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Yoshi\'s Island: Super Mario Advance 3 Review - GBA

It seems like there is no stop to all SNES and NES game ports being released on the GBA. Since its launch, it seems as if Nintendo announce a new port every year at E3. So far, gamers have been given the likes of Zelda and Mario (to name a few) as their main focus. However, this time Nintendo have decided to give everyone's favourite dinosaur, Yoshi, a go with a port of the SNES classic Yoshi's Island which was released in 1995.

A lonely stork flies across the sky, carrying Mario and Luigi to their parents. But, in a foul attempt to kidnap the baby brothers, a Koopa family member snatches Luigi and leaves Mario who tumbles down towards the ground. But as luck would have it, Mario lands on the back of a friendly dinosaur named Yoshi who immediately takes the baby to his friends who also happen to be called Yoshi. The Yoshis then hatch a plan to rescue Luigi but as cunning as they were, they were unable to read a map. Fortunately, Mario happens to have a telepathic link with Luigi that lets both Mario and the Yoshis know the direction of where Luigi is being held. Alas, your journey begins.

Gameplay

Yoshi's Island is actually a prequel to Super Mario World where instead of being given control of Mario, gamers are given control of Yoshi who is a dinosaur that can eat enemies and turn them into eggs or spit them out at other enemies. The eggs also trail behind Yoshi and are used as a sort of missile to fire at enemies and solve puzzles. This apposes Mario's method of jumping on the heads of his enemies (although Yoshi can produce a stomp which is similar to Mario's jumping method). But that's one of the many things that make Yoshi's Island different from the other Mario games available. The eggs can also be fired in just about any direction across the screen with an 'x' marking where the egg you're throwing will be fired at. Also, when comparing jumps, Mario does a single jump where as Yoshi can do not just a jump but a second jump in mid air thanks to his semi-flying ability that lets him go up further into the air before landing on the ground. Another ability Yoshi has is to transform into different vehicles such as a helicoptor and a train when he reaches certain points in certain levels. While this seems strange, it really adds some flavour to an already 'seasoned' experience.

There are also mini-games which will have you entertained for a good hour or two. But the main objective in the mini-games is to win various power-ups which are used to give you an advantage such as a power-up that lets you add an extra ten seconds to your time limit in levels allowing you to complete it 100% in some cases. They are also power-ups that will ... (continued next page)