Top 10 Yoshi Video Games

A little of something new, mixed in with classic elements. That's how the 3DS game “Yoshi's New Island” was built, relying on its series' established side-scrolling gameplay while offering fair tweaks to the well-worn formula. This time around, Yoshi has access to a handful of new vehicle forms, controlled via gyroscope, as well as collectable power-ups such as Flutter Wings and Mega Eggdozers for getting past obstacles. Yet “New Island” pays tribute to its roots via its inclusion of a hand-drawn art style and its focus on Yoshi's continuing protection of Baby Mario.

Also known as “Yoshi's Universal Gravitation”, this is an odd but endearing instalment of the “Yoshi” series. Yoshi is tasked with venturing through the pages of a storybook in order to free his island from captivity, requiring him to complete challenges given by a series of obsessive spirits. In moment-to-moment play, this translates into players dealing with specific tasks in each course, making use of the game cartridges's tilt mechanic to rotate and progress across difficult-to-traverse areas. It makes for quite the blend of problem-solving and clever platforming.

Who doesn't like cookies? This tile-matching game puts Yoshi in the position of having to clear a grid of cookies, by lining up and matching cookie variants in rows. It's a simple enough concept, made more challenging by the increasingly complexity of each level without compromising the sheer addictiveness of its core design. Further, the game includes a multiplayer VS mode, allowing two players to compete against one another in cookie-clearing fun. We certainly find it to be a good time for all.

Talk about breaking the mould in more ways than one. Released for the Super Nintendo in 1993, “Yoshi's Safari” plays out as a first-person rail shooter, with Mario – on Yoshi's back – blasting King Bowser's minions. The game has players use the Super Scope gun peripheral to defeat foes, as well as having them command Yoshi to occasionally jump or head down branching paths offering differing rewards. To top it off, “Yoshi's Safari” even makes use of the SNES' Mode 7 processing for its backgrounds, adding to the bizarre yet remarkable nature of the game as a whole.

Sometimes it's the slight shifts that make the difference. Case in point: the Nintendo 64 game “Yoshi's Story” relies upon platforming gameplay set in stone by its predecessors, yet tilts it in a more challenge-oriented direction. The game is built around improving the player's score, known in-game as Yoshi's Mood, by eating fruit and defeating enemies in a strategic fashion. Thus, it encourages approaching levels in unique ways – like having Yoshi hop on foes instead of eating them. Add to that the game's use of pre-rendered 3D backgrounds for its levels, and you have a fascinating addition to the “Yoshi” franchise.

Tweaks and additions are the name of the game here. Acting as a mix of the visual style of DS-era instalments and the central platforming of the original “Yoshi's Island”, this nevertheless stands out as something special. “Yoshi Island DS” again has the titular dinosaur working to save babies from the forces of evil – except this time around, there are more children than just Baby Mario in play. Yoshi gets powers from each of five children, ranging from a dashing move to a magnet for attracting metal objects. It all works to add a puzzle aspect to the completion of levels.

“Touch & Go” brought our beloved dinosaur to the Nintendo DS, while stripping back the series' gameplay to its basics. Despite the player not having control of Yoshi's movement, the game still allows influence over Yoshi's path through levels via well-implemented use of the DS' touch screen and microphone. Creating clouds to serve as platforms, getting rid of enemies by circling them, commanding Yoshi to fire eggs – it all contributes to the game feeling more strategic than most. More than that, though, the game reinforces player improvement through its use of a high score system and emphasis on replaying the core modes.

Ah, more in the way of unusual spin-offs. “Tetris Attack”, the first game in the “Puzzle League” series, once more has Yoshi heading out to rescue the other inhabitants of Yoshi's Island. This entails a string of battles with Yoshi's friends and the minions of Bowser, taking the form of grid-based puzzles where the player must swap and rearrange blocks to win. The simplicity of the core gameplay is matched by its sheer degree of player satisfaction, further complemented by the game embracing the light-hearted visuals of previous “Yoshi” titles.

The cuteness is calling to you – just let it in. “Yoshi's Wooly World” marks the return of the “Yoshi” franchise to home consoles after 17 years, and what a return it is. This Wii U title draws visual inspiration from developer Good-Feel's 2010game “Kirby's Epic Yarn”, with Yoshi's famed island depicted as a vibrant blend of wool and cloth. Beyond the lively and loveable aesthetics, though, “Wooly World” revives the collectable-based progression, flutter jumps, swallowing of enemies and other series tropes with ease, giving the game a nostalgic charm.

The classics never die. “Yoshi's Island” acts as a prequel to “Super Mario World”, depicting Yoshi as a guardian of Baby Mario amid a quest to rescue Mario's brother Luigi from the young Bowser's clutches. To that end, Yoshi – and the player – must run and jump through 48 levels, stylized in a hand-drawn manner that gave the game as a whole a fairytale feel. From the soundtrack's mix of epic and fanciful motifs, to the multitude of secrets and hidden areas to find, it all comes together to form one fun and heart-rending whole.

Do you agree with our list? What’s your favourite Yoshi video game? For more dinosaur-centric Top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.