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Yoshi (universe)

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Yoshi (universe)
Yoshi logo.png
YoshiSymbol.svg
Developer(s) Nintendo
Game Freak
Intelligent Systems
Artoon
Arzest
Good-Feel
Publisher(s) Nintendo
Designer(s) Takashi Tezuka
Shigefumi Hino
Genre(s) Platformer
Console/platform of origin Nintendo Entertainment System
First installment Yoshi (1991)
Latest installment Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World (2017)
Article on Super Mario Wiki Yoshi (universe)

The Yoshi universe, sometimes known as the Yoshi's Island universe, (ヨッシー, Yoshi) refers to the Smash Bros. series' collection of characters, stages, and properties that hail from the sub-franchise of the Mario series that deals with main sub-series character Yoshi. It is generally agreed on that Yoshi and related items count as Mario properties, but Yoshi has appeared in enough of his own games alongside enough original characters and properties that many consider him as holding sway over a "sub-universe" of Mario. Yoshi is also considered part of his own universe because his smasher's insignia consists of a spotted Yoshi Egg rather than the iconic image of a Super Mushroom held by other Mario characters. It is the least representative of the Mario sub-series, since there is only one character, two or more stages, but no items or no Assist Trophies.

Franchise description

Throughout the lifespan of the Famicom / NES, Shigeru Miyamoto wanted Mario to have a dinosaur companion in his games following Super Mario Bros., but apparently, limitations to the NES could not fit this companion character in. However, Miyamoto was able to achieve the debut of the character, Yoshi, in the Super Famicom/SNES launch game Super Mario World. Yoshi was designed by the game's graphics designer Shigefumi Hino (who would become famous later on as the designer of the Pikmin series), and was introduced as a species of human-sized cartoon-like dinosaurs that came in multiple different colors, could swallow enemies with their elastic tongues, could lay spotted eggs that usually hatched into power-ups, and could be ridden by Mario through levels as a mount. The Yoshi species became a permanent, recurring element in the Mario franchise forever onward, and any reference to "Yoshi" as a character typically refers to a green-colored individual that is one of the recurring heroes in Mario's world.

Yoshi, whether the character himself or the species, has appeared in a "primary side-role" alongside various other Mario-series regulars in many Mario games, oftentimes as a selectable playable character; games involving Mario where Yoshi may be selected include the Mario Kart sub-series, as a recurring racer, and the Mario Party sub-series, as a recurring character choice for walking across the board and partaking in mini-games. More significantly, there have been occasional games starring Yoshi in a leading role, with or without Mario in a side-role; aside from several occasional puzzle games, including Tetris Attack on the SNES, Yoshi's first high-profile starring role was in the very well-received and successful Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island for the SNES in 1995, several years after Yoshi's debut. In this game, Yoshi and his differently-colored friends, illustrated in a unique pastel style to help differentiate the game from the CGI imagery of Donkey Kong Country, help transport a baby version of Mario through their island's obstacles to reunite him with his brother and bring them back to the stork that is supposed to deliver them to their parents. A spiritual sequel focusing exclusively on the Yoshis, Yoshi's Story for the Nintendo 64 in March 1998, featured a more saccharine aesthetic; by this point, Yoshi had settled into a different design that gave him a more anthropomorphic appearance, which has been used ever since.

Despite the close association Yoshi's modern design has with the Yoshi's Story aesthetic, that aesthetic actually never made a reappearance in a Yoshi-centric title, whereas the pastel design style of Yoshi's Island for the SNES has been reused in several later-generation follow-ups. These may be referred to as part of the "main" Yoshi series, the "Yoshi's Island" sub-series, where Yoshi has to navigate platforming stages and attack foes with his eggs in order to transport Baby Mario and baby versions of other characters safely to the end. Aside from Yoshi Touch & Go for the DS, which appears to not even have any canonical relevance to the overall Mario franchise despite a similar scenario focused on transporting Baby Mario, there have been two direct sequels using the pastel aesthetic: Yoshi's Island DS, released for the Nintendo DS in November 2006, Yoshi's New Island, released in 2014 on the Nintendo 3DS, and the newest game, Yoshi's Wooly World, released in 2015 on the Wii U. Between these games and Yoshi's constant appearances in most Mario games, Yoshi has been enough of a recurring Nintendo character that the Super Smash Bros. series of fighting games not only included him as a regular playable character since the series' start, but saw fit to symbolically categorize Yoshi and related properties as "separate" from the Mario universe, the same way Donkey Kong and Wario have been categorized as "separate franchises" from Mario.

In Super Smash Bros.

Ever since his debut, Yoshi became a breakout star with two major games to his name; Yoshi's Island and Yoshi's Story. Due to this, the Super Smash Bros. franchise treats Yoshi and his line of games as its own universe, separate from the Mario universe. The Yoshi universe is treated almost as much as other franchises in Smash 64, with only one character and one stage represented.

Character

  • YoshiIcon(SSB).png
    Yoshi: Yoshi is a green dinosaur that Mario could ride on in Super Mario World. Since then, Yoshi would gain his own line of games, and become a major member of the Mario universe. He is a member of the colorful Yoshi species that often protect their island on multiple occasions. In Smash 64, Yoshi does not use his hands for combat, and instead relies on his head, tail, and feet. His neutral special, Egg Lay, is Yoshi's trademark ability where he swallows an opponent and turns them into an egg for a short period of time. Yoshi's up special is the Egg Throw from Yoshi's Island, where he launches an egg upwards in an arc. This means that Yoshi is one of two fighters where the up special does not aid in stage recovery. This is due to Yoshi having the best double jump in the game, being his flutter jump. His down special is his Yoshi Bomb attack from Yoshi's Island, which is just a ground pound.

Stage

  • YoshisIslandIconSSB.png
    Yoshi's Island: Despite being called Yoshi's Island, this stage is actually designed to resemble the game Yoshi's Story. The stage takes place on a large open book as the main platform with the Super Happy Tree in the background. Above the open book are three soft platforms that resemble cardboard. In the sky surrounding the main stage are three cloud platforms, one on the left side, one on the right, and the other on the far lower right. These clouds temporarily disappear if a character stands on top of them for a few seconds.

Music

  • 9: A remix of two songs heard in the game Yoshi's Story. The first is Yoshi's Song that plays in various levels, and the second is the title screen theme. It is heard on the stage Yoshi's Island.
  • 19: The victory fanfare of Yoshi is a combination of two songs heard in Yoshi's Story, the title screen, and the jingle heard when Yoshi collects 30 necessary fruits and completes a level.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee

The most recent Yoshi games were still Yoshi's Island and Yoshi's Story, so the content representing the franchise is still from these two games. Unique to this game, Super Mario World is counted as a Yoshi universe game. Despite having only one character, Melee features a total of three stages, and one semi-item that only appears in an Event Match, being the Yoshi's Egg.

Character

YoshiIcon(SSBM).png
  • Yoshi returns as a starter character and the sole character representing the Yoshi franchise. While he still resembles his appearance in Yoshi's Island, he now looks more realistic, with mottled skin and a more dinosaur-like posture. He is able to turn himself into an egg and bowl through opponents on the ground as his new side special move, the Egg Roll. Due to the addition of directional air dodges, Yoshi now has a slightly better recovery game. Yoshi's mixture of buffs and nerfs makes him just as viable as his previous appearance.

Stages

  • YoshisIslandIconSSBM.png
    Yoshi's Island: Yoshi's Island: This stage is a general depiction of the game Super Mario World`s tileset. On the far right of the stage is a hill sloping upwards which reaches the right blast line. On the left there is a large, oblique Warp Pipe supported by two smaller ones. Both portions of the stage are connected by a path that has three Rotating Blocks covering a pit. If these blocks are attacked, they start spinning and temporarily allow passage through. Six more Rotating Blocks float over the stage in two blocks of three.
  • YoshisStoryIconSSBM.png
    Yoshi's Island: Yoshi's Story: This stage is rather simplistic and is based on the game Yoshi's Story. There are three soft platforms in the air that are in similar position to those found in Battlefield. There is also a small cloud platform that moves in a rectangle pattern through the bottom of the stage that can be stood on until it goes back to the stage. Periodically, there is a group of Fly Guys that fly in the stage carrying Food if items are enabled. These Fly Guys can also interfere with projectiles, and can stop certain moves.
  • PastYoshisIslandIconSSBM.png
    Past Stages: Yoshi's Island 64: The original Yoshi's Island stage from Smash 64 is one of three such stages to have been ported to Melee. This unlockable stage is essentially the same as its previous appearance, with the only difference being that the background is actually being rendered in 3D, and now acts properly when moving the camera.

Music

  • 9: Yoshi's Story: An upbeat, fast-pace, orchestration of the main theme from the N64 game Yoshi's Story that plays in most grass levels. This track plays on the stage Yoshi's Story. It is also used as one of Yoshi's credits theme.
  • 10: Yoshi's Island: A banjo-based remix of the athletic levels from the SNES game, Super Mario World. Later in the remix, a woodblock beat is added to mimic the beat added if Mario is riding on Yoshi. This track plays on the stage Yoshi's Island. It is also used as one of Yoshi's credits theme.
  • 28: Yoshi's Island N64: The Smash 64 remix of two songs from the game Yoshi Story. It is heard in the same stage, Past Stages: Yoshi's Island.
  • 42: Yoshi's Victory: The victory fanfare of Yoshi is an orchestration of two songs heard in Yoshi's Story, the title screen, and the jingle heard when Yoshi collects 30 necessary fruits.

Full Trophy List

In Super Smash Bros. Brawl

The Yoshi universe receives representation in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Character

  • YoshiIcon(SSBB).png
    Yoshi: Yoshi was the last of the "Original 8" to be revealed as a returning character in Brawl. He has been visually modified to more accurately resemble his more recent appearances in Yoshi's Story and other newer Mario games. In addition to some old moves being modified (his Up B, Egg Throw, now also functions as a third jump), Yoshi also enters the fray with a brand new attack: his Final Smash is Super Dragon, which is based off of the powers that Yoshi could obtain in Super Mario World by holding certain colors of Koopa shells in his mouth for extended periods of time. When the Final Smash is executed, Yoshi suddenly sprouts wings and can fly around for a short period of time, during which he can spew flames from his mouth with the press of a button.

On the final character select screen (after all characters are unlocked), Yoshi, despite being part of the Original 8, doesn't appear in the top row in the spot between Samus and Kirby. Instead, he shares a column with fellow Mario side series characters Donkey Kong, Diddy Kong, and Wario.

Common Ally

  • Support Ghost: Support Ghosts appear in the Yoshi's Island stage periodically, acting as a platform for other characters.

Common Enemies

Stages

  • Icon-yoshisisland.gif
    Yoshi's Island: The first Yoshi stage to be based off Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island instead of Yoshi's Story, this stage has the appearance of being drawn with crayons and pastels. The stage changes seasons during gameplay.
  • Icon-yoshisislandmelee.gif
    Melee Stages: Yoshi's Island: One of the few stages known to return from the previous game, it has only got some minor differences such as a few areas that differs. Otherwise, it's unaltered.

Music

See List of SSBB Music (Yoshi series)

  • Obstacle Course - A medley consisting mostly of a remix of the "Athletic" level theme from Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island and also a bit of the final boss theme. It is used in the Yoshi's Island stage.
  • Ending (Yoshi's Story) - A tropical-sounding remix of the credits theme from Yoshi's Story. It is used in the Yoshi's Island stage. This song is also played during Yoshi's Classic Mode credits.
  • Yoshi's Island - A jazzy remix of the commonly heard ground level theme from Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, complete with a harmonica (which was used in the original version of the song). It is the theme of the Yoshi's Island stage.
  • Flower Field - Taken directly from the DS title Yoshi Touch & Go, this was the theme of the level of the same name. It is used in the Yoshi's Island stage.
  • Wildlands - A combination of the "level beginning" jingle and the Wildlands level theme from Yoshi's Island DS. It is used on the Yoshi's Island stage.
  • Yoshi's Island (Melee) - Taken directly from Super Smash Bros. Melee. It is used on the Yoshi's Island (Melee) stage.
  • Yoshi's victory theme - A whimsical orchestration of the main theme of Yoshi's Story and the "level complete" fanfare.
  • snd_bgm_E04_COCKIE - This track was originally going to be in Brawl, but was scrapped for unknown reasons. While the track is unknown, it is assumed that it's from Yoshi's Cookie.

Trophies

Stickers

  • Yoshi (Mario Party 2)
  • Yoshi Ship (Yoshi's Universal Gravitation/Yoshi Topsy-Turvy)
  • Mace Guy (Yoshi's Universal Gravitation/Yoshi Topsy-Turvy)
  • Shy Guy (Yoshi's Story)
  • Pak E. Derm (Yoshi's Story)
  • Bone Dragon (Yoshi's Story)
  • Don Bongo (Yoshi's Story)
  • Propeller Shy Guy (Yoshi's Story)
  • Blargg (Yoshi's Story)
  • Tap-Tap (Yoshi Touch & Go)
  • Yoshi's Egg (Yoshi Touch & Go)
  • Yoshi (Yoshi Touch & Go)
  • Brier (Yoshi Touch & Go)
  • Super Baby (Yoshi's Island DS)
  • Crazee Dayzee (Yoshi's Island DS)
  • Goonie (Yoshi's Island DS)
  • Stork Stop (Yoshi's Island DS)
  • Stork (Yoshi's Island DS)
  • Kamek (Yoshi Touch & Go)
  • Car Yoshi (Yoshi's Island series)
  • Kamek (Yoshi's Island series)
  • Burt the Bashful (Yoshi's Island series)
  • Bubble Baby Mario (Yoshi's Island series)
  • Baby Mario (Yoshi's Island series)
  • Raphael the Raven (Yoshi's Island series)
  • Eight Yoshis (SMA 3: Yoshi's Island)

In Super Smash Bros. 4

Once again, the Yoshi series is represented in both versions by a character and several stages, one new and two returning from past installments. The series is now referred to as the Yoshi's Island series in at least Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.

Characters

  • YoshiIcon(SSB4-U).png
    Yoshi: Yoshi returns as a playable character, once again, being the last of the Original 8 to be confirmed for the game. Yoshi now stands upright similarly to Bowser, closely resembling his more recent appearances.

Stages

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

  • YoshisIslandIconSSB4-3.png
    Super Smash Bros. Brawl Yoshi's Island: The Brawl version of Yoshi's Island returns as a stage exclusive to the Nintendo 3DS version of SSB4.

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

Trophies

These are all of the known trophies from the Yoshi series.

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

  • Yoshi
  • Yoshi (Alt.)
  • Fly Guy
  • Yoshi's New Island

Super Smash Bros. for Wii U

  • Yoshi
  • Yoshi (Alt.)
  • Super Dragon

Music

See List of SSB4 Music (Yoshi series)

  • Yoshi's Island: A medley of music from Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, playing in Woolly World. The medley includes the game's overworld theme ("Flower Garden"), as well as the opening "Music Box", "level select", and "Stage Clear" themes. While of the same origin as Brawl's Yoshi's Island track, this is a new remix. It was heard during Yoshi's reveal trailer in the April 2014 Nintendo Direct.
  • Obstacle Course: Autumn/Winter: Reused from Brawl. It plays during the autumn and winter segments of Yoshi's Island in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS
  • Obstacle Course: Spring/Summer: Reused from Brawl. Plays during the spring and summer segments of Yoshi's Island in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS.
  • Ending (Yoshi's Story): Reused from Brawl. It plays in Yoshi's Island in the 3DS version and Woolly World in the Wii U version.
  • Yoshi's Woolly World: A remix of the overworld theme of Yoshi's Woolly World. It can be heard during the amiibo section of the October 2014 Nintendo Direct. It plays in Woolly World.
  • Yoshi's Woolly World (Original): The original version of the above song, as heard in Yoshi's Woolly World. It plays in the Woolly World stage.
  • Flower Field: A remix of a track from Yoshi Touch & Go, originally produced for from Brawl. It plays in Woolly World.
  • Wildlands: A combination of the "level beginning" jingle and the Wildlands level theme from Yoshi's Island DS. It plays in the Woolly World stage in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U
  • Yoshi's Island (Melee): Reused from Melee. Plays in Yoshi's Island in the Wii U version.
  • Yoshi's Story: Reused from the original Super Smash Bros. It plays in Yoshi's Island in the Wii U version.
  • Yoshi's Story Ver. 2: Reused from the Melee stage of the same name. It plays in Woolly World.
  • Main Theme (Yoshi's New Island): The main theme of Yoshi's New Island, taken directly from that game. It plays on Woolly World.
  • Bandit Valley: This arrangement of Yoshi's New Island's main theme is presented as it was originally heard in the game's "Bandit Valley" area.

Games with elements in the Smash Bros. games

Super Mario World

Technically, Super Mario World qualifies as part of the Mario universe due to it being a main series Mario game. However, the Smash Bros. games consider it part of the Yoshi universe as well, with it being Yoshi's debut appearance and one of his most iconic.

In Super Smash Bros. Melee, the Yoshi's Island stage is based on Super Mario World and is clearly labeled as such in Brawl and Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. A few of Yoshi's moves in all four Smash Bros. games are also based off of what he could do in this game. In Super Smash Bros. Brawl, Yoshi's Final Smash, Super Dragon, is based on the powers he could obtain in this game, specifically the powers gained from a red Koopa, which allows him to breathe fire and a blue Koopa, which allows him to sprout wings and fly.

Yoshi's red, blue and yellow alternate costumes in Super Smash Bros. Melee, Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U are based on those specific colored Yoshis in Super Mario World.

Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island

In Brawl, there is a stage called Yoshi's Island that is based on many elements from that game, such as the design of the stage (which looks similar to drawings) and the background characters. There are also some music tracks that come from the same game. They all play in this stage.

Yoshi's special moves, Egg Lay, Egg Throw and Yoshi Bomb come from this game. Yoshi's second jump (known as the Flutter Jump) originated from this game. His down aerial could also be a reference to his Flutter Jump ability. Also, Yoshi's pink, cyan and purple alternate costumes in Super Smash Bros. Brawl and Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U are based on those specific colored Yoshis in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. Baby Mario and Kamek debuted in this game. Baby Mario appears as a trophy while Kamek appears on the Mushroom Kingdom U stage. Baby Mario also appears as three stickers in Super Smash Bros. Brawl, one in his Superstar form. Baby Luigi appears as a sticker, riding on Luigi, in their artwork for Mario & Luigi: Partners in Time in Super Smash Bros. Brawl and a trophy in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U. Stork, Goonie, Crayzee Dayzee, Fly Guy, Tap-Tap, Burt the Bashful, and Raphael the Raven all appear as stickers in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Yoshi's Story

In Super Smash Bros., there is a stage called Yoshi's Island that was based on this game, featuring the Super Happy Tree and other characters from Yoshi's Story in the background, and a main platform resembling an opened book. This stage returned as a past stage in Melee. Yoshi's victory theme is an orchestration of the main theme and the "level complete" fanfare from this game.

In Melee, there is another stage based on Yoshi's Story, which is also named after it.

Pak E. Derm and Raphael the Raven appear as trophies in Super Smash Bros. Melee and stickers in Super Smash Bros. Brawl. Propeller Shy Guy appears as a sticker in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

A remix of the game's ending theme is included in Brawl and SSB4 and plays on the new Yoshi's Island stage, which is based more on the Yoshi's Island franchise than Yoshi's Story. The music also appears on the stage Woolly World.

Yoshi's black alternate costume in Super Smash Bros. 4 is based on a black Yoshi in this game.

Yoshi's voice clips from all four games (five if one counts the 3DS and Wii U versions of SSB4 as different games) are from this game. In addition, Kazumi Totaka provided the game's music and the voice of the titular character.

Yoshi's Island DS

The game's "above ground" theme has been remixed and included in this game, and was given the title "Wildlands". The graphics of the stage Yoshi's Island is based on Yoshi's Island DS's graphics. Stork Stop appears as a sticker in Super Smash Bros. Brawl.

Yoshi's Woolly World

The Woolly World stage in Super Smash Bros. for Wii U is inspired by this game. The stage includes both the game's main theme and a specially remixed version as My Music options.

Yoshi's New Island

There is a trophy based on Yoshi and Baby Mario's appearance in this game alongside a Mega Eggdozer in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS , titled "Yoshi's New Island."

Other games

Brawl uses artwork (for stickers) and music tracks from other Yoshi titles such Yoshi Touch & Go, Yoshi Topsy-Turvy and Super Mario Advance 3: Yoshi's Island.

Trivia

  • The Yoshi and F-Zero series are the only two franchises to have appeared in all four Smash Bros. games and have only one playable character each.
    • Not counting Yoshi's Egg in Melee, the Yoshi and F-Zero series are the only two franchises with playable characters appearing in all four games to lack items.
  • The Yoshi and Donkey Kong universes are the only universes with playable characters appearing in all four installments to lack an Assist Trophy.
  • SSB4 is the first installment in the series not to have a new stage from this universe named "Yoshi's Island".

References

  1. ^ [1]