Game profile
Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island
This SNES spinoff with its distinctive crayon style visuals shifted the platforming focus to Yoshi and Baby Mario and is playable today through Nintendo Switch Online. Egg throwing mechanics and a unique visual style still make the game stand out today.
Affiliate link. If you buy through it, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
What kind of game this is
At its core this is Platformer, set in a fantasy world. Visually it is built on pixel art, and the overall tone stays light and upbeat. The structure is guided rather than open, so you are moved along instead of dropped into a map. It is built around short sessions, which makes it easy to pick up for half an hour.
The difficulty is moderate and fair, demanding attention without punishing you for it. There is no story to speak of, the systems carry everything. It is a single player experience from start to finish. It is available on one platform. It sits in the budget bracket.
What stands out
- Unique crayon art style
- Egg throwing mechanics
- Focus on Yoshi and Baby Mario
This fits you if
- you want to wind down rather than be tested
- you would rather build something than be told what to do
- you usually have thirty to sixty minutes and want that to be enough
- cutscenes annoy you and you just want to play
- you play alone and want a complete experience without other people
- you are watching your budget
Look elsewhere if
- you play mainly for narrative
- you want something that lasts, this is over after 8 hours
- pixel art puts you off
- you want to play it side by side with someone
How long is Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island?
About 8 hours in total. At two hours per evening that is around 4 evenings, so about a week of casual play.
How the rating ranks
Critics settled on 92 out of 100, which puts it above 93 percent of the 1276 games here and at rank 82 overall. That is a strong score, comfortably above what most releases manage.
For comparison, Platformer averages 83 points across the database, so this one sits 9 points above its own genre. The figure rests on 733 collected ratings.
Released in 1995, which makes it 31 years old. A genuine classic, and worth checking how the version you buy holds up today.
The facts
- Release year
- 1995
- Genres
- Platformer
- Playtime
- approx. 8 hrs.
- Difficulty
- Moderate, fair
- Story weight
- None, pure gameplay
- Play with
- Solo
- Setting
- Fantasy
- Visual style
- Pixel art
- Price bracket
- Budget
- Platforms
- Switch
- Critic rating
- 92 / 100
Direct comparison
| Genres | Release year | Playtime | Critic rating | Price bracket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island | 1995 | approx. 8 hrs. | 92 | Budget |
| Kirby Super Star | 1996 | approx. 6 hrs. | 86 | Budget |
| Sackboy: A Big Adventure | 2020 | approx. 9 hrs. | 85 | Mid price |
| Yoshi's Crafted World | 2019 | approx. 10 hrs. | 79 | Mid price |
If you liked this, try these
- 86/100 Kirby Super Star Shared: Platformer, Fantasy
- 85/100 Sackboy: A Big Adventure Shared: Platformer, Fantasy
- 79/100 Yoshi's Crafted World Shared: Platformer, Fantasy
- 96/100 Super Mario World Shared: Platformer, Fantasy, rated higher
- 91/100 Super Mario Bros. 3 Shared: Platformer, Fantasy
- 92/100 Donkey Kong Country 2: Diddy's Kong Quest Shared: Platformer, Fantasy