History Main / TheYoshi

[[redirect:PowerupMount]

[[redirect:PowerupMount]]

[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/theyoshi.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:350:[[{{Nintendo}} Saddle up, pard'ners!]] [[hottip:*:Clockwise, from top left: [[SuperMarioWorld Yoshi]], [[TheLegendaryStarfy the seahorse]], [[{{Kirby}} Rick]], [[LegendOfZelda Moosh]], [[DonkeyKongCountry Enguarde the Swordfish]].]]]]
A video game trope, mostly related to [[{{Platformer}} Platform Games]].

The Yoshi is sort of like a powerup item plus {{Mon}}. The Yoshi is an animal ([[RidiculouslyCuteCritter usually adorable]]) that the main character can ride on. Riding on the Yoshi usually does one or more of the following:
* Grants another hit point in the case of a OneHitPointWonder. Usually, getting hit while on TheYoshi will kill it or cause it to flee.
* Gives the player an alternate means of travel. Faster running, flight, gliding, digging, climbing, riding on lava, and swimming are all typical examples.
* Gives the player a new means of attack related to the steed: long tongue for lizards, fire for dragons, boxing gloves for kangaroos.

The TropeNamer is, of course, [[CaptainObvious Yoshi]] from ''SuperMarioWorld''. Not the TropeMaker, but certainly [[TropeCodifier the most recognizable]].

Will overlap with HorseOfADifferentColor.
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!!Examples:
* Yoshi in ''SuperMarioWorld'', ''VideoGame/SuperMarioSunshine'', ''NewSuperMarioBrosWii'', and ''SuperMarioGalaxy2''.
** ''[=~Yoshi's Island~=]'' is the inverse of this: you play as Yoshi himself and his friends, as they carry baby Mario on their backs.[[hottip:* :Except in a few levels where baby Mario flies around]] The creators also thoughtfully included a Yoshi ''for'' Yoshi, in the form of a large dog named Poochy. The dog could carry you across spikes and lava and things, but had a fairly steep learning curve for controlling it.
** ''SuperMarioBros3'' has a borderline example in the Kuribo's Shoe power-up. Though its status as "creature" is debateable, it does indeed grant another hit point, you ride around in it by bouncing, and it allows you to travel safely on spikes and jump on enemies you would not otherwise be able to.
** In ''VideoGame/PaperMarioTheThousandYearDoor'', your Yoshi partner is a [[CuteBruiser Cute]] BoisterousBruiser with the strength to carry a plumber three times his size!
* Rush from the ''Game/MegaMan'' series predates Yoshi, and is possibly the UrExample of this trope. Throughout the games, Rush has been a spring board, a jet sled, a mini-submarine, three types of PoweredArmor, a digging tool, a motorcycle, and a space capsule. Most of his forms have provided their own weapon, or altered Megaman's ArmCannon.
* The dinosaurs from the ''AdventureIsland'' series.
* The animal buddies in ''LittleNemo: The Dream Master''. Some of them had added a touch of NightmareFuel, since in many cases, Nemo would ride them by crawling into their mouth, giving the appearance of wearing their skin.
* Louie the Kangaroo, and then later the other [[Main/{{Mons}} Charaboms]] (especially Pommy) from the ''{{Bomberman}}'' series.
** In some games, there were several different colors of Louies that provided different abilities. ''Super Bomberman 4'' on the Super Famicom also let you ride certain enemy characters once you'd defeated them.
** ''Saturn Bomberman'' exchanges the [[EverythingsBetterWithKangaroos Louies]] for [[EverythingsBetterWithDinosaurs dinosaurs]]. Their name is "Tirra", if ''Bomberman Fantasy Race'' is to be believed, but ''Saturn Bomberman'' itself makes no such suggestion.
* The many animal buddies from the ''DonkeyKongCountry'' series.
* Various buddies such as seahorse, anglerfish and bunny in ''TheLegendaryStarfy'' series.
* The bizarre wasps and other creatures in ''AwesomePossum''.
* Rick, Coo and the rest of the Animal Friends from ''{{Kirby}}'', and even King Dedede himself in ''Kirby 64''.
** Also, the Helper Wheelie in ''Kirby Super Star (Ultra)'': If Kirby splits off the Wheel power, the Wheelie it creates has a cowling and handlebars (unlike every other Wheelie in the game), and Kirby will ride it if he jumps on top. If you have a second player, they can shoot short-ranged stars at foes.
** Screenshots of the ''Kirby'' platformer game that was originally announced for the GameCube showed Kirby and his helpers creating stacks of up to four characters. The above-mentioned Wheelie Rider also showed up in at least one shot.
* The Oracle ''LegendOfZelda'' games let Link choose among a boxing kangaroo named [[RuleOfThree Ricky]], a blue flying bear named Moosh and a friendly swimming dodongo named Dimitri as steeds for him.
** Meanwhile, most of the 3D Zeldas have the horse Epona. Inverted in ''[[TheLegendOfZeldaTwilightPrincess Twilight Princess]]'', where Link is the Yoshi.
* As one of many elements borrowed from ''Zelda'', ''{{Darksiders}}'' allows you to obtain [[CoolHorse Ruin]], The Horseman of War's mount.
* Camels and alligators in ''CastleCrashers''.
* The chocobos in the ''FinalFantasy'' series. Both ''FinalFantasyVII'' and ''FinalFantasyXI'' allow you to raise your own.
** ''FinalFantasyTactics'' and ''FinalFantasyTacticsA2'' let you ride Chocobos in battle and use their abilities, but they had to be weakened first and they would always put up a fight. A series of sidequests in A2 has you finding and capturing chocobos in all colors.
* Some [=~Pokémon~=] let you cross water on their backs once you teach them Surf.
** Depending on the game, you can also ride your Pokémon underwater (Dive), up waterfalls (Waterfall), cliffs (Rock Climb), flying to a given Pokémon Center (Fly), digging holes out of caves (Dig), and teleporting back to the last Pokémon Center (Teleport).
** [[PokemonRanger Pokémon Ranger]] Allows you to ride on a Doduo.
* The ''GoldenAxe'' series has always featured rideable animals called Bizzarians.
** The [[VideoGameRemake Remake]] made this the entire point of the game.
** The red dragon (that shoots fireballs) is an absolute GameBreaker, which is probably why you only get it on one level.
* The NES version of ''TheEmpireStrikesBack'' has the Tauntaun which makes Luke much faster, and gave him increased jumping abilities.
** This feature shows up later in the ''SuperStarWars'' version for the SNES.
* In ''[[{{Oddworld}} Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee]]'', Abe can ride a creature named Elum in certain areas. They cut him out of the sequel because he caused so much lag.
* Although not a platformer, the various rideable (and collectable!) mounts in ''{{World of Warcraft}}'' qualify. There are at least a hundred, and they give you a greatly increased run speed (and later, the ability to fly). There are also portions of the game where you can use "vehicle" mounts, which replace the player's attack scheme and {{Hit Points}} with the vehicle's.
* The ''DynastyWarriors'' series has progressed to the point where your horse fills this function, allowing you to race across the battlefield and trample enemy soldiers underfoot. Some installments in the series also allow you to ride a god damn [[GameBreaker ELEPHANT]] into battle.
** Horses play identical roles in the spinoff series ''SamuraiWarriors'' and ''WarriorsOrochi''. They also introduced the ability to summon your particular (and usually quite special) horse from anywhere on the map.
* In the arcade game Gunsmoke, one of the powerups is a donkey, which you ride. It definitely increased the number of hits you could take [[OneHitPointWonder above one,]] that's saying something.
* {{Rayman}} gets to ride a mosquito a couple of times in his self-titled game. First you have to [[DefeatMeansFriendship defeat it]], then you get to use it all throughout a few levels.
** And the second game has the Walking Shells, essentially missiles with legs that chase after the player on sight and can be ridden to advance through the level.
** Also in ''Rayman 3: Hoodlum Havoc'', you get to ride [[CowardlySidekick Globox]] a couple of times after he's drunk plum juice.
* GuildWars: You have to ride in Junundu Worms to get across The Desolation in Nightfall. Your Health, Energy, and skillbar are all replaced with Junundu Worm stuff when you enter it. Also, you have to prove your worth by defeating the Junundu Queen before being able to ride one.
* The ''CrashBandicoot'' games produced by Naughty Dog had one such animal per game, with two levels in each game dedicated entirely to riding them through their respective obstacle courses (an unnamed wild boar in ''Crash 1'', Polar the polar bear in ''Crash 2'', and Pura the tiger, along with a baby T-Rex in ''Crash 3'').
* SpyroTheDragon, in one of the games, gets to ride on a manta ray underwater to shoot some [[{{Mook}} Rhynocs]] in submarines.
* The ''MetalSlug'' games feature ridable animals from time to time, ranging from camel to elephant to donkey. Unlike vehicles, riding an animal leaves the player exposed to enemy fire and may sometimes be a liability.
* Not a powerup, but Genji the turtle acts like this for Reimu Hakurei in early TouhouProject games.
* Sabrecats in the ''DragonQuest'' series, like [[FinalFantasy chocobos]], have served simultaneously as enemy, party member, and transportation.

!!Non-video game examples

[[AC:WebOriginal]]
* Parodied in ''CollegeSaga'', where the hero rides a chocobo played by a man in a fursuit.

[[AC:WesternAnimation]]
* ''[[PrincessGwenevereAndTheJewelRiders Starla/Princess Gwenevere and the Jewel Riders]]'' is an example of both this trope and CoolHorse.

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** In ''PaperMario: The Thousand Year Door'', your Yoshi partner is a [[CuteBruiser Cute]] BoisterousBruiser with the strength to carry a plumber three times his size!

* Yoshi in ''SuperMarioWorld'', ''SuperMarioSunshine'', ''NewSuperMarioBrosWii'', and ''SuperMarioGalaxy2''.

* Non-video game example: The [[WesternAnimation western animated]] series ''[[PrincessGwenevereAndTheJewelRiders Starla/Princess Gwenevere and the Jewel Riders]]'' is an example of both this trope and CoolHorse.

The TropeNamer is, of course, Yoshi from ''SuperMarioWorld''. Not the TropeMaker, but certainly [[TropeCodifier the most recognizable]].

* Yoshi in ''SuperMarioWorld'', ''SuperMarioSunshine'', ''NewSuperMarioBrosWii'', and ''SuperMarioGalaxy 2''.

[[caption-width-right:350:[[{{Nintendo}} Saddle up, pard'ners!]] [[hottip:* : SuperMarioWorld, TheLegendaryStarfy, DonkeyKongCountry, LegendOfZelda, {{Kirby}}.]]]]

* Louie the Kangaroo, and then later the other [[Main/{{Mons}} Charabombs]] (especially Pommy) from the ''{{Bomberman}}'' series.
** In some games there were several different colors of Louies that provided different abilities. ''Super Bomberman 4'' on the Super Famicom also let you ride certain enemy characters once you'd defeated them.

* Some water [=~Pokémon~=] let you cross the water once you teach them Surf.
** Later games allow you to ride your Pokémon underwater (Dive), up waterfalls (Waterfall), cliffs (Rock Climb), flying to a given Pokémon Center (Fly), digging holes out of caves (Dig), and teleporting back to the last Pokémon Center (Teleport).

* SpyroTheDragon, in one of the games, gets to ride on a manta ray underwater.
** Twice actually, and it's Hunters Pet which he get's you to tame. Spyro 2 features a basic swim through the rings challenge. In Spyro 3, Hunter adds ''Missile launchers'' to the manta ray and you get to shoot some [[{{Mook}} Rhynocs]] in submarines!

* SpyroTheDragon, in one of the games, gets to ride on a manta ray underwater to shoot some [[{{Mook}} Rhynocs]] in submarines.

* The ''GoldenAxe'' series has always featured rideable animals.

* The Bizzarians, a race of dragons in the ''GoldenAxe'' series. What type of attack they use depends on the breed being ridden. Oh yeah, and enemies can ride them, too.

* As one of many elements "borrowed" from Zelda, {{Darksiders}} allows you to obtain [[CoolHorse Ruin]], The Horseman of War's mount. Imagine Epona as the offspring of a [[WorldOfWarcraft Deathcharger and Dreadsteed]] and you get the idea.

* Rush from the ''[[Game/MegaMan Mega Man]]'' series predates Yoshi, and is possibly the UrExample of this trope. Throughout the games, Rush has been a spring board, a jet sled, a mini-submarine, three types of PoweredArmor, a digging tool, a motorcycle, and a space capsule. Most of his forms have provided their own weapon, or altered Megaman's ArmCannon.