Yoshi and the Mysterious Book Review: A Fun Safari With New Mechanics and Clever Puzzles

I Had a Blast Exploring Yoshi and the Mysterious Book’s Colorful Safari World on Switch 2 | PCMag

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4.0 Excellent this.$refs.template.innerHTML, onCreate: (instance) => this.tippyInstance = instance, onShow: (instance) => { this.escapeHandler = (e) => { if (e.key === 'Escape') instance.hide(); }; window.addEventListener('keydown', this.escapeHandler); }, onHide: (instance) => { if (this.escapeHandler) { window.removeEventListener('keydown', this.escapeHandler); this.escapeHandler = null; } }, onMount: (instance) => { const closeBtn = instance.popper.querySelector('[data-tooltip-close]'); if (closeBtn) closeBtn.addEventListener('click', () => instance.hide()); }, }; }, }">   What Our Ratings Mean 5.0 - Exemplary: Near perfection, ground-breaking 4.5 - Outstanding: Best in class, acts as a benchmark for measuring competitors 4.0 - Excellent: A performance, feature, or value leader in its class, with few shortfalls 3.5 - Good: Does what the product should do, and does so better than many competitors 3.0 - Average: Does what the product should do, and sits in the middle of the pack 2.5 - Fair: We have some reservations, buy with caution 2.0 - Subpar: We do not recommend, buy with extreme caution 1.5 - Poor: Do not buy this product 1.0 - Dismal: Don't even think about buying this product Read Our Editorial Mission Statement and Testing Methodologies. The Bottom Line Yoshi's newest adventure on the Switch 2 is a unique creature-watching safari that's more an open-ended puzzle game than a classic Yoshi's Island-style platformer—an excellent gameplay change if you go in with an open mind. MSRP $69.99 $69.99 Save $0.99 $69 at Walmart PCMag editors select and review products independently. If you buy through affiliate links, we may earn commissions, which help support our testing.

Pros & Cons Varied creatures with unique behaviors and interactions Open-ended gameplay facilitates clever and organic puzzle-solving Bright, colorful presentation that's loaded with charm Small stages Lacks the expected obstacle course-style gameplay that its 2D platforming controls imply Probably could run on Switch 1 with a few compromises Since his Super Nintendo debut, Yoshi has made a name for himself as much more than Mario's tongue-flinging steed. His latest outing, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book ($59.99 digital, $69.99 physical) for the Nintendo Switch 2, is an engaging and varied romp that takes the typical Yoshi's Island-style 2D platforming and eschews traditional obstacle courses in favor of much smaller, less linear habitats for him to explore. This is a full-on safari, with dozens of creatures to observe, experiment with, and, of course, eat. It's a big departure from Yoshi's previous adventures, but the Mysterious Book is plenty of fun in its own right. Story: A Mysterious Safari AdventureYoshi's adventure this time around is eponymously mysterious at first glance. A talking book, Mr. E (for Encyclopedia), is accidentally launched from Bowser's castle by Bowser Jr. and lands on Yoshi's island. His pages have been scrubbed almost entirely blank, so he asks Yoshi to add the missing information by jumping into the worlds he contains and researching the wildlife there. Yoshi and all his kin, being amiable sorts, agree to help. (Credit: Nintendo/PCMag) And so, Yoshi jumps into Mr. E to observe various creatures, eat fruit, collect flowers, throw eggs, and solve puzzles. Bowser Jr. and Kamek the Magikoopa are also in the book searching for something, but they mostly wind up getting caught up in their own mischief and don't present much of a threat. In fact, because they're wandering through Mr. E's pages, Bowser Jr. and Kamek don't menace Yoshi's island in any way. It's a far cry from Yoshi's other titles, where he must escort a baby to safety (Yoshi's Island, Yoshi's Island DS, New Yoshi's Island) or find a set of powerful objects before the bad guys can (Yoshi's Story, Yoshi's Woolly World, Yoshi's Crafted World). What matters is being helpful to this weird book. Similar Products

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