You wouldn’t think Yacht Club games are in trouble. After all, Shovel Knight was a massive indie hit with over 2 million copies sold by 2018 alone. Its success generated multiple spin-offs, crossovers, and even a mobile game. Given the performance of their debut title, it’s easy to assume the studio would be set for a while. Not so.
On October 6th, Yacht Club announced Mina the Hollower, their next big title, was delayed. The news came as a surprise, given the release date was less than a month away. The blog stated the game is playable start to finish, and the focus is now on polishing. That said, a new release date has yet to be announced. If it sounds there’s trouble in the LA-based studio, that’s because there is.
“It’s Make-Or-Break for Sure.”
Mina was originally due to come out in late 2023, following a successful $1.2 million Kickstarter. But project lead Alec Faulkner admits that he isn’t the best person to lead development. Despite Faulkner having created the concept and design for Mina, the game’s scope expanded to the point where management became difficult. Delays became a necessity, and as a result, Yacht Club has had to delay an unannounced 3D Shovel Knight game to get Mina over the finish line.
It’s led to a situation where the studio has long gaps in their publishing output. And that’s led to financial consequences. Headcount has downsized to 15 people, and Yacht Club is eschewing their office and going full work from home. And Yacht Club isn’t out of the woods. Mina needs to be a hit, otherwise the studio may need a buyer, which means losing independence.
“What we’re doing in the future is try to figure out ways to have a game come out every couple of years, instead of every five or six,” said Yacht Club cofounder Nick Wozniak.
It’s not abysmal for the studio. Mina is close to the finish line, with the major problem areas identified. Now it’s just a matter of fixing them. Another co-founder Sean Velasco also divulged their sales targets. 500K copies is ideal, and 200k is also acceptable. Anything less than that, and Yacht Club may be in serious trouble. With the studio’s goodwill from Shovel Knight, their sales goals aren’t impossible. All they can do is finish Mina as quickly as they can, and hope the fans turn up.
Original reporting by Bloomberg. For more news, be sure to read more on our Other Games section.
