Mina the Hollower - Delay and Design Woes
To be confirmed, currently delayed
I’ve been hyped for Mina the Hollower ever since Yacht Club Games first revealed it, a retro top-down adventure that promised Zelda-ish exploration mixed with Castlevania-style whip combat, well I am all in. But as the release date slips, that excitement has started to feel a little hollow. For fans like me who backed early or pre-ordered, the delay and design quirks raise serious questions about whether the game will land the way we hoped.
Mina the Hollower Delay That Didn’t Feel Tiny
Mina the Hollower was originally supposed to drop on October 31, 2025, but Yacht Club Games announced a delay to polish and balance the experience. According to their announcement, the team is working “day and night” to lock in design, art, sound, and gameplay balance. Come on team, you can do this!
To be honest, I think its better wait than get a buggy launch, but the delay came just weeks before the set release date, and there’s no confirmed new date yet. That kind of uncertainty makes long-time fans, especially Kickstarter backers, worry.
Healing Mechanic That Punishes You for Playing Wrong
One of the most hotly debated design decisions was the potion-healing system. In the demo, you can’t just heal whenever you want. It looks like you have to deal damage first to recharge the potions.
From my time playing, it feels needlessly punishing. If you take damage and need to heal, you can’t always do it on the spot, forcing you into risky gameplay just to regain health. That’s supposed to reward skill, sure, but for casual players or those who misjudge a fight, it’s a trap rather than a safety net.
Performance and Visual Compromises
There’s also been backlash over missing visual options. On Switch 2, gamers expected a high frame rate, but some say there’s no 120 FPS option, even though the gear supports it. That’s a big deal when precision is such a core part of the game.
Plus, while the art style is gorgeous and nostalgic, I worry that lowering graphical fidelity was a trade-off for performance. When you’re building a love letter to retro adventure games, muddy visuals and sluggish frames feel like a missed opportunity.
Balance Is Fragile and Difficulty Curve
A common complaint I have is the demo bosses felt too punishing, and some early sections felt slow or clunky to move through.
I think that if they’re balancing around hard players, they risk alienating newcomers. I’ve felt both sides, yes, I enjoy a challenge, but I also don’t want the game to feel unfair or unbalanced just to justify increased playtime.
Polish vs. Crunch
Yacht Club says they’re using this delay to deliver “final polish and balancing” and doing daily start-to-finish playthroughs. That kind of dedication matters, and on paper, it gives me hope that this delay isn’t just smoke.
Still, with Kickstarter support, demo hype, and years of waiting, I feel that if these final fixes don’t land cleanly, the community backlash could be real.
If you are interested here is the release trailer from Nintendo
If balancing dramas are your jam, check out our post on Bloodborne: The Orphan of Kos Jump Scare Attack beloved title where polish was promised, but execution is key.
To follow the most recent updates from Yacht Club Games, visit the official Mina the Hollower news on their website.
So, how melty is it?
Hype & Love: 8/10
I was all in from the first reveal. The demo’s retro charm and combat systems sold me.
Delay Frustration: 8.5/10
A delay is fine, but no new date? That sting is real.
Design Discontent: 9/10
Healing feels punishing. Difficulty feels uneven. Performance options feel missing.
Polish Pressure – Peak Anxiety: 9.5/10
We’re praying for a clean launch. But right now, there’s tension in the air, high expectations, mixed confidence.
Total Melt Score: 8.5/10
Mina the Hollower is loaded with promise, but the delivery feels shaky. The pieces are beautiful, but will they come together?
I will leave you with some final thoughts and answers to questions that I think will help if you intend to get the game when it drops.
So What Is Mina the Hollower About?
At the surface, it’s a gothic action-adventure about Mina, a whip-wielding inventor trying to restore power to Tenebrous Isle after a mysterious outage. But beneath the retro aesthetic, the game is really about tension, survival, and navigating a world that feels like it’s actively trying to bury you.
It’s classic Yacht Club style, charming on the outside, quietly sinister underneath.
Is it a Bird, is it a Plane, is it a Mouse or a Rat?
The confusion is understandable. Officially, Mina is a “Hollower”, a fictional species, but visually she resembles a mouse far more than a rat. The long ears and small build lean mouse, while the darker thematic tone gives her a more ambiguous energy. Think about it this way, mouse silhouette, rat attitude.
Is Mina Similar to Other Games?
Honestly, yes, intentionally so. It pulls from Zelda: Link’s Awakening, the combat rhythm of Castlevania, and the speed/dodge flow of Bloodborne, all wrapped in a Game Boy Colour-era aesthetic. But it still feels like its own creature thanks to the Hollowing system and quick-step combat.
