Yesterday’s Nintendo Direct was a big day for new media on a handful of Nintendo titles. The Wii U game Yoshi’s Wooly World saw the arrival of some new footage, but it made a rather quiet splash, much as the title did when it was first unveiled.
Yoshi’s Wooly World is notable because not since Yoshi’s Story on the Nintendo 64 have we seen a dedicated Yoshi title on console. Yoshi is a character that is, in recent times, arguably better known for its presence in spinoffs or as a side character in Mario games. The most recent Yoshi-focused release was 2014’s New Yoshi’s Island for the Nintendo 3DS, which, as it is, doesn’t deviate heavily from the gameplay formulas present in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island (plus the GBA remake) and Yoshi’s Island DS.
While this game features recognizable elements like collectibles and 2D platforming, there are some interesting new design ideas present in this game, most notably the way yarn can interact with enemies or with the environment to produce unorthodox platforms. There will also be a “Mellow Mode” that players can opt for at any time when playing that allows gamers to progress through stages as Winged Yoshi, which should make falling to your death a lot more difficult.
Another important announcement made yesterday introduced amiibo for the game. They come in three colors: green, pink and light blue. Unique to the Woolly World amiibo is that they are made mostly of yarn – unlike the hard plastic of the other amiibo. The amiibo produce a yarn Yoshi companion in-game that will follow you and can be swallowed to be used as an targetable projectile. The companion can also be jumped on or even hurled into the abyss (what sort of awful person does that?) creating a dynamic that somewhat resembles the multiplayer mode, but with a partner that has less autonomy. It’s truly a sign of the success of the amiibo products for Nintendo.
The game is scheduled for release in the fall of this year. Check out the video as part of the Nintendo Direct below!
Yoshi’s Woolly World is available for pre-order on Amazon:
