Konnichiwa Minasan!
It's been a long time since my last post but I'm here to do a quick review on a game I just bought.
So as some of you may know, Yoshi's New Island came out a few days ago along with quite the negative reviews. I'm currently half way through world 3 at the moment and I'd like to share my thoughts on the matter. The only other experience I've had with the Yoshi franchise is Yoshi's Story growing up so take that as you will. I always remembered the main appeal for me was how cute Yoshi was.
Gameplay
The gameplay of Yoshi's New Island is that of a typical platformer. Your Yoshi can jump and run and also has a few special abilities. Yoshi has the ability to eat enemies with a particularly long tongue. I think Yoshi may have been the inspiration for Jar Jar Binks. Yoshi can then turn those enemies into eggs in which he/she can throw at enemies and certain collectible items. Sometimes, these enemies cannot be turned into eggs but can only be spat back out, in which case, they run off screen etc. Recently, I have encountered a variation to this where I can steal the watermelons from monkeys allowing Yoshi to shoot watermelon seeds at enemies. The game introduced the "big" egg which can be used to smash through otherwise, invulnerable objects, reach certain collectible items and make sure you sink to the bottom of the water. So far these big eggs, while they are fun, have been few and far between. Yoshi can also flutter jump in which he makes a cute noise. Although, it could be said that all his noises are cute. If you die too many times, the game gives you an item that allows you to fly and there was another one that they give if you keep on dying that I can't remember. Sorry, that one only happened once. Sometimes you may come across these stars which allow you to run really fast up walls and along the ceilings upside down. These sections resemble that of a Sonic game however, have only appeared two or three times so far. The level design of the game is certainly adequate but I feel could have had a little more attention.
Minigames
In most (or all?) of the levels, there are little sections in which Yoshi may turn into another object such as a submarine or a jackhammer and the gameplay changes considerably. These are fun little segments that break up the rest of the games usual gameplay.
Multiplayer
I haven't checked out the multiplayer yet. However, it appears the multiplayer is not a coop version of the story but, minigames in which you and one other person can play together. You unlock more and more minigames as you progress throughout the game.
Overall, I'd give the gameplay a 7 out of 10. It's certainly a bunch of fun but could do with a little bit more to spice things up as the staple gameplay throughout the game can feel a little slow sometimes. Improving the level design to add a little more excitement could be the key here.
Graphics
The graphics have been another sore point mentioned in other reviews. One thing some people have mentioned is the removal of the thick black lines which would outline everything of previous entries in the series. I generally found the graphics of the game to be quite cute but can definitely feel something was different in this Yoshi title. While the graphics of the game are certainly fine for a 3DS title, the aesthetics have generally run along the line of adequacy and not doing much to go above that.
Overall, I'd give the graphics a 7 out of 10. Again, they're certainly adequate however, nothing so far has been really eye popping and memorable. There's been nothing in the graphics to make this game stand out.
Sound
Again, the Sound has been another point continuously berated by other reviewers. If you're looking to hear those cute Yoshi sounds then you won't be disappointed as they're all here including a cute sound Yoshi makes when he flies. Note, flying is different from his flutter jump which is also included in the game.
The music, again, like most of the game is adequate and is certainly not bad however it doesn't do much to stand out. One thing I've noticed while playing games on my 3DS which I only got recently (In fact, it's the Yoshi 3DS XL that released with the game), is that a number of games music and sound almost seems to surround and envelope me into the game. Something which I think can be attributed to the 3DS speakers. I'm not too familiar with the PS Vita but the 3DS's speakers appear to be far superior to other hand helds I've used in the past. Yoshi's soundtrack does nothing to really take advantage of this. The rest of the games sound effects are fine.
Overall, the sound in the game is adequate with Yoshi's cuteness being a standout while the soundtrack being fine, fails to achieve a standout performance, something other games on the 3DS, such as Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion and Pokemon Dungeon are clearly a lot better at. This could be due to Yoshi games being a generally cute, laid back type of game and perhaps they didn't want to excite you too much? Anyways, I'm giving the sound overall a 6.5 out of 10.
Conclusion
Please don't look at these scores as the typical video game score where anything below 8 is bad and anything lower than 7 is unplayable because this isn't the truth. My numbers are exactly what they appear to be. Adequate and a little more than that but nothing stellar. Scores like a 3 or 4 out of 10 from the many reviews I've seen are obscenely low for what I consider a solid game. Overall the game gets a 7 out of 10 from me for being a generally fun, well made game but with a few things that could have been a lot better. This is my first game on the 3DS and I'm pleased with it. It may not have been the introduction to the console that Uncharted 2 gave me to the PS3 but it has certainly got me looking forward to finding out what else the 3DS has in store for me.
Yoshi's New Island is certainly worth a shot and if you're like me and you bought it from a store such as EB Games, you'll be able to take it back if you find you don't quite like it. As for me though, this is certainly a keeper.
7/10
As you may have noticed visiting this page the last few months, it has a distinct Final Fantasy X theme. Well Final Fantasy X and X-2 HD are about to be released in only 3 days!! I'll be sure to share my thoughts on the HD release of my personal favourite game of all time (X being tied with FF VIII).
UPDATE
Upon completion of the game, I'd like to share my final thoughts. Most of my points remain the same but I have a little bit more to add. In the end, I was in a sense glad that the game was over. While I enjoyed myself throughout the game, I felt that the game had truly run it's course by the time I got to the final boss. Again, nothing really stands out in the game as anything iconic but overall it provides a solid (which can become dull as nothing stands out) experience. To be fair, (minor spoilers ahead), I didn't fight the 'true' end boss as when I fought the final boss, I was told afterwards that if I wanted to fight the true final boss I'd have to complete every level without the use of the flutter wings. While there were only a few levels which I would need to redo in order to achieve this, I was happy to call it quits and was satisfied that I had 'finished' the game.
Now that I've finished it, I'd give the game a 6.5 out of 10. I'm going to keep the game as it does provide a number of mini games which can be played with others without the need for them to have a copy themselves which will come in handy.
