This review was made possible by Popped receiving a review code for Mina the Hollower on Nintendo Switch 2.
Mina the Hollower is an extravagant, potentially genre-defining Zelda-like with an eye-watering scope. Having played around 10 hours and completed just one of the game’s six dungeons, I have been knocked back by its careful balance of paying homage to Nintendo’s original design philosophy, and completely breaking it apart in ways that feel wholly unique. Its art style, intensely political world-building, and satisfying movement and combat mechanics make it an immediate contender for game of the year.
‘Mina the Hollower’ Blends Originality and Nostalgia
Coming from Shovel Knight developers Yacht Club Games, Mina had a lot of expectations riding on it. The majority of the studio’s output since 2014 has been focused on expansions, updates, and spin-offs to Shovel Knight, building it up as one of the best bang-for-your-buck deals in gaming. However, this only whetted fans’ appetites further for something original, a true follow up to one of the most iconic indie games of all time, another Yacht Club spin on Nintendo’s design philosophy.
Out pops Mina, a mouse traversing Tenebrous Isle, a fantasy realm populated by anthropomorphic animals and sunbathing humans. Key to the game’s success is the personality of both Mina and Tenebrous. Mina’s character design is so attention-grabbing that it pulls your focus into every frame. She has a wonderful balance of cuteness and cool, a determined competency and a soft heart.
All of this is communicated by her presentation, both in the 16-bit art of the gameplay and in the more refined pixel illustrations that appear in cutscenes and dialogue boxes. Much like Shovel Knight, her design is simple and could easily become iconic. Mina, unlike Link in the Zelda games, has dialogue. This comes pretty sparingly, only popping out when the story progresses or through interactions with certain NPCs. This balance helps you map onto Mina while still allowing her to feel like her own person and an active participant in Tenebrous.
‘Mina the Hollower’ Introduces A New Iconic Realm
Tenebrous itself is a fascinating place to exist in. Gothic architecture reigns over the land, mountain-high mythical beasts run item shops, friends become foes in an instant, and mythical bunnies are hunted down by bloodthirsty children. Kicking off the story is an invention of Mina’s, spark generators, which bring something akin to electricity to the Isles. The villain of the piece, Thorne, opposes their construction and shuts down the six generators. However, I immediately wondered if Thorne’s motivations had merit.
While wandering around Tenebrous’ capital city, Ossex, I noticed a stark divide between the east and west of the town. The east was populated by snobby, rich people, while the west was clearly more run down and deprived. You might even get your pocket picked while walking around the wrong side of Ossex. All of this stems from who profits off the construction of spark generators, a smart analogue to big tech. There is a clear commentary on wealth inequality popping up in Mina the Hollower, and I’m intrigued to see how well it lands those themes.
It Feels Good To Hollow in ‘Mina the Hollower’
The game’s presentation is of an elite calibre that the gameplay barely breaks a sweat in living up to. The mechanic you’ll use the most while exploring Tenebrous is the titular Hollowing move. Mina being a Hollower allows her to temporarily burrow underground and pop up elsewhere. This can be used to sneak under gates, dig up treasure or gain extra distance on a jump (which makes for some fascinatingly difficult platforming challenges), but its intense difficulty curve comes when using it in battle.
Mina can dodge almost all attacks by burrowing underground, but timing that move to the enemy’s attacks is a major challenge, embodying Nintendo’s easy to play, difficult to master philosophy. You can get through most battles without it, but there’s something so satisfying about landing hits between perfect dodges.
There is a definite learning curve with Mina. Some of its odes to a past era of games don’t quite mesh with the amount of currencies and systems it has. Little is explained as you begin to pick up blue bottles, yellow flowers, bones, skulls, and golden gems. It didn’t take me too long to understand the purpose of each one, and that they all play a vital role, but there was a lot of confusion for that first hour or so. I also had a slight problem with the game’s failstates, which is a completely personal issue. The game relies on checkpoints which can be a far stretch from the area you’re currently exploring, meaning you can lose a healthy chunk of progress very easily. I know that some people love that type of difficulty, but I found myself mourning my progress a little too often.
‘Mina the Hollower’ – Final Thoughts
Mina the Hollower is a shining example of how to take classic formulas and make them feel fresh and unpredictable. The game might drag you into a boss fight without warning, or a vertical platforming challenge, all while staying true to the very core of the Zelda-like genre. In my short time with the game, I’ve discovered so much richness in every corner I peek into and I am itching to see what else Tenebrous Isle has in store.
Mina the Hollower is now available for Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC. Check out the trailer below:
Looking for more games to play on Nintendo Switch 2? Check out our review of Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream.