Yoshi (video game series)

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Yoshi is a video game series developed and published by Nintendo. It is a spin-off of the Mario franchise. The games, primarily consisting of platform games and puzzle games featuring the titular character, have been developed by a variety of developers including Nintendo, Game Freak, Intelligent Systems, Artoon, its successor Arzest, Good-Feel and Bullet-Proof Software. Yoshi games have been released on Nintendo video game consoles and handhelds dating from the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) to the current generation of video game consoles. Several games in the series have been ported to the Game Boy Advance or the Virtual Console.

Genres
Developers
PublisherNintendo
Platforms
Quick facts Genres, Developers ...
Yoshi
Genres
Developers
PublisherNintendo
Platforms
First releaseYoshi
December 14, 1991
Latest releaseYoshi's Crafted World
March 29, 2019
Parent seriesMario
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The series revolves around Yoshis, a species of dinosaur-like creatures. They were first introduced in the 1990 Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) game Super Mario World, where Mario and Luigi can ride on them.[1]

The first Yoshi game was the NES puzzle game released in 1991, Yoshi,[1] which was developed by Game Freak.[2] The first game in what is considered the main series, as well as the first to feature Yoshis in a playable main-character role, is the 1995 SNES game Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, which introduces staples of the series such as colorful storybook graphics and numerous gameplay elements. It serves as a prequel to the Super Mario series alongside its sequels, and features Yoshis that traverse levels with Baby Mario, Luigi and other characters. The antagonists of this series are Baby Bowser, the young king of the Koopas, and Kamek, a Magikoopa who was Bowser's caretaker as a child;[3] they recur in other Yoshi games without said Mario characters.

Yoshi's Story, released on the Nintendo 64 in 1997, took a more puzzle-oriented approach, as did Yoshi's Universal Gravitation and Yoshi Touch & Go, released respectively on the Game Boy Advance in 2004 and on the DS in 2005. The next entries in the series were Yoshi's Island DS, released on the DS in 2006,[4] Yoshi's New Island, released on the 3DS in 2014,[5] and Yoshi's Woolly World, originally released on the Wii U in 2015 and later on the 3DS in 2017.[6] The latest game, Yoshi's Crafted World, was released on the Nintendo Switch in 2019.[7] A new game, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, is scheduled to be released on the Nintendo Switch 2 on May 21, 2026.[8]

Video games

Main series

More information Game, Details ...
Game Details
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island

Original release date(s):[9]
  • JP: August 5, 1995
  • NA: October 4, 1995
  • EU: October 6, 1995
 Release years by system:
1995 - Super Nintendo Entertainment System[9]
2002 - Game Boy Advance[10]
2011 - Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console (GBA version; Ambassador Program exclusive)
2014 - Wii U Virtual Console (GBA version)[11]
2019 - Nintendo Classics (SNES version)
2023 - Nintendo Classics (GBA version)
Notes:
  • Known as Super Mario: Yoshi Island[a] in Japan[12]
  • The title was developed by Nintendo.[13]
  • It is the first platforming game in the Yoshi series.
  • It was ported to the Game Boy Advance in 2002.[10]
  • The GBA version was released for the 3DS Virtual Console in 2011 and the Wii U Virtual Console in 2014.[11]
  • The original version was included on the Super NES Classic Edition.
  • The SNES version was released for Nintendo Classics in 2019 and the GBA version was released in 2023.
Yoshi's Story

Original release date(s):[14]
  • JP: December 21, 1997
  • NA: March 10, 1998
  • PAL: May 10, 1998
 Release years by system:
1997 - Nintendo 64[14]
2007 - Wii Virtual Console[15]
2016 - Wii U Virtual Console[16][17]
2021 - Nintendo Classics[18]
Notes:
Yoshi's Universal Gravitation

Original release date(s):[20]
  • JP: December 9, 2004
  • EU: April 22, 2005
  • NA: June 13, 2005
 Release years by system:
2004 - Game Boy Advance[20]
Notes:
  • Known as Yoshi Topsy-Turvy in North America[21]
  • The title was developed by Artoon.[21]
Yoshi Touch & Go

Original release date(s):[22]
  • JP: January 27, 2005
  • NA: March 14, 2005
  • EU: May 6, 2005
  • AU: May 19, 2005
 Release years by system:
2005 - Nintendo DS[22]
2015 - Wii U Virtual Console[23]
Notes:
  • Known as Catch! Touch! Yoshi! in Japan[22]
  • The title was developed by Nintendo.[24]
  • It was re-released for Wii U Virtual Console in 2015.[23]
Yoshi's Island DS

Original release date(s):[25]
  • NA: November 13, 2006
  • AU: November 17, 2006
  • EU: December 1, 2006
  • JP: March 8, 2007
 Release years by system:
2006 - Nintendo DS[25]
2015 - Wii U Virtual Console[23]
Notes:
  • The title was developed by Artoon.[26]
  • It was re-released for Wii U Virtual Console in 2015.[23]
Yoshi's New Island

Original release date(s):
  • NA: March 14, 2014
  • EU: March 14, 2014
  • AU: March 15, 2014
  • JP: July 24, 2014
 Release years by system:
2014 - Nintendo 3DS[27]
Notes:
Yoshi's Woolly World

Original release date(s):
  • AU: June 25, 2015
  • EU: June 26, 2015
  • JP: July 16, 2015
  • NA: October 16, 2015
 Release years by system:
2015 - Wii U[29]
2017 - Nintendo 3DS
Notes:
Yoshi's Crafted World

Original release date(s):
  • WW: March 29, 2019
 Release years by system:
2019 - Nintendo Switch[31]
Notes:
Yoshi and the Mysterious Book

Original release date(s):
  • WW: May 21, 2026
[33][34]		 Release years by system:
2026 - Nintendo Switch 2[35][36]
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Spin-offs

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Game Details
Yoshi

Original release date(s):[2][37]
  • JP: December 14, 1991
  • NA: June 1, 1992
  • EU: December 10, 1992
 Release years by system:
1991 - Nintendo Entertainment System[2]
1991 - Game Boy[37]
2007 - Virtual Console[38]
Notes:
  • Known as Yoshi's Egg in Japan and Mario & Yoshi in the PAL region
  • It was developed by Game Freak.[2]
  • It was re-released for Wii, 3DS, and Wii U Virtual Consoles.[38]
  • It was released for Nintendo Classics
Yoshi's Cookie

Original release date(s):[39][40]
  • JP: November 21, 1992[41]
  • NA: April 1993
  • EU: April 28, 1994
 Release years by system:
1992 - Nintendo Entertainment System[39]
1992 - Game Boy[40]
1993 - Super Nintendo Entertainment System[42]
2008 - Wii Virtual Console[43]
Notes:
Yoshi's Safari

Original release date(s):[46]
  • JP: July 14, 1993
  • NA: September 17, 1993
  • EU: November 19, 1993
 Release years by system:
1993 - Super Nintendo Entertainment System[46]
Notes:
Tetris Attack

Original release date(s):[48][49]
  • JP: October 27, 1995
  • NA: August 11, 1996
  • EU: November 28, 1996
 Release years by system:
1995 - Super Nintendo Entertainment System[48]
1996 - Game Boy[49]
Notes:
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Cancelled games

More information Game, Details ...
Game Details
Yoshi Racing

Original release date(s):[51]
Cancelled		 Release years by system:
Cancelled - Nintendo 64[51]
Notes:
  • In 1996, Argonaut Games approached Nintendo with a tech demo of a proposed 3D Yoshi game for Nintendo 64. Nintendo, however, rejected the pitch, ending all future business relations between the two companies. The game was then eventually turned into a similar but unrelated game titled Croc: Legend of the Gobbos, developed by Argonaut Games, released by Fox Interactive for the PlayStation, Sega Saturn and Microsoft Windows, and followed by a sequel, Croc 2, which was released for the PlayStation and Microsoft Windows.
Yoshi Sample

Original release date(s):[52]
Cancelled		 Release years by system:
Cancelled - Game Boy Advance[52]
Notes:
  • The demo was shown off when Nintendo first unveiled the Game Boy Advance to U.S. game developers. It was a tech demo that was mainly derived from Yoshi's Story. The gameplay drastically differed from the original game. For instance, Yoshi could not throw eggs or use his tongue. The demo was meant to show off the graphical capabilities of the Game Boy Advance and it was never released as a completed game.
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Reception

More information Game, Year ...
Sales and aggregate review scores
As of November 6, 2025.
Game Year Units sold Metacritic OpenCritic
Yoshi's Island 1995 (SNES)
2002 (GBA)		 4 million (SNES)[53] 91/100 (GBA)[54] —
Yoshi's Universal Gravitation 2004 60/100[55] —
Yoshi Touch & Go 2005 73/100[56] —
Yoshi's Island DS 2006 2.91 million[57] 81/100[58] —
Yoshi's New Island 2014 2.06 million [59] 64/100[60] 15% recommend[61]
Yoshi's Woolly World 2015 1.37 million[62] 78/100[63] 70% recommend (Wii U)[64]
59% recommend (3DS)[65]
Yoshi's Crafted World 2019 3.35 million[66] 79/100[67] 81% recommend[68]
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Reception toward Yoshi games has been largely positive. Yoshi's Island is the most well-received entry, holding a critic score of 91/100 on the review aggregation website Metacritic, the highest for any Yoshi game on the site. Conversely, Yoshi's Universal Gravitation is the worst-received title, holding a critic rating of 60/100 on the same site.[69]

Notes

  1. [a]
    Japanese: スーパーマリオ　ヨッシーアイランド, Hepburn: Sūpā Mario: Yosshī Airando
  2. [b]
    Japanese: ヨッシーのパネポン, Hepburn: Yoshi no Panepon

References

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