An instant classic that will enjoyed by gamers of all ages for generations to come.
This game originally came out for the SNES, but for those of us who were just learning how to walk when this system came out this game may seem like a totally new game and it definantly feels like one.
Where should I start?
The first thing you'll notice is that this game also includes the Mario Bros. add on. For those of us who own like every Mario Advance game, will probably just pass on it. After all, it's Yoshi's Island that has the spolight.
The title screen already amazes with it's 3D look and the unforgettable and the I-could-listen-to-this-all-day-long theme song.
The game starts off by showing a group of Yoshis around Baby Mario. Baby Mario wants to go where Luigi is to save him from the clutches of Kammy Koopa and Baby Bowser so they can be together and get home to their parents. No, you don't get to see what their parents look like. We'll never know almost like trying to see Master Chief's face. It's not going to happen.
The Yoshis are going to reunite the brothers by way of relay system. After each level, one Yoshi will pass Baby Mario to the next Yoshi. Yes, you will get to play as every color Yoshi out there.
The first level is a tutorial teaching you the controls of the game. The controls are tight and responsive and are easy to learn. So don't blame the game because you accidently feel of the ledge. That's your own damn fault.
Yoshi has the usual stuff. Jumping, shooting out his tongue, swallowing and making eggs, and the trademark flutter jump.
The levels are beautifully animated and colorful that look great even by today's standards and are well designed to test your reflexes and skills.
You will go through mountains and jungles, forests, dungeons and even underwater. Each level vaires greatly so you never see the same thing over and over. Some objects in the game are animated in 3D that originally took advantage of the FX ship in the orginal SNES release and look great.
Yoshi will need more than his usual ablities to get through each level.
In some levels, you will see transformation bubbles that when touched turns Yoshi into one of four vehicles. A train, a car, a helicopter, and a submarin that shoots torpedos. And Yoshi some how manages to still look just as cute in each transformation even while shooting torpedoes at helpless enemies. Each tranformation lasts for only a short time so move quickly. Each level is populated by dozens of enemies that are not difficult to beat but are placed such a way in each level that they will provide you with at least some challenge in your quest. When you are hit by an enemy, baby Mario will float in the air and you'll be stunned for a couple of seconds. A timer will appear counting down to zero. At this point you must catch Baby Mario before time runs out. Did I mention that he will cry loudly? When it does runs out, Baby Mario will be captured and you will lose a life. If that's not a reason to save him then stopping his loud crying will. At first you start out with 10 "Star Points" In each level are continue points that appear as sparkly circles. Touching these will make you continue there if you die and increase you Star Points by 10 with a max of 30. You can also get Star Points by breaking boxes.
There are a series of items to collect in Yoshi's Island that are scattered in each level. Collecting them is optional but if you want to get a 100% rating, collecting them is a must. There are 20 red coins (disguised as regular coins) and five flowers. To get a max of 100 points in each level you must collect these and have 30 Star Points at the end of the level. If you get 100 points on all levels in that world, you will unlock extra levels, one for each world. I suggest not tackling these until you beat the game as these levels are very difficult especailly if you are trying to get 100 points. Six more extra levels are also unlocked after beating the game which are also very difficult. Thes 12 extra unlockable levels will take you many tries to beat and will probably get you frustrated. You can collect other items in the game such as watermelons that when swallowed allow you to shoot watermelon seeds, fire or ice depending on the watermeoln swallowed. These are only temporary though. But there are items you can keep and use anytime that will be explained later.
The difficulty in the game is just right (in the main game anyway; the extra levels are another story) and goes up in a steady pace. Not too fast or too slow. You will die quite a few times in this game, but you will often get past where your untimely death took place after a few tries. In that respect, the difficulty is simliar to that in Super Mario World.
There a variety of mini games in Yoshi's Island that can be unlocked that strangely involve a lot of gambling...hmm. You usually have to bet lives where if you win get more lives. I ended up getting over 900 lives this way. There are also many items you can win in the minigames as well. These items are in your status menu which you can access during the game by pressing start or was it select? Anyway the status menu shows your progress in terms of how many red coins and flowers you collected. Your items are at the bottom of the screen and can be selected by using the control and used with the A button. You can use POW blocks, watermelon which are still only temporary, and items that can increase your star points which are extremly useful just in case you don't have enough points to get that 100 point perfect score. Ther's also a magnifying glass which reveals all the red coins are in that level. It won't tell you where they all are though.
This game is fun, addictive, and the difficulty is just right (until you unlock the secret levels anyway). Smart level design and the variety of environments keep the game fresh and the coloful and detailed graphics pull you in. The contols are easy to learn and are responsive. A top quality game from Nintendo that will entertain gamers for generations to come.