The thing that made Super Mario World great was the sheer platforming and secrets it held. It also offered a lot to those who seek hidden worlds. The game took it one step beyond to an epic scale, and was a classic to many, but the game lacked one thing: story. Many Mario games lack a good story. There really isn't one in most. Rescure the princess, rage at toad, go to another castle, Rince lather repeat. The games more than make up in game play, though. Mario and platforming go together like bread and butter. So I was off to find a game for a Mario game on the Super Nintenso that had a decent story at least. Although future gaming generations (Paper Mario, Mario and Luigi Super Star Saga to name a couple) did this, I wanted to find an old one, and I think I found it.

Super Mario World 2 Yoshi Island is regarded as a superb game that has an amazing story. I'm not sure how such an amazing story could come out of a mere Mario game, but I have been wrong before. Well, let's look at what this has to offer. The story greets you with a very sweet piece of music playing in a music box style, and an opening story. Long ago, a pelican held it its beak a pair of brothers. As the morning sun rose, something was speeding in the distance. It was Kamek the Evil Magikoopa. He speed past the pelican and stole one of the brothers. The other fell down to the dinosaur island. As a Yoshi was passing on the island, the baby landed on the Yoshi's back, and with it, a map. The Yoshi looks at the map and trys to make sense of it. Well, either way, he embarks on the adventure to take the baby to where he should go.

This opening is simply amazing. It's so touching and engaging. It makes me want to complete the game to know why Kamek wants these two babies. It's beautiful. That's all that needs to be said on the matter. The title screen is really atmospheric, and they made good use of Mode 7 here. As you start a new game, this continues as a kick start to the story. The Yoshis all gather up around the baby (wearing a red cap with a big "M" on, one can deduce that this is the baby form of mario, hence the name "Baby Mario") and work out what to do. They want to follow the map, and all help deliver the baby to where he's meant to go. Everyone is cheery and happy, and some motivated music plays. The game has begun!

There are 6 worlds, each with 8 levels (including 2 castle levels with 2 bosses). As you select the level, a really catchy piece of music plays. I love this music. It's perfect for selecting a level....although the mood is almost ruined (yet adds to charm) when selecting the world with baby Luigi is crying. Was this really needed? It's really annoying. Yet, I can't imagine the world select being what it is without Baby Luigi crying in the background (at least you can't hear him when your selecting a level). This is the only real flaw (or is it a flaw?) that I can find with this game. As you select a level, you see the level spin round and round, getting smaller and then you hear a cute "yoshi!" as the little square explodes into starts. I am overwelmed with how much charm this game has, and I've hardly played a full level.

The aim of every level is to get to the end ring (or defeat the boss in castle levels). Inbetween all that, you have to battle your way through Shy Guys (cute little guys with masks on), Parana Plants, and several other creatures that inhabit the island. You can drag them in your mouth with your long tougne and then make them into an egg. These are very helpful items that allow you to kill enemies that can't be made into eggs or are out of reach. You can also hit flying cloulds with wings for extra goodies. These can contain all sorts of things. While your going up and down pipes and pushing boulders, you might come across a flower or some red coints. Hitting all five flowers in a level gives you a 1-up and 50 points to your level total. The more flowers you collect, the higher chance of getting a bonus game at the end of every level. There are 20 red coins (very often hidden behind regular coins), and each red coin adds to your level total. And finally, there is your star power.

Star power is what is keeping Kamek away. When you get hit, Baby Mario is trapped inside a buble, and your star power is decreasing down. If you don't touch him when the star power reaches 0, Kamek will grab hold of him and it's game over. You can increasen your star power by collecting little star buddies with legs. You can hold 30 at a time. This adds to your level total at the end of every level. When you get to the end of a level, a "score" is added up based on how well you did. If you found all five flowers, 20 red coins and kept 30 starts to the very end, you get 100 points. This means a perfect run. Do this for every level, and you'll get access to a bonus and secret level of that world. Complete the world and you'll get access to a bonus game.

The controls are very fluid. You can't double jump, but you can "flutter", which means you can stay in the air for longer. Once you get used to this, you'll have no problem in the controls. The graphics....Bright, colourful, detailed, charming, perfect! I can't find a fault with the graphics, they are so well done. it's been a while since I've seen such good graphics in a game. Clearly the height of 16-bit graphics. The music is simply amazing. It never gets annoying, it suits every level perfectly, and sometimes you just can't get it out of your head. Again, it's been a while since I've played a game with such catchy music.

The game has some weird things to offer. In the game, you can transform into one of three vehicals. You heard right. You get to turn into a freaking helicopter. How cool is that? For a short amount of time, you get to dig underground, fly the skies, and explore the oceans. These work well, although the controls are a little sluggish for them. Yopu can find keys in the level and open up doors to bonus games that offer 1-ups should you win.

Overall, I give this game a 9.4/10       Never would I thought that a Mario game could be beautiful other than it's platforming efforts. The games story is the mantlepiece of the game, but the surrounding room that holds it is just as amazing and exquiset as the main attraction. The game is worth finishing. It touched my heart as the credits rolled, and I wish everyone could see that ending. The game play in itself is amazing and is worth a play if you enjoy a good Mario game.