of a retro adventure that would look right at home on the Game Boy Advance.
