Mio nearly launched alongside Silksong, but an internal delay saved it

Douze Dixièmes’ Metroidvania Mio: Memories in Orbit almost released on the same date as Hollow Knight: Silksong, but an internal delay pushed Mio to a quieter Jan. 20 launch, co‑founder Sarah Hourcade told Polygon in a video interview ahead of the game’s release. Development on Mio began five years ago after the team finished Shady Part of Me, and Hourcade said the studio set out to make a science‑fiction Metroidvania inspired by Hollow Knight as a north star, with art and design influences from Ori and the Blind Forest, Chants of Sennaar and Tunic.

Many major changes happened late in production: the team cut checkpoints from about 50 to roughly 18, reworked map ideas, and overhauled the game’s visuals in two months by moving to a Photoshop‑style postprocess that created its hand‑drawn watercolor look and shifted most scenes to a single light source, Hourcade said.

Key narrative and gameplay elements were also finalized near the end of the cycle — the final ending was written in the last eight months and a permanent‑death mechanic arrived roughly six months before release — and Hourcade acknowledged the studio won’t know how players will react to some of those last‑minute choices until they try the game.

Launching in January rather than September left Mio as the first major Metroidvania after Silksong and exposed it to comparisons; Hourcade said the team expects some people to call it a copy but emphasized the studio’s own voice and influences.

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