Yoshi and the Mysterious Book Review - A Delightful Page Turner
My love of Yoshi games began with the legendary Super Nintendo title, Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island. Since that point, Nintendo has continued to experiment with the adorable dinosaur, to varying degrees of success and level of appeal. From Yoshi’s Story, to Yoshi’s Woolly World, Yoshi’s Crafted World, and now Yoshi And The Mysterious Book, Nintendo has experimented with the formula, the art style, and the DNA of the beloved Yoshi’s Island. While many of the classic entries’ core mechanics remain intact through each of these games, the way they’re utilisted to advance the game has looked different, and in Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, that is, of course, no exception.
In the meal that is Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, the game’s plot, is by far and away the leanest of portions. One day, a mysterious book, aptly named Mr. E, falls from the sky to crash land on Yoshi’s Island, and explains to the Yoshi that the contents of his pages are another mystery, one that the Yoshi’s can help uncover. Soon, as your chosen Yoshi, you will be inside the pages of Mr. E, learning about the many creatures defined within, uncovering facts about each, while coming across some familiar foes in the process. There’s very little depth to the plot, and even the motivations of Bowser Jr and Kamek, whom you happen across throughout your journey, provide little to drive you forward, but what players are jumping into the game for is the whimsy, and Yoshi and the Mysterious Book delivers that in spades.
Yoshi and the Mysterious Book contains six chapters for the player to work through on their way to the end of the core narrative, with a range of other chapters (think of them as epilogue chapters) unlocking in the post-game. Within each chapter there are a range of levels that focus on one creature. Some of these creatures are aggressive, others are not, but all can be used in varying ways to overcome platforming challenges, thwart enemies, and make further discoveries. Yoshi can, with the single press of the X button, sweep up the creature onto its back, and carry it along with you, utilising that creature’s skillset in whichever way you choose. You can also take advantage of Yoshi’s typical swallow technique, extended flutter jumps, and egg tossing to create a range of different unique effects.
Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is more about creativity and outside of the box thinking than it is about platforming challenge. There are no fail states, even if Yoshi were to plunge to what would normally be its death, you’ll simply be redrawn at the top of where you had previously fallen. It’s very family friendly in this respect, but it works because the game isn’t trying to test your platforming prowess, rather it wants you to experiment with its mechanics, and the capabilities of the different creatures you encounter to make a range of ‘discoveries’ within the pages of Mr. E. These combined decisions make Yoshi and the Mysterious Book into a wonderfully calming experience, not completely free of difficulty or problem solving, but a perfectly balanced title that works for younger or less experienced gamers, just as much as it will appeal to the crusted-on players.
Regardless of your gaming proficiency, it will be impossible not to be absorbed by the game’s visual artistry. Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is a stunning title, and it’s not console horsepower doing the lifting, but genius art design. The game combines a lower-framerate stop-motion style for Yoshi’s movement, with hand-illustrated aesthetics in a way that looks absolutely stunning. Disappointingly, as the player approaches the edge of any level (or rather, the edge of the page), the colour is stripped from Yoshi and the environment, and I must say, I liked that look even more; perhaps a patch could unlock something like this as a permanent art style. The soundtrack mirrors the art style as well, with a few renowned themes being paired with soothing tracks to further encourage simple exploration and fun-finding.
For fans of platformers, puzzle games, and collectorthons, there is much to enjoy about Yoshi and the Mysterious Book. For those looking to burn through the game, you’ll do so in sub-six hours, but for those wanting to read the spots off of Mr. E, there is much more to do, to explore, and to be challenged by. With additional chapters opening in the post-game, and more to see and do, as well as some clever opportunities to revisit prior levels with new twists, there’s quite a lot on the plate for players to enjoy. Clearing the main story is just the beginning of the Yoshi and the Mysterious Book experience, but no matter how you choose to play, you’ll have a super time.
Yoshi and the Mysterious Book was reviewed on Nintendo Switch 2 with a code kindly provided by Nintendo Australia.
