Summary

• Yoshi's rise to fame from a simple sidekick to a star in its own right is a surprise twist in its gaming journey.
• Other rideable characters envy Yoshi's unique abilities and charm that make it a standout in the Nintendo universe.
• While Yoshi games may be fewer, each offers an egg-citing spin on platforming with adorable aesthetics and innovative gameplay.

Very few video game characters have had a similar rise to fame as Yoshi. When the green dinosaur first appeared in 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Super Mario World in 1990, it was mostly used for transportation and to help Mario reach new heights (often to Yoshi's detriment). When the Koopalings invaded Dinosaur Land, Yoshi needed Mario and Luigi to save it's friends, so it was shocking to almost everyone when Yoshi was revealed as the protagonist and star of Super Mario World 2.

168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Other rideable characters ๊like Epona or the King of Red Lions would love to star in their own series of games, but Yoshi is in a league of its own. Unique abilities like flutter-jumping and egg-throwing made it the perfect candidate to appear alongside other Mario characters during their parties and sports events or star in its own adventures.

There haven't been as many Yoshi games as other Nintendo franchises like Pokemon or 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Legend of Zelda, but each one has offered an e𓆏gg-citing and adorable spin on♔ the platforming genre.

Updated on March 20, 2024, by Kyle Chamaillard: While there hasn't been a new mainline Yoshi game since Crafted World, we've decided to revisit this list to add more information to each entry.

8 ꩵ Yoshi Topsy-Turvey

All Over The Place

Many of Yoshi's adventures feel like they take place inside a lost pop-up book, and a few of them do. Topsy-Turvey begins with Bowser attacking Yoshi Island, but it gets worse for our hero when a spirit accidentally traps them all inside the Forbidden Pop-Up Book.

Topsy-Turvey is one of the few GBA titles that have gyroscopic controls built into the cartridge. You still use the face buttons on the handheld to control Yoshi, but tilting your console shifts Yoshi's Island around, so you can walk on walls and other gravity-defying maneuvers. It's an interesting gimmick that overstays its welcome and creates some of the most frustrating platforming sections in the series.

7 Yoshi's New Island

Back To Paradise

Yoshi's Island was a hit when it launched on the SNES, and Nintendo has tried to replicate its success multiple times. Yoshi's New Island was an attempt to bring the series back to its roots for the 3DS, and while it contains some fun and creative levels, it failed to innovate or move the franchise forward in any meaningful ways.

Yoshi's New Island might also have one of the worst art styles of any game in the series. The best Yoshi games dazzle with unique visuals, but this game appears more blurry (maybe for the 3D effect) and disorienting. If you enjoyed the original Yoshi's Island, you may like this adventure, just don't expect anything too bold or exciting.

6 Yoshi's Crafted World

Familiar Territory

Characters like Mario and Link made their debut on the 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Nintendo Switch with potentially the best games from their respective franchises. Not everyone could be so lucky, though, and despite Yoshi's Crafted World being a spiritual successor to one of the dinosaur's most beloved games, it's a mostly forgettable experience full of adequate levels and bosses.

The D.I.Y aesthetic and cut-and-paste environments are charming at first, but they don't stand out nearly as much as the yarn or wool palettes used in previous Good-Feel (the developer's) titles. The Yoshis look incredibly soft, and one of their alternate skins in 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is inspired by this design, but that's about the only new thing introduced through Crafted World.

5 Y🌞oshi Touch & Go 🌌

Interactive Island

Many of Nintendo's biggest franchises found a home on the DS with new games that focused on the handheld's touch-screen capabilities. Some games like The Legend of Zelda: Spirit Tracks felt restricted by these limitations, but Yoshi Touch & Go is one of the few to make controlling with the stylus feel right.

The one thing most people have against Touch & Go is that it's an auto-runner, meaning you won't be able to directly control Yoshi's movements. Instead, you must use the touch-screen to throw eggs at enemies and create a path forward. You may have to focus on multiple tasks at once to avoid falling into a pit, but the game's intuitive controls make it a delightful breeze to get through.

4 Yoshi's Story

A Flutter Jump To 3D

Yoshi's Story is one of the strangest entries in the series, but its bold attempts to evolve the platforming genre also make it one of the most unique. First, you can only play one level in a world before moving on to the next one. That means you must play through the game about four times to see every stage and fight every boss. Secondly, you don't need to cross a finish line to finish a stage; instead, you simply collect 30 fruit to move on.

These ideas are fascinating, and the level design throughout Yoshi's Story is intricate and full of secrets. The odd choice to allow you to play through levels in a non-linear fashion was abandoned after Yoshi's Story release, but it does make it easier to access your favorite stages over and over again. It also has some memorable boss fights, such as the delicious confrontation with Cloud N. Candy.

3 Yoshi's Island DS

A Bunch Of Babies

Unlike Yoshi's New Island, Yoshi's Island DS contained all the charm from the original game and found new ways to evolve its gameplay mechanics and style. The level design is engaging and contains countless collectibles that help make replaying levels feel fresh and fun.

A majority of Yoshi's Island games require a group of colorful dinosaurs to protect Baby Mario and escort him to his lost Brother. Yoshi's Island DS iterates on this concept by introducing a plethora of other characters like Baby Wario, Baby Donkey Kong, and Baby Princess Peach, each with their own unique powers and abilities. You still had to hear them cry if you got hit by an enemy, but the fresh new faces made this Yoshi's Island one of the best in the series.

2 Yoshi's Wooly World

As Warm As A Sweater

After Kirby's Epic Yarn enamored fans with its art style, Good-Feel had finally broken into the zeitgeist and was tasked with creating another game for one of Nintendo's beloved characters for the Wii U. Not only would Yoshi's Woolly World become one of the series' most popular games, but it would also be the first game since Yoshi's Story to be released on a home console.

Woolly World is one of the most adorable games in the franchise, but don't let that fool you. The levels are some of the most creative and challenging in the franchise's history, and each one contains an interesting idea or concept that is usually clever or unique. It should be noted that Woolly World is one of the few Wii U games that hasn't been ported to the Switch, which is a shame because it's one of the best games on the system.

1 Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island

The Original Adventure

It really is hard to remember that Yoshi's Island is a sequel to Super Mario World, the game that introduced the character. It's also a prequel in many ways, with Baby Mario, Baby Luigi, and Baby Bowser appearing for the first time in this SNES title. Its gorgeous art style - 168澳洲幸运5开奖网:supported by the Super FX2 microchip - helped Yoshi's Island stand out from other games from that era and is one of the many reasons it's considered one of the best games ever made.

Yoshi's Island established almost every key element and mechanic that would appear in nearly every Yoshi game after it. Everything from hidden collectibles to Yoshi's powers appear in the first stage and helped define the character in every appearance since. The catchy soundtrack is still electric and full of earworms that are bound to get stuck in your head after a few listens. Yoshi may not be the Nintendo all-star it is without Yoshi's Island, and it continues to be the best egg in the bunch.