Super Mario World 2 Yoshi's Island
Reviewed by Mike
Talk about fun! This game was the ultimate Yoshi game. It has not been beaten by
any other attempt and probably never will be. But if they do make one better it
would have to be pretty good to out do Yoshi's Island. It has everything you could
want, and no cheat codes! Well...except for one. It's got mini games that test your
skill and speed. It's got tough egg-throwing challenges that kept me working for a
while. It's got difficulty as I have recently completed the game with 100% on
every level (including extras). The controls take a little getting used to but it's
fun once you are used to it. This games has the ultimate fun that will keep you
playing for a looong time. Even if you beat one file, there's still 3 to go!
Graphics 10 out of 10
Wow! That FX chip really did the works! The graphics are great! They show
multiple backgrounds and foregrounds at the same time, with the characters.
Sometimes this makes it tough to see what's going on, but all the more difficult!
They not only have good backgrounds, but they're animated unlike those still-pictured
backgrounds. For an example, In the first stage, there are plants and butterflies in
the foreground, and moving clouds in the background. The scenery looks like it was
colored in by a child. Throughout the game that look stays, even through the
mini-games. These backgrounds are often fun to watch when you're watching the
scene at the end of each level. Everything animates at a lively pace with excellent
looks and great color. If you take a look at Super Mario World, and compare, I think
you would say Yoshi's Island has the better graphics by a long shot.
Music and Sound 10 out of 10
Again with the wow! I could listen to the songs all day, though they are repetitive.
They have great noises and music that couldn't be emulated as I have seen the
emulated version. The music runs so smoothly and matches the scene perfectly.
The noises are great and also match what is happening. The sounds are repeated
through different parts of the game, but are fun to listen to. but of course, every
Yoshi fan's favorite sound in this game would be the Yoshi sound. Although the only
sound I think everyone dislikes is Baby Mario crying because it's so annoying! The
bosses music is just excellent, especially, my favorite, fighting Naval Pirhana
Plant. It was mixed perfectly so it sounds like a great piano or keyboard player.
I think the sounds and music just matched it so much, it often sounded real.
Game Challenge 10 out of 10
I know, I know. I keep giving it 10. But it's worth it! The difficulty is the main part,
to me, of what the game is about! The beginning of course, let's you get used to it,
but from the second world on, it gets tougher. Bunches of cliffs, Fuzzy, spinning logs
and more try to stop you from reaching Bowser's Castle. Each boss get's harder and
harder. The first time you play, you really have to think about how to beat the enemies,
as some can be tricky. Also some unique tricks involved, which I have found and am
not telling, have helped me greatly through the game. Some bosses require you to use
bunches of eggs, only to hit them once, which then you have to find a way to get more
eggs. You may think this is easy, it normally is, except if you get hit even once, your
perfect score of 100% is gone, and you have to try again. You get 100% on each level
by collected 30 stars, 20 hidden red coins, and 5 flowers. If you get hit, you lose
Stars. If you get 100% on each level, a new level will appear, along with a bonus
challenge. If you beat the extra with 100%, you get a star on your title screen. If
you get 6 stars on the title screen, everything is 100% and you have officially,
beaten the game.
Game Play-Fun 10 out of 10
It's so fun to watch your enemies die and knowing they were just too easy. That
fun is extreme when you can egg your enemies, spit them out at others, or (my favorite)
use a power-up on them. It's fun to spit enemies at another. And it's so fun to watch
the shyguy roll to his doom. But when you use a power up, that fun is doubled. For
instance, you have a range of power-ups you get from a bonus challenge, or a mini
game. Most of those power-ups give extreme delight. To me, the "S" Balls are fun to
use. With the "S" ball you can freeze, burn, or spit seeds at your enemy, depending
on the color. Another fun thing which I know EVERYONE loves is revenge. You really
hate it when you lose star points from an enemy. So what better way to repay that
fiendish foe than by killing it? This also increases the fun of killing an enemy. Killing
your enemies is fun, but the best is when you morph. You have the variety of morphing
into a mole tank, helicopter, car, train, an! d sub. All are really fun to use. and you
don't lose star points when hit! Another fun thing is grabbing a super star and
controlling the invincible, capped, Baby Mario. He can run straight into enemies, run
up walls, and glide down to safety.
Frustration
Frustration was high as difficulty was high. There were times where you needed to
be perfect, and not only once, but twice or more. Most frustration comes from
trying to get 100%. Extra levels give you mounds of frustration as it seems
impossible to get 100%. Some levels, like the impossible? maze and the very
loooooong cave, really made it tough. And extras like Poochy aren't dumb, and Kaek's
revenge, stretch you to the max! In all of those levels, you have to be either perfect,
or pretty darn close to perfect, to get 100%. And the worst frustration is knowing
you made a huge mistake that will cost you something. Or dying on an easy part. now,
take the frustration, and triple it, as there are 3, count 'em, 3 files to beat. That's 18
worlds, that's 162 levels! 18 of which are extras, and 36 of which are bosses!
Replayability 9 out of 10
The only area that this lacks on because it depends on the person. I want a challenge,
and it's fun watching as you play it over and over for me. But everyone is different
and everyone has different tastes. Some people would love to play it over and over.
Some would despise the game after playing for a while and get bored with it. Another
thing that matters is, if you have the time. Sure, it get's easier as you play it. But it
also takes time to beat the whole thing with 100% and 6 stars. It would take shorter
and shorter, depending on how fast you learn. It can stay fun for a pretty long time,
but once you mastered it so that you know everything that's going to happen and know
exactly what to do perfectly, it's no fun. To make it more fun I suggest leaving it
alone and taking time off it to try another game, so that you forget about Yoshi's
Island. Then, it would be more of a challenge.
Game Value 10 out of 10
It was worth it for sure. I got hours, days, weeks, and even months of happiness from
just that one game. It was worth buying as for that small price, I got tons of joy.
Even my sister, who only watches, loved the game. Especially when she got to play
against me in a mini game (No challenge at all). So, it gave happiness to at least two
members of my family. Now a friend is borrowing it and he's having the most fun he
could with that game. It wasn't very much, it was hard to find, but all that searching
was worth the playing of the game. Any Yoshi fan would agree. Yoshi's Island is
defiantly worth the price. How could it not be? Look at what I wrote about it,
you'd agree too.
Worlds and Levels 10 out of 10
Great design as each world has a specific "Theme". For instance:
World 1: Just a plain field with meadowy touch. All levels have cliffs and mostly grass.
World 2: A bit of a higher elevation as it has more cliffs but still has grass
World 3: Jungle territory with muddy areas, water, trees, and monkeys. Sy guys
are now changed into natives in the jungle.
World 4: Snowy level with ice, cliffs, and fire lakitus.
World 5: Sky and Cloud level with lots of Lakitus, and fuzzys.
World 6: Koopa Territory with skeleton Goonies, bandit, rock and lava. mostly
cliffs. I'm surprised they didn't have a water world. but even Yoshi's Story on a 64
bit system couldn't compare with the levels, worlds and Bosses of Yoshi's Island.
Overall 10 out of 10
This is a must buy game. No game I have played has matched the challenge and fun of
Yoshi's Island. Well...At least not on the Super NES. Some games on the N64 out rank
it of course, but I'm not going to get into that. I'm am a great thinker and Yoshi's
Island kept me thinking through out the game. It's great with puzzles, fun, difficulty,
and more. It is worth the price and is worth the time you put into it, at least on the
few first completions. There are many tricks you can use. Yes tricks, not codes. The
game is perfect for the challenge/puzzle lover and so far, Nintendo has not been able
to beat it. Will they ever? Some hope they will, Some hope they don't. But I say, If
you want good graphics, sound, difficulty, and fun, Yoshi's Island is for you.