Yoshi's New Island Reviews

Yoshi's New Island is ranked in the 30th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
Apr 8, 2014

Sweet hand-drawn aesthetic and cute Yoshi sounds, but lacks any challenge.

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Drew Leachman
Top Critic
7.8 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2014

Yoshi’s New Island is a decent little package. The jumping can be a bit of a challenge to master, but the rest of the game is a breeze. Even with the difficulty not being very challenging, the number of worlds and levels can last most players a good eight hours or more depending on how much they want to collect in each level. It may not have the feel of a flagship title like Mario, but Yoshi still knows how to have some fun – just make sure to go into it knowing it’s not going to be a very difficult ride.

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Mar 13, 2014

It's just not as thrilling as some of its 2D platforming counterparts, or as innovative, especially at a time when the genre is going through something of a renaissance period.

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8 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2014

Nintendo once again proves that they know the platforming genre better than almost anyone. While polished in its design, I can’t help but wish it was a little more challenging. You can fly through the levels rather quickly without breaking much of a sweat; extra challenges add some life for more advanced players but young ones are likely to get more out of the game.

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9 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2014

Yoshi’s New Island is amazing from beginning to charming end. Don’t hesitate for a second to buy it folks, unless you hate smiling.

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Mar 30, 2014

It's a shame Arzest routinely steps out of line when it comes to the visual and aural artistry of Yoshi's New Island, because the gameplay ushers the little spin-off that could into the current century.

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6.5 / 10.0
Apr 7, 2014

Yoshi's New Island is a fine salute to a SNES classic and an adorable, approachable platformer in its own right, but it's only likely to have value for players new to the genre - and even then, any appreciation of the game that they have is likely to be fleeting.

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Mar 13, 2014
Yoshi's New Island - Video Review (3DS) video thumbnail
Mar 13, 2014

Yoshi's New Island is more than a love letter to the original game -- it's a worthy successor. There's really no reason to pass on playing it, and if you enjoy the original or feel frustrated by the current side-scroller landscape, then you absolutely can't go wrong by giving this a try.

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8.5 / 10.0
Mar 13, 2014

Solid platforming with interesting, sometimes non-linear level design and varied mechanics that influence movement and how you play. The bosses are a little dull, but the levels before and in between make up for it. Fans of the series should be rather pleased.

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Will Greenwald
Top Critic
Mar 25, 2014

Yoshi's New Island is a solid platformer that sadly lacks the child-like crayon drawing graphics that made the first game work so well.

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6.5 / 10.0
Mar 27, 2014

Given the difference in capabilities between the Nintendo DS and the 3DS, we had rather high expectations for Yoshi's side-scrolling return.

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75 / 100
Mar 1, 2014

Yoshi’s New Island looks great, plays flawlessly, and is entertaining and challenging enough for any fan to enjoy—and ultimately, that’s all that matters. If you’re a fan, you’ll find what you’re looking for here, but those still waiting for the next great and unique Nintendo title will have to keep on waiting. Some of the pieces of the game feel poorly tacked-on, but at it’s core Yoshi’s New Island is a worthy sequel to a beloved series that has been out of gamer’s lives for too long.

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Mar 13, 2014

Yoshi's New Island is a solid little platformer, but it struggles to be much more than that. It will, at least, kill a few hours of time, even if that time will hardly be remembered afterwards.

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6 / 10.0
Mar 15, 2014

Yoshi's New Island follows a similar formula as previous Nintendo remakes/reboots but ultimately falls short of recreating the magic we expect from Nintendo platformers. It is a shame that Yoshi's New Island could not provide enough new content to warrant its "new" name. Even if you enjoy the gameplay pulled directly out of the original title, it's hard to recommend playing this game over its predecessor (even if you've already played Yoshi's Island). Yoshi's Island DS has a little more variety and difficulty but ultimately, Nintendo just hasn't been able to reproduce the greatness of the original title.

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7 / 10.0
Mar 20, 2014

Sure, it’s nowhere near as good as the original or as strong as the company’s finest new platformers, but if you adore Yoshi’s Island and own a 3DS, it’ll sure scratch an itch you’ve had for years

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NZGamer
Top Critic
6.5 / 10.0
Mar 24, 2014

Yoshi’s New Island places almost all of its eggs in the nostalgia basket. It's a bold decision, but one that ultimately holds back the game by bringing with it some retro-inspired design best left to the 90s. Series fans will enjoy a trip back to this oft-forgotten Mario spin-off, and some of the newly introduced mechanics are good, if used too sparsely. Ultimately, though, Yoshi’s New Island is an enjoyable, but underwhelming, romp.

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6.8 / 10.0
Mar 15, 2014

New Island relies too much on what has worked before and copy-pasted it onto a blasé platformer.

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3.1 / 5.0
Mar 14, 2014

I was more than a little disappointed in the lack of challenge and overall content in Yoshi's New Island. The features that are included lack cohesion, and the bare bones multiplayer is laughable. Nintendo could argue that the design of the series is meant for a younger audience, yet I was twenty-seven when I played Yoshi's Island DS and thoroughly enjoyed it. Yoshi has had some grand adventures of his own, but sadly this is not one of them.

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games(TM)
games™ Team
Top Critic
Unscored
Apr 9, 2014

A reliable, friendly and sumptuous romp through another beautifully built Nintendo world, and yet another great reason to own a 3DS. It’s the machine that keeps on giving.

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