Mina the Hollower has shot to the top of the review scoreboards for 2026, as its set of critic reviews ready for its launch have earned the game an overall Metacritic score of 93.
This makes it the highest-rated game of 2026 so far on the website, beating the 91 score for Forza Horizon 6, and the 89 ratings handed to Pokémon Pokopia and Resident Evil Requiem. The score is based on 32 reviews at the time of writing, with more expected to come.
Might GTA 6 be the only game that could be rated higher this year?
Most reviews are based on the PC and Nintendo Switch 2 versions of Mina the Hollower. We do have a PS5 review code and we plan to deliver our verdict as soon as possible, but PS5 keys arrived later than the two other platforms.
For now, you can browse below some of the first Mina the Hollower verdicts. The game itself releases for PS5 later this week, on 29th May 2026, for $20. You can browse all the Mina the Hollower reviews on Metacritic through the link.
IGN — 10/10
Mina the Hollower will burrow into your brain and set up a cozy little house there. I couldn’t let it go: Clues to unsolved puzzles pop into my brain before bed; a corner high out of reach that I never set foot on beckons me every time I pass it on my way to the shops in Ossex; the math tells me maxing out my attack power would just take one really good grinding spot, and then I could beat that secret boss that destroyed me. Mina achieves the same heights in both action and style that its impressive inspirations – Zelda, Castlevania, and FromSoft RPGs – reach on a regular basis, and with far fewer resources. Even if all you’ve played is Breath of the Wild and Elden Ring, don’t let the retro look fool you: Mina the Hollower will scratch the same itch, with an open world that’s crammed with mysteries worth finding and lively, clever combat I couldn’t get enough of. It’s a big game in a small package, and an absolute masterpiece of an adventure.
From start to finish, Mina the Hollower had me enthralled, which is pretty incredible for a game that ran me about 18 hours for a first-time playthrough (54% exploration rating). Some truly masterful game design on display, along with excellent spritework and sound design, make this an all-timer and an easy recommend for…frankly, anyone that enjoys video games. You can set the difficulty to your liking in a way that I haven’t seen, ever, which makes this accessible to a very wide range of players. The exploration is top-notch, the story is riveting, the art style is striking, and the myriad ways the developers pull tricks on you is both amusing and well thought-out. I can’t recommend Mina the Hollower enough.
Mina the Hollower is an almost faultless game that combines elements of nostalgic classics we know and love with a healthy dose of Yacht Club’s flair and expertise to make it something that truly stands out as a retro-inspired masterpiece. I could honestly play it forever, with Yacht Club proving that it’s not just a one game studio with yet another bonafide classic.
Mina the Hollower is one of the best indie games I’ve played in a long, long time. It borrows familiar ideas from Zelda, Dark Souls, and a million others to make its own, and offers endless choice and variety in how you carve your way through its world. It’s an uncommon tribute to classic games that often surpasses the quality of the titles that inspired it.
I am awed by what Yacht Club Games has created here. Mina the Hollower is so ambitious and dense and sprawling that it is hard to believe that it is contained in such a modest presentation. It surpasses the boundaries of mere homage or retro throwback to become something new, fresh, inventive, and exciting. Shovel Knight was a well-deserved successful debut for Yacht Club. Mina the Hollower may be its masterpiece.
Mina the Hollower looks like a nostalgic throwback, and it undeniably is, but its thoughtful design and larger sensibilities make it play and feel like a contemporary video game – one that has taken the right lessons from the medium’s history.
Have these Mina the Hollower reviews convinced you to buy the game later this week? Tell us in the comments below.
