Mina the Hollower Launches May 29 — Yacht Club's Biggest Game Yet

Six years. That's how long Yacht Club Games has been quietly building Mina the Hollower, their first new IP since Shovel Knight launched back in 2014. The wait ends on May 29, 2026, when Mina drops on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch 2 simultaneously.

If you're a fan of the studio's work, the scope of this thing should have you buzzing. Sean Velasco, director at Yacht Club, put it bluntly in a recent interview:

"If Shovel Knight is our Mario, Mina would become our Zelda."

What Is Mina the Hollower?

Mina the Hollower is a top-down action-adventure game with a Game Boy aesthetic — think chunky pixels, monochrome-inspired palettes, and fast, precise combat. You play as Mina, a monster hunter armed with a whip, navigating a dark gothic world filled with cursed creatures and ancient dungeons.

The comparison to Zelda isn't just marketing fluff. The game is a full-on action-adventure with exploration, dungeons, items, and a dense world to unravel. Yacht Club says Mina will be bigger than all of Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove combined — and Treasure Trove includes four full campaigns. That's a bold promise.

There are also seven New Game Plus modes at launch, suggesting serious replay value for people who want to torture themselves after the credits roll.

Six Years in the Making

Mina started as a side project by Yacht Club developer Alec Faulkner — a personal challenge to sharpen his coding and art skills. It grew into something much larger, eventually launching a Kickstarter in early 2022 that found immediate support.

The road since then wasn't without bumps. The game was originally planned for Halloween 2025, a release date that seemed almost too perfect for a monster-hunting gothic adventure. Then came a delay to spring 2026. These things happen, and given the scale Yacht Club is describing, it's hard to be mad about extra polish time.

Why This One Matters

Yacht Club Games has built one of the strongest reputations in indie gaming. Shovel Knight is legitimately one of the best platformers ever made — not just a good indie, a great game, full stop. The studio spent a decade supporting it with expansions, ports, and spin-offs. Mina the Hollower is their bet on what comes next.

It's also arriving at a time when the indie space is incredibly crowded. Every week sees a new pixel-art platformer or roguelike competing for attention. Mina has the advantage of a trusted developer name, years of community goodwill from the Kickstarter, and a distinct enough premise to stand out.

The fact that it's launching day-and-date on Switch 2 alongside the older Switch models is smart too — Yacht Club knows where their audience lives.

What to Expect at Launch

Hands-on previews have been positive across the board. Outlets who got early access praised the tight controls, the dungeon design, and the way the game leans into its monster-movie aesthetic without being campy about it. The whip combat apparently has a satisfying learning curve — easy to pick up, tricky to truly master.

Pricing hasn't been officially confirmed across all storefronts, but Velasco hinted in interviews that Yacht Club is aware of the value conversation in the current market and is trying to be fair to both players and the studio.

Mark Your Calendar

Mina the Hollower releases May 29, 2026 on PC (Steam), PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Nintendo Switch, and Nintendo Switch 2. If you've been following this one since the Kickstarter, your wait is almost over. If you're just hearing about it now — this is the indie drop to watch this month.