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Yoshi (JP) (also known as Mario & Yoshi in PAL regions and in Japan as Yoshi no Tamago (ヨッシーのたまご, lit. "Yoshi's Egg") is a game for the NES and Game Boy that stars Yoshi, Mario, and Luigi. The player controls Mario or Luigi as they try to eliminate certain blocks by lining them up with each other. The game was the first to introduce the green dinosaur Yoshi, who has established himself as a common, popular sidekick of Mario ever since.
The game had since been reproduced on Virtual Console for three future-gen consoles in a row, and has even found its way into Nintendo Switch Online service when it was launched in September 2018. This is part of Nintendo's recent initiative of keeping a backlog of old Nintendo Entertainment System games for customers to play on the Switch and explore the early 1990s nostalgia.
Plot[]
Gameplay[]
1-Player Mode[]
The solo player controls Mario. There are two types, A Type and B Type. Before every game, the player must set the game type, the difficulty level, falling speed, and in-game music. The game board consists of plates that the enemies fall onto. The player must then use the Directional Pad to control Mario and press either the A or B Buttons to make the plates switch places. In the NES version, players can hold up to eight enemies on one plate whereas in the Game Boy version, they can only hold up to seven.
When an enemy matches another, they disappear, which earns the player five points. The player must also keep an eye out for the egg halves, which fall in periodically. Top halves simply disappear while the bottom halves stay. If they are touched by another bottom half, they disappear, but form a full egg if they match with the top half.
In this case, if a player hatches a Little Yoshi, they get 50 points. However, if there are more enemies sandwiched between the eggs, the Yoshi will grow in size and reward more points.
A Type[]
The game is endless. As the game goes on, more enemies will appear and come down faster. The main objective is to hatch as many Yoshi eggs as the player can before the game is over. If the player has hatched at least 10 eggs when the game ends, a bonus chance will occur. Here, the player must press the A Button just as the Yoshi eggs hatch to earn bonus points. With good timing, the Yoshi is bigger.
If the player hatches at least 100 eggs, Yoshi will dance under the egg counter, and when the game ends, the player will be congratulated as a "Super player."
B Type[]
The gameplay is similar to A Type, but is timed instead of endless. Here, the player must score as many points and clear boards as quickly as they can. Between levels, there is a short cutscene where Mario rides Yoshi from the background to the foreground, swallowing enemies or items that net the player bonus points.
Enemies[]
- Goombas - The popular Mushroom-shaped enemies from Super Mario Bros.
- Piranha Plants - Originally from Super Mario Bros.
- Blooper - Originally from Super Mario Bros.
- Boo - Originally from Super Mario Bros. 3.
Development[]
Reception[]
Initially, Yoshi received mixed to generally negative reviews, most of which criticized the repetitive and luck-based gameplay. Allgame's Brett Alan Weiss stated that Yoshi was "a surprisingly dull game". Despite praising the controls, Weiss stated that "the novelty wears off after a while."
N-Force was more positive. In a preview, they stated that "basically the game is great. The fun of Tetris, but with color and sound effects. Just as hard, maybe harder - definitely just as addictive." Upon its release, N-Force gave Yoshi 4 out of five stars in the Buyer's Guide for their January 1993 issue, concluding that "Yoshi is great fun. Gameplay's nothing new - Tetris all over again! Graphics are a treat. Lots of fun - in short bursts." Nintendo Power would also rank the game as #10 in the Top 10 Game Boy Games of 1992, printed in the Super Power Club bonus supplement in Nintendo Power V44.
The Virtual Console re-release of Yoshi was also met with negative reception. Both GameSpot's Frank Provo and IGN's Lucas M. Thomas both rated the game a 5 out of 10, the latter criticizing the "slow" gameplay and "cumbersome controls.
Most video game websites stated that players should not buy Yoshi from the Wii Shop Channel. Nintendo World Report stated; "There was too much luck and chance in the game to make playing it satisfying." Joystiq said in their review; "While [the gameplay is] admittedly a pretty interesting way to spend an afternoon, it still feels kind of a ripoff."
Jeremy Parish of 1UP.com criticized the "asking price" of 500 Wii Points, stating that the gameplay was "not enough to justify", but similarly to Yoshi's Cookie, he praised the game for its similarities to the Super Mario franchise.
Legacy[]
In 2007, Yoshi was released on the Wii's Virtual Console. Yoshi was mentioned in Super Smash Bros. Brawl's Chronicle.
External links[]
| Nintendo Puzzle video games | |
|---|---|
| Dr. Mario series | Dr. Mario • 64 • Online Rx • Express • Dr. Luigi • Miracle Cure • World |
| Puzzle League | Panel de Pon (Tetris Attack) • Pokémon Puzzle League • Pokémon Puzzle Challenge Planet Puzzle League (Express) |
| Picross | Mario's Picross • Super Picross • Picross 2 • Picross DS • Picross 3D • Picross 3D: Round 2 Pokémon Picross • My Nintendo Picross |
| Bit Generations | Boundish • Dialhex • Dotstream • Digidrive • Coloris • Orbital • Soundvoyager |
| Compilation | Tetris & Dr. Mario • Dr. Mario & Puzzle League • Nintendo Puzzle Collection |
| Other Games | Alleyway • Kirby's Avalanche • Mario & Wario • Pokémon Trozei! • Pokémon Battle Trozei • Touch Panic Puzzle & Dragons • Wario's Woods • Wrecking Crew • Wrecking Crew '98 • Yoshi • Yoshi's Cookie |
| Related | Tetris • Puyo Puyo • Columns |
| Yoshi series | |
|---|---|
| Main series | Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island (Advance) • Yoshi's Story • Yoshi Topsy-Turvy • Touch & Go Yoshi's Island DS • Yoshi's New Island • Woolly World (Poochy) • Yoshi's Crafted World |
| Spin-offs | Yoshi • Yoshi's Cookie • Yoshi's Safari • Kuruppon Oven de Cookie • Tetris Attack |