History YMMV / YoshisIsland

** The fact that this series gave the Mario Bros. an origin story by having them be born and raised in the Mushroom Kingdom instead of the old "Mario & Luigi are plumbers from Brooklyn, New York who took a Magic Pipe into the Mushroom Kingdom" from the movie and the cartoons. Certain fans ([[NostalgiaGoggles particularly older ones]]) were against this idea and thought that the Brooklyn origin made more realistic sense and that the Mushroom Kingdom origin had way too much FridgeLogic in it. Other fans think it's really no big deal and are perfectly okay with the Mushroom Kingdom origin ([[{{Woolseyism}} and often point out that the Brooklyn origin was made up by Nintendo of America to begin with]] and now of course we have [[{{Retcon}} New Donk City]] featuring in Mario Odyssey too).
** The GBA version of the original game. As with the other ''Super Mario Advance'' titles, it's either a PolishedPort with creative exclusive levels, or a PortingDisaster plagued with screen crunch, washed out colors, missing graphical effects, low quality music, and voice acting.

* ItsTheSameNowItSucks: ''Yoshi's New Island'' for reusing level ideas and feeling like an expansion for the original Yoshi's Island. Funny since it was in response to ''Yoshi's Island DS'''s TheyChangedItNowItSucks, though fans who criticize both tend to just dislike Artoon[=/=]Arzest in general.

** ''Yoshi's Island DS'' got this reaction from some fans of the first game for significantly changing the gameplay by adding babies with different abilities and ''massive'' SequelDifficultySpike (while the old one was only difficult when you were going for 100%) and lack of inventory items. Arzest listened to this when making ''Yoshi's New Island'', which those fans complained now was [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks too much of the same]], fans who criticize both tend to just dislike Artoon[=/=]Arzest in general.

* ToughActToFollow: The original, inevitably leading to {{Contested Sequel}}s. It doesn't help that every ''Yoshi'' game afterwards wasn't developed by Nintendo EAD, with the exception of ''VideoGame/YoshisStory'', which actually has been VindicatedByHistory a long time after its release. In particular, ''Yoshi's Island DS'' is generally regarded as a great game in its own right due to its additions (even with the whole SequelDifficultySpike), just being considered controversial by some fans of the original game due to not matching the original even if it's still great in its own right.

* TheyWastedAPerfectlyGoodPlot: A number of fans dislike how the series is essentially a franchise full of prequels of the mainline ''Mario'' games. Not helping that Bowser (baby or adult) tend to hijack the plot rather than just letting Kamek be a villain on his own. This ends up hurting Yoshi's identity as his games end up being less distinct compared to the likes of ''Donkey Kong'' or ''Wario''.

** The GBA version of the original game. As with the other ''Super Mario Advance'' titles, it's either a PolishedPort with creative exclusive levels, or a PortingDisaster plagued with screen crunch, washed out colors, missing graphical effects, low quality music, and voice acting.%%Whether or not the series should at least make an attempt to diverge itself from the mainline ''Mario'' games by getting rid of (Baby) Bowser and stop being a series of prequels.

** The GBA version of the original game. As with the other ''Super Mario Advance'' titles, it's either a PolishedPort with creative exclusive levels, or a PortingDisaster plagued with screen crunch, washed out colors, missing graphical effects, low quality music, and voice acting.

* ItsEasySoItSucks: ''Yoshi's New Island'' got this. Going for 100% is still quite the challenge though, especially because of the [[FakeDifficulty invisible clouds, the game no longer saving your stars after you die,]] and the [[BrutalBonusLevel secret levels]], as well as getting to face adult Bowser.

* CriticalDissonance: While some Yoshi fans tend to claim ''Woolly World'' is the return to form to the series, its critical reception wasn't that great, [[https://www.metacritic.com/game/yoshis-woolly-world/ getting a 78 on Wii U and 77 on 3DS]], just above average, and those fans tend to completely forget about ''VideoGame/YoshisIslandDS'', which was already well received overall and got a ''higher'' score than ''Woolly World'', [[https://www.metacritic.com/game/yoshis-island-ds/ 81]]. The user scores weren't that different either, with ''DS'' getting a 83 Metascore and ''Woolly World'' 84 on Wii U, 77 on 3DS.

* ContestedSequel: Every ''Yoshi'' game that attempted to follow up on the original was met with this reaction for different reasons, generally with their detractors disliking their changes and their supporters liking them: ''Story'' for being too short and easy, ''DS'' for significantly changing the gameplay with the addition of its babies with different abilities and very difficult level design, and ''New Island'' for hewing too closely to the original and its bland level design. ''Yoshi's Woolly World'' and ''Yoshi's Crafted World'' aren't especially contested, but aren't seen as [[ToughActToFollow on par to the original]] either.

* VindicatedByHistory: ''Yoshi's Story'' and ''Yoshi's Island DS'' (already well regarded from the get go), are getting some sympathy from certain fans of the original after the release of ''Yoshi's New Island''. The SNES Yoshi's Island was at first, overlooked by (at the time) the more hyped ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry2DiddysKongQuest'' (but always regarded as an excellent game by those who played it). Come a few years later, it started being considered one of the best platformers that was on the SNES.

* CriticalDissonance: While some Yoshi fans tend to claim ''Woolly World'' is the return to form to the series, its critical reception wasn't that great, [[https://www.metacritic.com/game/yoshis-woolly-world/ getting a 78 on Wii U and 77 on 3DS]], just above average, and those fans tend to completely forget about ''VideoGame/YoshisIslandDS'', which was already well received overall and got a ''higher'' score than ''Woolly World'', 81. The user scores weren't that different either, with ''DS'' getting a 83 Metascore and ''Woolly World'' 84 on Wii U, 77 on 3DS.

* CriticalDissonance: While some Yoshi fans tend to claim ''Woolly World'' is the return to form to the series, it's critical reception wasn't that great, [[https://www.metacritic.com/game/yoshis-woolly-world/ getting a 78 on Wii U and 77 on 3DS]], just above average, and those fans tend to completely forget about ''VideoGame/YoshisIslandDS'', which was already well received overall and got a ''higher'' score than ''Woolly World'', 81. The user scores weren't that different either, with ''DS'' getting a 83 Metascore and ''Woolly World'' 84 on Wii U, 77 on 3DS.

* CriticalDissonance: While some Yoshi fans tend to claim ''Woolly World'' is the return to form to the series, it's critical reception wasn't that great, [[https://www.metacritic.com/game/yoshis-woolly-world/ getting a 78 on Wii U and 77 on 3DS]], just above average, and those fans tend to completely forget about ''VideoGame/YoshisIslandDS'', which got a ''higher'' score than ''Woolly World'', 81. The user scores weren't that different either, with ''DS'' getting a 83 Metascore and ''Woolly World'' 84 on Wii U, 77 on 3DS

* ContestedSequel: Every ''Yoshi'' game that attempted to follow up on the original was met with this reaction for different reasons, generally with their detractors disliking their changes and their supporters liking them: ''Story'' for being too short and easy, ''DS'' for significantly changing the gameplay with the addition of its babies with different abilities and very difficult level design, and ''New Island'' for hewing too closely to the original and its bland level design. ''Yoshi's Woolly World'' reversed the trend by being met with a lot of acclaim.

* ToughActToFollow: The original, inevitably leading to {{Contested Sequel}}s. It doesn't help that every ''Yoshi'' game afterwards wasn't developed by Nintendo EAD, with the exception of ''VideoGame/YoshisStory'', which actually has been VindicatedByHistory a long time after its release. In particular, ''Yoshi's Island DS'' is generally regarded as a great game on this own right due to its additions (even with the whole SequelDifficultySpike), just being considered controversial by some fans of the original game due to not matching the original even if it's still great in its own right.

** ''Yoshi's New Island''[='s=] also catches flak for its soundtrack, being vastly considered a major step down from prior games. For example, changing the theme just before the proper start of the game from [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5O4SK-2inI this]] to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAtd6NBvVA0 this]] (which is now associated with the phrase "The ass band will play a song of farts to celebrate your failure.") or [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8p215x9L8A this]] to whatever is [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsphCdhmt7Q this]].

** ''Yoshi's New Island''[='s=] also catches flak for its soundtrack, being vastly considered a major step down from prior games. For example, changing the theme just before the proper start of the game from [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5O4SK-2inI this]] to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAtd6NBvVA0 this]] (which is now associated with the phrase "The ass band will play a song of farts to celebrate your failure.") or [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8p215x9L8A this]] to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tsphCdhmt7Q this]].

** ''Yoshi's New Island'' also catches flak for changing the theme just before the proper start of the game from [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5O4SK-2inI this]] to [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAtd6NBvVA0 this]] (which is now associated with the phrase "The ass band will play a song of farts to celebrate your failure.")

* FirstInstallmentWins: The original ''Yoshi's Island'' is much more well-regarded than any of its platforming sequels. In fact, after mixed reception from certain fans of the original to ''DS''[='s=] additions, ''Yoshi's New Island'' had been presented like a successor to the original, only to still be not as well-liked by those fans.

** ''Island DS'' is considered this by some fans of the first game. It has a host of good ideas such as multiple babies with different abilities and interesting bosses, but is brought down by what some consider to be unfair design in many areas.

** ''Yoshi's Island DS'' for significantly changing the gameplay with its babies with different abilities and ''massive'' SequelDifficultySpike (while the old one was only difficult when you were going for 100%) and lack of inventory items. Arzest listened to this when making ''Yoshi's New Island'', which fans complained was [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks too much of the same.]]

* ToughActToFollow: The original, inevitably leading to {{Contested Sequel}}s. It doesn't help that every ''Yoshi'' game afterwards wasn't developed by Nintendo EAD, with the exception of ''VideoGame/YoshisStory'', which actually has been VindicatedByHistory a long time after its release.
* VindicatedByHistory: ''Yoshi's Story'' and ''Yoshi's Island DS'' are getting some sympathy after the release of ''Yoshi's New Island''. The SNES Yoshi's Island was at first, overlooked by (at the time) the more hyped ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry2DiddysKongQuest''. Come a few years later, it started being considered one of the best platformers that was on the SNES.

* ContestedSequel: Every ''Yoshi'' game that attempted to follow up on the original was met with this reaction and for different reasons: ''Story'' for being too short and easy, ''DS'' for significantly changing the gameplay with the addition of its babies with different abilities and very difficult level design, and ''New Island'' for hewing too closely to the original and its bland level design. ''Yoshi's Woolly World'' reversed the trend by being met with a lot of acclaim.

** ''Yoshi's Island DS'' for its signficantly changing the gameplay with its babies with different abilities and ''massive'' SequelDifficultySpike (while the old one was only difficult when you were going for 100%) and lack of inventory items. Arzest listened to this when making ''Yoshi's New Island'', which fans complained was [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks too much of the same.]]

** ''Yoshi's New Island'' in general. Some think ItsTheSameNowItSucks, some think it's SoOkayItsAverage, and still others like it because it's a love letter to the original and not ''DS''.
** The fact that this series gave the Mario Bros. an origin story by having them be born and raised in the Mushroom Kingdom instead of the old "Mario & Luigi are plumbers from Brooklyn, New York who took a Magic Pipe into the Mushroom Kingdom" from the movie and the cartoons. Certain fans ([[NostalgiaGoggles particularly older ones]]) were against this idea and thought that the Brooklyn origin made way more sense and that the Mushroom Kingdom origin had way too much FridgeLogic in it. Other fans think it's really no big deal and are perfectly okay with the Mushroom Kingdom origin ([[{{Woolseyism}} and often point out that the Brooklyn origin was made up by Nintendo of America to begin with]] and now of course we have [[{{Retcon}} New Donk City]] featuring in Mario Odyssey too).

* ContestedSequel: Every ''Yoshi'' game that attempted to follow up on the original was met with this reaction and for different reasons: ''Story'' for being too short and easy, ''DS'' for the implementation of its babies and difficult level design, and ''New Island'' for hewing too closely to the original and its bland level design. ''Yoshi's Woolly World'' reversed the trend by being met with a lot of acclaim.

* FirstInstallmentWins: The original ''Yoshi's Island'' is much more well-regarded than any of its platforming sequels. In fact, after mixed reception to ''DS'', ''Yoshi's New Island'' had been presented like a successor to the original, only to still be not as well-liked.

* ItsEasySoItSucks: ''Yoshi's New Island'' got this. Going for 100% is still quite the challenge though, especially because of the invisible clouds and the [[BrutalBonusLevel secret levels]], as well as getting to face adult Bowser.

** Many gameplay mechanics commonly assumed to have debuted in ''VideoGame/SuperMario64'' -- such as the ground pound and red coins -- actually first appeared in the SNES ''Yoshi's Island''.

** The ''Yoshi'' series itself is technically OlderThanTheyThink. Although the main platformers started with ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld2YoshisIsland'', the first game starring ''Yoshi'' was in fact ''Yoshi's Egg'' (aka simply ''Yoshi''), predating ''Yoshi's Island'' by four years. Even then, three other ''Yoshi'' games were released between ''Yoshi's Egg'' and ''Yoshi's Island''.

** ''Yoshi's Island DS'' is widely considered to be a much tougher game (unto even PlatformHell levels) than the original, with many dangerous traps that will execute you simply for the crime of not expecting them.

** ''Island DS'' is considered this by some fans of the first game. It has a host of good ideas such as multiple babies and interesting bosses, but is brought down by what some consider to be unfair design in many areas.
* SurpriseDifficulty: Particularly ''Yoshi's Island DS'', but the original was no cakewalk either, especially if you were going for 100% in every level.

** ''Yoshi's Island DS'' for its baby-hopping ScrappyMechanic, ''huge'' SequelDifficultySpike (while the old one was only difficult when you were going for 100%) and lack of inventory items. Arzest listened to this when making ''Yoshi's New Island'', which fans complained was [[ItsTheSameNowItSucks too much of the same.]]

** The baby-switching in ''Yoshi's Island DS'', especially because it's mandatory for most levels, and all babies but Baby Mario are extremely slow, which ruins speedruns. You also can't switch between levels, so you might end up with the ''worst'' baby for the next level, and you'll have to backtrack to switch to the preferred baby (and ''then'' you have to find a level that you can beat using it to keep it). Needless to say, it was axed for ''Yoshi's New Island''.
** Poochy, as he's very difficult to control.
** The invisible clouds in ''Yoshi's New Island'', [[GuideDangIt which most of the secrets are hidden in now]]. It creates a ''lot'' of FakeDifficulty.
** Another one from ''Yoshi's New Island'' is the redesigned vehicle sections which use tilt controls.

** Baby Bowser in ''DS'' can breathe fire, which is awesome, but doing so uses the same button that is otherwise used to have Yoshi eat enemies and make eggs. As such, you can't have Yoshi make more eggs without either switching babies, running into an enemy to get Bowser off your back, or, if you're extremely lucky, finding an egg block.

** The 10 and 20 point Stars trivialize the 30 health requirement for HundredPercentCompletion, because all you need to do is pop one of those at the end of the level to max your health regardless of how much you lost beforehand. The only problem is that you can't use them in boss rooms, but there's another trick to offset that. When eggs ricochet off the walls, they change color from green to yellow and then red, the latter which give 2 Stars. By bouncing them of adjacent walls and grabbing them with Yoshi's tongue, you can change any egg into a red egg, making it easy to maintain max health even in boss rooms. Even without items, the red egg trick remains in the sequels, which is especially useful in ''DS's'' Extra 1, since there are exactly 20 Stars in the level and without red eggs, you cannot lose even a single health or miss a single Star cloud.

* BigLippedAlligatorMoment:
** Upon clearing World 2 in ''Yoshi's Island DS'', you're treated to a CutScene where Yoshi attempts to carry all three (at the time) babies at once. Unlike the other cinematics, this does not move the plot one inch. It is also CaptainObvious and DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment, since it's already been said that Yoshi can only carry one baby at a time.
** Bowser ''warping through time and space'' to become the final boss of ''New Island'' can feel like this. The story did not need adult Bowser and is not affected at all by his presence.

** The series itself is OlderThanTheyThink. Although the main platformers started with ''VideoGame/SuperMarioWorld2YoshisIsland'', the first game starring ''Yoshi'' was in fact ''Yoshi's Egg'' (aka simply ''Yoshi''), predating ''Yoshi's Island'' by four years. Even then, three other ''Yoshi'' games were released between ''Yoshi's Egg'' and ''Yoshi's Island''.

** Bowser ''warping throught ime and space'' to become the final boss of ''New Island'' can feel like this. The story did not need adult Bowser and is not affected at all by his presence.

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation: Some fans easily reimagined Kamek's motivation and mission to [[TheKindnapper kidnap the babies]] for the young Bowser, because his [[LonelyRichKid Koopa Prince was lonely]] and needed a playmate.

* AlternateCharacterInterpretation:
** Oddly, the strategy guide to ''Yoshi's Island'' states that Sluggy the Unshaven is just trying to give Yoshi a friendly hug in his boss battle. Which explains why in order to defeat him you have to [[StealthPun break his heart.]]
** Some fans easily reimagined Kamek's motivation and mission to [[TheKindnapper kidnap the babies]] for the young Bowser, because his [[LonelyRichKid Koopa Prince was lonely]] and needed a playmate.

* AssPull: After defeating baby Bowser in ''Yoshi's New Island'', adult Bowser appears out of nowhere from time and space to prevent his defeat as an infant. The game itself even lampshades how sudden and forced his appearance is.
--> Suddenly... warping through space and time... King Bowser appears!
* SugarWiki/AwesomeMusic: Let's see, the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1Ose7A8P94 final boss]], the overworld theme, the [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFYBRHXr4gs&fmt=18 underground]]... Really, the [[AwesomeMusic/YoshisIsland entire soundtrack]].
* BigLippedAlligatorMoment: Upon clearing World 2 in ''Yoshi's Island DS'', you're treated to a CutScene where Yoshi attempts to carry all three (at the time) babies at once. Unlike the other cinematics, this does not move the plot one inch. It is also CaptainObvious and DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment, since it's already been said that Yoshi can only carry one baby at a time.

* BreatherLevel: After the autoscrolling and PlatformHell of "The Very Loooooong Cave", "The Deep, Underground Maze" is quite the refresher.

** ''Yoshi's New Island'' on 3DS is getting a bit of this for the graphics. Instead of reusing the "coloring book" look of the previous two games, the developers have chosen a style that resembles ''Yoshi's Island'''s artstyle mixed with ''Yoshi's Story'' pre-rendered 3D visuals, with backgrounds looking more painted and characters looking like claymation. Some love the style and think it fits in well with the usual ''Yoshi's Island'' aesthetic while still giving the game its own identity, while others think it looks bland and lacks the charm of the previous games' coloring book style.

* CantUnHearIt: Older gamers are more accustomed to the S-NES version's music and sound effects. Those who've played the GBA remake prefer the audio of that version which includes Yoshi's voice samples (first used in ''Yoshi's Story'').

* EnsembleDarkhorse: Raphael the Raven, the fifth world boss of the original ''[[VideoGame/YoshisIsland Yoshi's Island]]'', proved popular enough to reappear in ''VideoGame/PaperMario64'' doing a HeelFaceTurn.

* GeniusBonus: Do the stars and moon from the second scene of 6-7 look familiar? They're from Vincent Van Gogh's ''The Starry Night''.

* GoodBadBugs:
** The one-way gates can be opened from the wrong side by throwing an egg into them while standing as close as possible.
** Red Coins held by stationary Fly Guys (i.e., the ones that don't fly away) can be duplicated. Cause the coin to drop (without picking it up), have the Fly Guy respawn by walking away so their spawn point is offscreen, and come back to find a new Fly Guy carrying another coin. You can get 2-3 coins per Fly Guy if you're quick. Sadly, this was fixed for the GBA version.
** Jumping at the same time as entering a pipe will skip the animation that's supposed to play, saving a bit of time if you're {{speedrun}}ning.
** Entering pipes or secret entrances in unintended ways (too high on the y-axis due to standing on an enemy, coming from the wrong end of certain pipes or unintended angles that you're not supposed to reach, etc.) will cause the game to send you back to World 1-1. Beating the level like this will count as beating whatever level you came from when activating the glitch.
** Killing Hookbill the Koopa while he's still in his "falling over" animation will cause his shell to fly offscreen and fling Yoshi to into the air during the death animation.
** A programming oddity causes one of the introductions screens right when starting a level (that shows the level number and name) to stay on the screen longer than it usually does. Fittingly enough, it was The Very Loooooooong Cave. However, the GBA version fixed this, so it is only in the original version.
** It's possible, with incredibly good timing, not only to keep on flutter jumping forever, but to gain height with each flutter. This makes it possible to skip the auto-scrolling on some stages, making it possible to go much faster than the game otherwise anticipates.

* ItsEasySoItSucks: ''Yoshi's New Island'' also got this. Going for 100% is still quite the challenge though, especially because of the invisible clouds and the [[BrutalBonusLevel secret levels]], as well as getting to face adult Bowser.
* MemeticMutation:
** The "Touch Fuzzy, Get Dizzy" level.
** [[GiantSpaceFleaFromNowhere "Suddenly... Warping through time and space... King Bowser appears!"]]
** The music in ''New Island'' has become memetic in certain areas of the web. Special mention goes to {{WebVideo/Vinesauce}}, where kazoos actually became associated with Yoshi as a whole.
** Baby Mario's annoying cry.
** Videos of people/characters crying or screaming being synced up with the harmonica 10 seconds into the music track "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMmpRcld1FU Flower Garden]]".
** Yoshi [[OutOfCharacterMoment committing]] [[MakesJustAsMuchSenseInContext tax fraud.]]
* SugarWiki/MomentOfAwesome: The final boss fight with Baby Bowser in the original. It can really get one's adrenaline going while they throw giant eggs at the advancing boss.

* PolishedPort: The UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance port of the first game, while having a slight screen crunch due to the handhelds low resolution and a minor drop in sound quality, is an all around solid port. It adds new voice clips for the Yoshis, makes Baby Mario's crying ''much'' less annoying and makes the timer go down slower than before, and adds all new bonus levels to unlock for each world.

* SignatureScene: "Touch Fuzzy, Get Dizzy" is by far the most well-known level due to being [[GRatedDrug totally not an acid trip]].

* {{Squick}}: Froggy's defeat sequence. Yoshi goes down his digestive tract, and Froggy spasms in the next scene.

* TearJerker:
** The music box that plays in the original game as the story is told. After Kamek kidnaps Luigi, Mario's bag falls to the ocean below. Not helping is the game giving an "[[BigNo OH NO!]]" narration.
** The credits music is soft, somber and peaceful. It's been known to make the toughest gamers tear up.
** The GBA port adds a scrolling World Select map. If Baby Bowser is not defeated, Baby Luigi will float in a bubble above Bowser's castle while crying helplessly.

* UnderusedGameMechanic: Of all the vehicle transformations in the first game, the Car is easily the least used, only appearing in one level in the original version, "Lakitu's Wall". In the GBA version, it does make another appearance alongside all the other transformations in one of the added Secret levels, "Go! Go! Morphing!".