Developed by Jan Nijman, Kitty Calis, Jukio Kallio and Dominik Johann
Published by Devolver Digital
Released for Xbox One (4/3/2018)
Also on Linux/Mac/PC/Mobile/PS4/Switch
Developed by a small indie team and released in 2018 for the Xbox One, the concept of Minit is that you only have 60 seconds to live. There's a timer up in the top-left and when it runs out, your character drops dead on the spot due to some kind of funky curse placed on you. If you enjoy speed-running games, then you're likely going to love Minit. If you like to explore and take your time in your action-adventure games, then perhaps the mechanic sounds more irritating than interesting. Personally, I'm usually more of the latter but I came into Minit with an open-mind and I wound up enjoying the game quite a bit.
Minit's presentation is very basic. The game sports some basic pixel art with only black and white as the colors, with characters that remind me a bit of those old Tomagatchi creatures, especially this one. It's a simplistic look that serves the simple gameplay well. Sound effects are well done and all characters have their own person speaking their gibberish. While basic, the graphics serve their purpose well and you can tell what everything is supposed to be at a glance which is not always the case with pixel art.
Gameplay-wise, Minit borrows a lot from the old Legend of Zelda titles. The action is viewed from an overhead perspective and the screens change when you hit the borders, rather than scroll. As you explore you'll find NPCs to talk to which will usually yield a fetch quest to complete. You'll find several useful items that will grant you the necessary abilities to progress further into the game. Items in Minit are things like the sword (lets you fight), coffee (lets you push boxes), gardening gloves (break trees with your sword) and a few others.
You'll also encounter enemies that you'll have to fight with your sword. Combat is basic (1-button to hit) and easy to use. As you travel along you'll find new homes, which will serve as a checkpoint of sorts. Once you enter into one of the "home" buildings, you set that to be your next spawn point upon your next inevitable death. It's a cool system and makes it possible to explore further out into the map as you fight against the strict time limit. The game will likely take anywhere from 2-6 hours to complete, shorter if you're using a guide of course.
Upon completing the game for the first time, you'll unlock 2 new game modes: second run and Mary's mode. Second run adds some difficulty to many of the screens in addition to giving you only 40 seconds each life as opposed to the 60 you got the first time. Mary's mode is interesting, where you play as the ghost Mary (who is an NPC you can meet in the first playthrough) and are no longer constricted by any kind of time limit. I enjoyed Mary's mode as it allows you to explore at your own pace and play the game like your more traditional adventure title, rather than rushing through everything in the main game. Both of these game modes are nice additions and add some extra replay value to what would otherwise be a super short game.
Minit is definitely an interesting take on the action/adventure genre with a speedrunning element incorporated. While the constant time limit could have easily been a frustrating mechanic, Minit features some solid map design and the solution is never too difficult to find. There's not much out there like it, other than Half-Minute Hero off the top of my head, so if you like this one you may want to check that one out too. Those into speed-running and/or old-school Legend of Zelda-style adventure games will surely find something to like in Minit.
Final Verdict: If you're a fan of speed-running and/or classic action-adventure games, Minit combines them both to deliver a unique experience.
Related Links:
Buy Minit - Microsoft Store
Jan Willem Nijman - Twitter
Devolver Digital - Official Site
Minit - Official Site
Minit - Hardcore Gaming 101
Minit - GameFAQs
Minit Achievement Guide - Xbox Achievements
Minit - True Achievements
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