# Yoshi (video game series)

Yoshi is a video game series of platform games and puzzle games that is a spin-off of the Mario franchise published and produced by the Japanese video game company Nintendo. The games 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 for Nintendo video game consoles and handhelds dating from the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) to the current generation of video game consoles. Some of the original NES and Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) games have been ported to Game Boy Advance or the Virtual Console (both, in the case of Super Mario World).
The series revolves around Yoshi, a green dinosaur character. He was first introduced in 1990 in the SNES game Super Mario World, where Mario and Luigi can ride on him. The antagonists of the series are Baby Bowser, the young king of the Koopas, and Kamek, a Magikoopa who was Bowser's caretaker as a child.
The first Yoshi game was the Nintendo Entertainment System puzzle game released in 1991, Yoshi, which was developed by Game Freak. The first game in what is considered the main series, as well as the first to feature Yoshi in a playable main-character role, is the game released in 1995, Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, which introduces the universe staples which are used in many following games. These staples include colorful storybook graphics, and several gameplay elements.
Yoshi's Story, released for the Nintendo 64 in 1997, took a more puzzle orientated approach was later followed by the spin-offs Yoshi's Universal Gravitation and Yoshi Touch & Go, released on the Game Boy Advance and DS respectively. The next mainline game in the series was Yoshi's Woolly World, originally released for the Wii U in 2015 and later the 3DS in 2017. The latest game, Yoshi's Crafted World, was released for the Nintendo Switch in 2019.

## Video games
### Main series

| Title | Details |
| Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island Original release date(s): JP: August 5, 1995NA: October 4, 1995EU: October 6, 1995 | Release years by system: 1995 - Super Nintendo Entertainment System 2002 - Game Boy Advance 2011 - Nintendo 3DS Virtual Console (GBA version; Ambassador Program exclusive) 2014 - Wii U Virtual Console (GBA version) 2019 - Nintendo Switch Online (SNES version) 2023 - Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack (GBA version) |
| Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island Original release date(s): JP: August 5, 1995NA: October 4, 1995EU: October 6, 1995 | Notes: Known as Super Mario: Yoshi Island in Japan The title was developed by Nintendo. It is the first platforming game in the Yoshi series. It was ported to the Game Boy Advance in 2002. The Game Boy Advance port was re-released for Wii U Virtual Console in 2014. The original version was included on the Super NES Classic Edition. It was one of the original selection of Super NES games released in 2019 for Nintendo Switch Online. |
| Yoshi's Story Original release date(s): JP: December 21, 1997NA: March 10, 1998PAL: May 10, 1998 | Release years by system: 1997 - Nintendo 64 2007 - Wii Virtual Console 2016 - Wii U Virtual Console 2021 - Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack |
| Yoshi's Story Original release date(s): JP: December 21, 1997NA: March 10, 1998PAL: May 10, 1998 | Notes: The title was developed by Nintendo. It was re-released for Wii Virtual Console in 2007 and Wii U Virtual Console in 2016. |
| Yoshi's Universal Gravitation Original release date(s): JP: December 9, 2004EU: April 22, 2005NA: June 13, 2005 | Release years by system: 2004 - Game Boy Advance |
| Yoshi's Universal Gravitation Original release date(s): JP: December 9, 2004EU: April 22, 2005NA: June 13, 2005 | Notes: Known as Yoshi Topsy-Turvy in North America The title was developed by Artoon. |
| Yoshi Touch & Go Original release date(s): JP: January 27, 2005NA: March 14, 2005EU: May 6, 2005AU: May 19, 2005 | Release years by system: 2005 - Nintendo DS 2015 - Wii U Virtual Console |
| Yoshi Touch & Go Original release date(s): JP: January 27, 2005NA: March 14, 2005EU: May 6, 2005AU: May 19, 2005 | Notes: Known as Catch! Touch! Yoshi! in Japan The title was developed by Nintendo. It was re-released for Wii U Virtual Console in 2015. |
| Yoshi's Island DS Original release date(s): NA: November 13, 2006AU: November 17, 2006EU: December 1, 2006JP: March 8, 2007 | Release years by system: 2006 - Nintendo DS 2015 - Wii U Virtual Console |
| Yoshi's Island DS Original release date(s): NA: November 13, 2006AU: November 17, 2006EU: December 1, 2006JP: March 8, 2007 | Notes: The title was developed by Artoon. It was re-released for Wii U Virtual Console in 2015. |
| Yoshi's New Island Original release date(s): NA: March 14, 2014EU: March 14, 2014AU: March 15, 2014JP: July 24, 2014 | Release years by system: 2014 - Nintendo 3DS |
| Yoshi's New Island Original release date(s): NA: March 14, 2014EU: March 14, 2014AU: March 15, 2014JP: July 24, 2014 | Notes: The title was developed by Arzest. |
| Yoshi's Woolly World Original release date(s): AU: June 25, 2015EU: June 26, 2015JP: July 16, 2015NA: October 16, 2015 | Release years by system: 2015 - Wii U 2017 - Nintendo 3DS |
| Yoshi's Woolly World Original release date(s): AU: June 25, 2015EU: June 26, 2015JP: July 16, 2015NA: October 16, 2015 | Notes: The title was developed by Good-Feel, who previously developed Kirby's Epic Yarn. The game was ported to the Nintendo 3DS as Poochy and Yoshi's Woolly World in 2017. |
| Yoshi's Crafted World Original release date(s): WW: March 29, 2019 | Release years by system: 2019 - Nintendo Switch |
| Yoshi's Crafted World Original release date(s): WW: March 29, 2019 | Notes: The title was developed by Good-Feel using Unreal Engine 4. |

### Spin-offs

| Title | Details |
| Yoshi Original release date(s): JP: December 14, 1991NA: June 1, 1992EU: December 10, 1992 | Release years by system: 1991 - Nintendo Entertainment System 1991 - Game Boy 2007 - Virtual Console |
| Yoshi Original release date(s): JP: December 14, 1991NA: June 1, 1992EU: December 10, 1992 | Notes: Known as Yoshi's Egg in Japan and Mario & Yoshi in the PAL region It was developed by Game Freak. It was re-released for Wii, 3DS, and Wii U Virtual Console. |
| Yoshi's Cookie Original release date(s): JP: November 21, 1992NA: April 1993EU: April 28, 1994 | Release years by system: 1992 - Nintendo Entertainment System 1992 - Game Boy 1993 - Super Nintendo Entertainment System 2008 - Wii Virtual Console |
| Yoshi's Cookie Original release date(s): JP: November 21, 1992NA: April 1993EU: April 28, 1994 | Notes: It was developed by Bullet-Proof Software and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo Entertainment System and Game Boy. The Super Nintendo Entertainment System version of the title was published by Bullet-Proof Software. It was included in the GameCube compilation Nintendo Puzzle Collection. It was re-released on Wii Virtual Console in 2008 and was available until 2013. |
| Yoshi's Safari Original release date(s): JP: July 14, 1993NA: September 17, 1993EU: November 19, 1993 | Release years by system: 1993 - Super Nintendo Entertainment System |
| Yoshi's Safari Original release date(s): JP: July 14, 1993NA: September 17, 1993EU: November 19, 1993 | Notes: It was developed by Nintendo. It is a light gun shooter game. |
| Tetris Attack Original release date(s): JP: October 27, 1995NA: August 11, 1996EU: November 28, 1996 | Release years by system: 1995 - Super Nintendo Entertainment System 1996 - Game Boy |
| Tetris Attack Original release date(s): JP: October 27, 1995NA: August 11, 1996EU: November 28, 1996 | Notes: A reskin of the Japanese game Panel de Pon, rebranded to use characters and settings from Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. A Japanese version of this rebranded title, Yoshi's Panepon, was released in Japan for the Satellaview satellite modem service. It was developed by Intelligent Systems. |

### Cancelled games

| Title | Details |
| Yoshi Racing Original release date(s): Cancelled | Release years by system: Cancelled - Nintendo 64 |
| Yoshi Racing Original release date(s): Cancelled | 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): Cancelled | Release years by system: Cancelled - Game Boy Advance |
| Yoshi Sample Original release date(s): Cancelled | 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. |

## Reception

Sales and aggregate review scores As of December 2022. :
| Game | Year | Units sold | Metacritic |
| Yoshi's Island | 1995 (SNES) 2002 (GBA) | 4 million (SNES) | 91/100 (GBA) |
| Yoshi's Universal Gravitation | 2004 | | 60/100 |
| Yoshi Touch & Go | 2005 | | 73/100 |
| Yoshi's Island DS | 2006 | 2.91 million | 81/100 |
| Yoshi's New Island | 2014 | 2.06 million | 64/100 |
| Yoshi's Woolly World | 2015 | 1.37 million | 78/100 |
| Yoshi's Crafted World | 2019 | 3.35 million | 79/100 |
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.