Mina The Hollower Blends Bloodborne With Zelda And Castlevania

gamespot.com:

Yacht Club Games's first-ever foray into retro-inspired games, Shovel Knight, has quickly grown into one of the most successful indie franchises in the industry. The team is attempting to strike gold again with Mina The Hollower, but this time it has a new genre--and a new spookier tone--in its sights.

A short demo playable at PAX East last weekend gave a taste of what Mina The Hollower is all about, and it's much more than the classic Zelda-inspired look would let on. Throughout the 15-minute demo, we had a chance to test out multiple weapons, underground traversal through a digging mechanic, and more, and we came away impressed with what we played.

The PAX East demo started us off next to a derelict carriage, with the horse in charge standing next to it. After a well-placed pun lightens the mood--«this carriage is broken down, so I'll have to hoof it!» Mina says--the next screen pits Mina against a few enemies. Experience with Zelda games would indicate a straightforward battle, but this moment is where Mina's open-ended approach begins to shine. Attacking each monster head-on is an option, but so is digging underneath the ground in an attempt to get past them. Once they're behind Mina, she can step on certain tiles to make them fall away, which keeps the enemies on one side of the pit and our heroine on the other.

If combat is the choice, there are three main weapons to try out in this demo. The whip is a «standard» weapon, with average power and a brief delay before the attack hits. The other weapons fall on either side of the scale; the hammer takes longer to attack but packs a wallop, while the daggers are faster but less powerful. These choices, combined with other items in the inventory like secondary weapons and