In 2013, Yacht Club Games successfully crowdfunded the development of its 2D action-platformer Shovel Knight, and the rest is history. With half a dozen additional Shovel Knight expansions and spin-offs available or in development, Yacht Club Games is officially moving on to its next standalone game. Mina the Hollower is a Game Boy Color-inspired action-adventure game and, as with Shovel Knight, it's being crowdfunded on Kickstarter. Also like Shovel Knight, Mina the Hollower quickly demolished its Kickstarter goal.
Mina the Hollower launched its Kickstarter Tuesday afternoon, asking interested gamers to help it bring in a relatively humble amount of just $311,503. By the end of Tuesday, Mina the Hollower had already brought in over $250,000. Hours later, still before a full day had past, Mina the Hollower surpassed its goal and continued beyond. As of Wednesday morning, Mina the Hollower has passed $400,000 in pledges from over 7,000 backers and shows no signs of stopping.
The vast majority of pledges for Mina the Hollower have come via the base level of pledge. For $20, Kickstarter backers receive a digital copy of Mina the Hollower on the platform of their choice, though supported platforms have not been finalized. A good number of backers have also donated at the campaign's $100 level, which includes a physical copy of Mina the Hollower. Beyond that, Yacht Club Games has sold out of its more exclusive options, which allow backers to help design NPCs, items, or even bosses.
As with all Kickstarters, backers dedicate a certain amount of money now for rewards to be delivered at a later date. Mina the Hollower is still early in development. Its tentative release window is listed as December 2023, though Kickstarter release windows are typically optimistic. For those uninterested or unwilling to dedicate money to a game releasing in two years, waiting is a perfectly fine option. Mina the Hollower will be available for purchase when it officially launches, too.
While Mina the Hollower reaching its Kickstarter goal so quickly is impressive enough, it's also true that the goal was set surprisingly low and that it hasn't raised as much as might be expected. Mina the Hollower seems certain to raise over a million and more, but it's unlikely to reach the heights of other major Kickstarter projects.
Yacht Club Games is certain to be fine with that, of course. It deserves to be mentioned that Shovel Knight's Kickstarter originally set a goal of just $75,000 and reach $311,502 -- Mina the Hollower's new goal. The success of a game is not measured by its Kickstarter funding, and Yacht Club Games has already proven many times over that supporters will be well-rewarded. Mina the Hollower's Kickstarter ends on March 3.
Mina the Hollower releases December 2023.
