Yoshi’s Crafted World begins on the peaceful island of the Yoshis, where the magical Sundream Stone is said to have the power to grant anyone’s wildest dreams. Trouble begins when Kamek and Baby Bowser attempt to steal it, causing the Dream Gems within the stone to scatter across the world.
This sends Yoshi and his friends on a colourful adventure through a variety of handcrafted environments made from cardboard, paper cups, boxes, and other everyday craft materials. The handmade style gives the game a unique personality right from the start.
The game also introduces its Flip-Side mechanic, allowing players to replay stages from the opposite direction to discover hidden items and see the environments from a completely different perspective. It is a charming setup that fits Yoshi perfectly and gives the adventure its own distinctive identity.
Graphics 8.8
The graphics are easily one of the strongest parts of Yoshi’s Crafted World. Every stage is designed to look like a handmade diorama built from cardboard, paper cups, felt, tape, yarn, and other everyday craft materials. It gives the game a colourful and incredibly charming look that feels completely different from most other platformers.
The material detail is especially impressive, with cardboard, foil, cotton, and other surfaces all having their own distinct appearance. The Flip-Side mechanic also adds a clever visual twist by revealing the taped-together backs of the environments and showing how these handcrafted worlds are supposedly constructed.
Performance is generally smooth, but there are some compromises when it comes to image quality. The lower internal resolution can make the game look somewhat soft or blurry, particularly in handheld mode. Even with that drawback, the lighting, depth-of-field effects, and creative art direction make Yoshi’s Crafted World a beautiful game overall.
Gameplay 9.0
The gameplay in Yoshi’s Crafted World is one of the strongest parts of the experience. It keeps the classic Yoshi platforming mechanics while adding more depth through its 2.5D level design. Yoshi can throw eggs into both the foreground and background to hit targets, activate mechanisms, and uncover hidden collectibles, which makes exploration feel more involved than a traditional side-scroller.
The Flip-Side stages are another great addition, allowing you to play levels in reverse while seeing the cardboard-and-tape construction from a completely different angle. Hunting for Smiley Flowers, Red Coins, Poochy Pups, and other hidden items gives each stage plenty of replayability.
There are also collectible costumes that act as extra protection, along with Classic and Mellow modes that make the game accessible to different skill levels. Two-player local co-op adds even more fun, letting players work together throughout the adventure.
Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed the gameplay. The controls feel smooth, the exploration is rewarding, and the combination of traditional Yoshi mechanics with the foreground, background, and Flip-Side ideas gives the game plenty of personality.
Audio 8.8
The audio in Yoshi’s Crafted World matches the game’s lighthearted and handcrafted style very well. The soundtrack uses whimsical acoustic themes and playful background music that fit naturally with the colourful diorama environments.
Classic Yoshi sound effects and vocal noises also return and help give the game plenty of personality. The music is generally cheerful and relaxing, which works well with the slower, exploration-focused nature of many stages.
Overall, the audio is enjoyable and fits the world perfectly, although some of the music can become a little repetitive after spending a long time replaying stages for collectibles. It is still a charming soundtrack that complements the visual style nicely.
Value 8.1
The value in Yoshi’s Crafted World is pretty strong, especially for players who enjoy collecting everything. The main story takes around seven to eight and a half hours if you focus mostly on reaching the end, which is a decent length for a platformer.
Spending more time on side objectives and exploring the stages can bring the total closer to 13 hours. Completionists, however, can easily spend 35 hours or more collecting every Smiley Flower, Red Coin, and Poochy Pup, along with finishing the more challenging post-game stages.
Overall, there is a good amount of content here. The main adventure is not extremely long, but the large number of collectibles, replayable stages, and post-game challenges give Yoshi’s Crafted World plenty of extra value for players who want to see everything.
Pros
- Beautiful handcrafted visual style with creative cardboard, felt, tape, and paper environments.
- Smooth and enjoyable platforming gameplay.
- Foreground and background egg-throwing adds extra depth to exploration.
- Flip-Side stages give levels a clever second perspective.
- Plenty of collectibles and hidden objectives to discover.
- Strong replay value for players aiming for 100% completion.
- Charming soundtrack and classic Yoshi sound effects.
- Two-player local co-op is a fun addition.
- Mellow Mode makes the game accessible for younger or less experienced players.
Cons
- Lower resolution can make the image look soft or blurry, especially in handheld mode.
- Some of the music can become repetitive after replaying stages.
- Main story is relatively short at around seven to eight and a half hours.
- Flip-Side stages can sometimes feel repetitive when revisiting the same environments.
- Players who are not interested in collecting everything may find less reason to return after finishing the story.
Verdict
Yoshi’s Crafted World is a charming and enjoyable platformer that stands out thanks to its beautiful handcrafted presentation and creative level design. The cardboard, felt, paper, and tape environments give the game a unique personality, while the foreground and background interactions make exploration more interesting than a traditional side-scroller.
The gameplay is smooth and fun throughout, and the large number of collectibles, Flip-Side stages, costumes, and post-game challenges provide plenty of extra content for players who want to complete everything. The main adventure is a little short, and the lower resolution can make the visuals look soft at times, but these issues do not take away too much from the overall experience.
Overall, Yoshi’s Crafted World is one of the more enjoyable Yoshi adventures, especially for players who love relaxed platforming, exploration, and collecting hidden items.