“Mina the Hollower” created by Yacht Club Games, the development team of “Shovel Knight”, has been officially launched recently. What attracts the most attention of players is not the game content, but a harsh word from developer Sean Velasco. He said that he would be very disappointed if “Mina the Hollower” ultimately sold less than 1 million units.
For an independent game, such a goal is indeed not conservative. After all, the price of “Mina the Hollower” is only US$19.99 (approximately NT$600, HK$156, and RM94), which is far lower than the current pricing of many AAA masterpieces. Therefore, many players believe that the team intends to exchange lower prices for higher sales.
The price of $20 is not the price of Buddha’s heart
Velasco admitted that players now face too many game choices. If the price reaches US$30 or even US$40, many people may choose to wait and see or even wait for special offers. Instead of doing this, it is better to lower the threshold from the beginning so that more players are willing to start directly. This strategy has actually become more and more common in recent years. Many independent games have begun to choose more affordable prices, hoping to drive sales through word-of-mouth and community diffusion, rather than simply relying on high unit prices to make profits.
High evaluations give the team confidence
“Mina the Hollower” currently has very good reviews among the media and players, and many reviews even included it on the short list of the best independent games this year. The excellent reputation also gives Yacht Club Games high expectations for sales performance. However, in the past few years, there have been many cases in the gaming industry where masterpieces have been evaluated but failed to sell. Therefore, whether 1 million units is confidence or pressure, I am afraid we have to wait for the market to give an answer.
For Yacht Club Games, “Mina the Hollower” is not just a new work, but an important project that the studio has invested a lot of resources into over the years. When developers publicly announce a goal of one million sets, what is actually reflected behind it is the expectations of independent game teams for future development.