A Parent’s Guide to Mina the Hollower

Mina the Hollower At a Glance

• Mina the Hollower is rated E10+ for Everyone 10+
• Mina the Hollower is an action-adventure game with 8-bit, Game Boy Color aesthetics.
• The player guides Mina through a vast world as she seeks to restore power to several generators.

I wasn’t going to write a blog about Mina the Hollower. Then I played Mina the Hollower.

On the surface, Mina is a game that seems to appeal to the hardest of hardcore video game likers. It’s very challenging, unforgiving, and really throws the player in with very little direction. But within only a few hours of starting the game and sifting through the menus, it’s clear that Mina the Hollower may be the kind of game that can be enjoyed by crusty millennials like me, along with their kids.

But the question remains: Is Mina the Hollower a good fit for your family?

What is Mina the Hollower Rated?

Mina the Hollower is rated E10+ for Everyone 10+, with one Content Descriptor for Fantasy Violence. There are no Interactive Elements assigned to Mina the Hollower, meaning the game is a single-player, offline experience with no offers for additional in-game purchases.

From a content perspective Mina is likely OK for your 10-year-old. But, as I mentioned earlier, it is tough … especially in the early hours of the game! While plenty of younger kids will be fine with that, some may also find it frustrating. Fortunately, Mina includes settings to cushion this challenge with modifiers, essentially allowing you to create an “easy mode” for your family.

These include the ability to level up faster, deal more damage, take less damage, ignore damage entirely, and much more. In all, there are more than 200 modifiers in Mina the Hollower…. including some that make the game harder, too!

Where Can I Buy Mina the Hollower and How Much Is It?

Mina the Hollower is available for $19.99 digitally on the Nintendo Switch and Switch 2, PlayStation 5, XBOX Series X|S, and PC via Steam, GOG and Humble.

What is Mina the Hollower About?

You and your family will step into the furry feet of Mina, a renowned engineer and “Hollower” from Tenebrous Isle. As a Hollower, Mina is a member of the exclusive group of researchers that study the lands around them. Hollowers get their name from the ability to burrow underground, increasing their travel speed and opening up new avenues of exploration.

But Mina is an engineer first, and a Hollower second. After some time away from her home on Tenebrous Isle and the core city of Ossex, Mina is called back to fix a series of inventions that she created called “Spark Generators.” These Generators were erected with funding and assistance from region’s leader, Baron Lionel, to provide energy to the entire island.

Unfortunately, in Mina’s absence the generators were sabotaged by a growing rebel group. Lionel calls on Mina to travel to six distinct areas of the island to fix the Spark Generators and save everyone.

How Does Mina the Hollower Play?

If you’re an aging Millennial like me you may have some fondness for Gameboy Color games like The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening (E for Everyone), or the Oracle games (E for Everyone). Mina the Hollower takes a lot of cues from those in both style and design. However, developer Yacht Club Games added modern touches to better align the gameplay with what you would expect in 2026.

You and your family will take control of Mina to explore each region of the island, uncover treasures and trinkets, defeat enemies, and solve puzzles. At the end of each region is a powerful boss enemy to defeat and a Spark Generator to repair. But getting to those climaxes requires a thorough understanding of the maze-like region, and how to get through safely.

You and your kids will guide Mina and carve through enemies with one of five weapons, including a chain whip, a giant hammer, a pair of knives, and more. You’ll also have access to a host of “Sidearms” which function as supplemental attacks or defensive options. For example, one of my favorites was the Volt Hatchet, an early sidearm that allows Mina to throw a massive battle axe that explodes on impact.

You’ll also gain access to literally dozens of Trinkets, which change Mina’s move set in more tangible ways. This can include adding more healing vials, improved healing, changes to the hollowing mechanic, and much more. Speaking of…

The most unique mechanic in Mina the Hollower is her ability to Hollow. This enables Mina to burrow underground for a second or two, opening applications for combat, puzzle solving, and exploration. Instead of being able to dodge, Mina can burrow under enemies to avoid their attacks, pop out the other side, and wallop them with your weapon of choice.

Defeating enemies earns Mina “Bones” which can be exchanged to level up health, magic, and attack damage.

Making Sure Your Kids’ Video Game Experiences Stay Appropriate

Making sure your kids’ video game experiences stay appropriate can be daunting on the surface, but there are a ton of resources available to you and your family to help.

The first thing I remind parents is to check the ESRB rating. I know, what a surprise! The next thing I tell parents is that it’s OK if you need more information; ESRB ratings are here to help point you in the right direction. Sometimes the rating will provide everything you need to decide, and other times you’ll want to do some more digging.

Hollowing allows Mina to burrow underground for a second or two, opening applications for combat, puzzle solving, and exploration.

Fortunately, just about every game out there has trailers, let’s plays, previews, reviews, forums, and more. A quick search in your engine of choice will help flesh out your decision. Additionally, a lot of games also have demos so you can try a game out yourself to see it in action.

In a more general sense, it’s valuable to also talk about video games as a family. Approaching your kids’ favorite games in a judgement-free, understanding manner will show them that you respect what they want to play. Meanwhile, it gives you the opportunity to explain why there are some boundaries around video games. It’s helpful to discuss and agree to household rules around what kids can play, when and for how long, with whom (if anyone!), and whether they can spend money on in-game purchases or new games.

That way everyone is on the same page and you can proceed as a family.  Of course… you’ll have to reassess these household rules as your kids mature, but it’s really just an ongoing excuse to connect with your kids! Visit ESRB’s Family Gaming Guide for some conversation starters and tips.

And why not back up those household rules with parental controls? Virtually every device capable of playing video games include parental controls. With these, you can set hard limits on everything you discuss in your household rules. ESRB has step-by-step parental controls guides for many of the most popular consoles and platforms available at ParentalTools.org.