Along with all of the other announcements that Nintendo’s latest Direct provided,
it gave us an update on the long in development, Yoshi’s Woolly World.
And it’s looking as adorable as ever.
But it’s not enough to just be cute.
It has to have the gameplay to back it up.
So it’s time to unravel the old Analysis Machine to see what secrets and hidden details
we can find.
Of course, be sure to watch our previous analysis from E3 2014 as we’ll be skipping over the
findings from there.
What really stands out about this new gameplay is how many different levels were shown and
the different things that Yoshi can do in each of them.
Some abilities return from previous games while others are completely new.
The first new level we see is beach themed.
It maintains the style we’ve seen before in other levels with a crinkled sheet representing
the background while everything else is made of yarn or other materials.
We also see the return of watermelons which allow Yoshi to spit seeds.
These can take out enemies or, like we see here, destroy the sand so he can make his
way through.
In this clip, Yoshi spits about 17 seeds so 20 is likely the maximum amount, just like
the old games.
The next level shown is a portion of a cave level.
We saw this before at E3, but it’s since been given a visual upgrade.
The walls now sparkle thanks to the glitter spread throughout and the wooden platforms
are made of rolled-up brown paper.
These little flourishes do give a better sense that everything has been crafted out of real
materials to give it this look.
Otherwise, we’ve seen everything else before.
What’s new is this scene that shows a stage that appears to be part of the same kind of
cave system.
After all, it still has glitter lining the stage and the same crystal-shaped yarn.
Everything else is new though.
The platforms have strips of leather bolted to the sides which we’ll see again later
and there are moving blocks that sometimes prevent Yoshi from going to certain places.
But the big new element is the door that he goes through that completely flips the perspective
to the other side, which also gives a better sense of the 3D space.
The sheet that serves as the background completely surrounds the area though while mountains
can be seen on either side when the perspective is 2D, there are none to be found as the perspective
is flipped.
It’s an interesting demonstration of how the 2D gameplay is going to be handled.
The next level has Yoshi traveling across a constantly forming rainbow bridge.
We’re not sure if the rainbows automatically form in front of Yoshi or if he had to trigger
them in some other way.
But Yoshi will have some completely new abilities, one of which is climbing on the fabric.
It’s actually very similar to how Mario could climb on fences in Super Mario World.
While we don’t know if he can knock off enemies on the opposite side, or if enemies
can get behind the fabric, we do see that he’ll have full use of his tongue.
We also see that there will be a forest level with branches made of coiled springs and leaves
represented by green buttons.
Of course, there are balloons and a single Shy Guy flying in from the side as well, but
we’re more curious about the quilt hanging from the trees in the background.
Could it have been an earlier section that Yoshi climbed on?
Or is there some other kind of way to interact with it?
There’s no way it’s just a background detail since it stands out so much.
As Yoshi works his way to the right, we can see that part of a tree has been hollowed
out.
Inside is a checkpoint marker and a door patterned like a Yoshi egg.
For some reason there’s a question mark flag above this door so there should be something
special about it.
And thanks to a recently released screenshot, we think we know what that is.
We can see Yoshi in the same level theme, but this time he has transformed into an umbrella.
It looks like he has to make his way through using the updrafts in order to avoid death.
The whole process seems to work like in Yoshi’s New Island where he goes through a door, transforms,
and has a certain amount of time to reach the other side.
After all, the checkpoint is right next to it with an arrow pointing in the right direction.
A cute little touch though is the checkpoint sign itself.
It just naps away until you wake it up by passing by.
Next up is a desert-inspired level.
Uniquely, the only platforms that can be seen are the pipes, one of which has a Piranha
Plant, and the constantly waving scarf.
The background itself is mostly bare though needles, wool blocks, and a wooden spool can
be seen.
There’s also a purple Shy Guy who decides to flip forward rather than walk along the
waving scarf.
Complementing the desert is a canyon level at dusk.
This stage uses some new materials as well to craft its look.
The mountains seem to be made of cushions while pieces of leather are bolted to the
foreground and even serve as the lining for the suspended platforms.
A little farther along the level is a different kind of platform with an arrow pointing down
at it.
In all likelihood, something will probably trigger if Yoshi performs a ground pound here
though we never see it in action.
The next scene goes for a change of pace with Yoshi riding on a flying carpet.
In the background, there looks to be rounded wooden stools with a puffed-up cushion on
top.
It gives the level a different feel from what we’ve seen before.
Of course, thanks to the flying carpet, it looks like this is an auto-scrolling level
as well, but strangely there’s a block on the left that gives Yoshi yarn balls.
There’s no platform underneath so does Yoshi have to jump up as best as he can just to
earn a few yarn balls or could he actually have some kind of limited control of the carpet?
We can’t really say for sure, but the red arrow pointing down does make us wonder if
it’s possible.
Moving on, the next level at first appears to be some kind of underground cavern.
But thanks to a screenshot released by Nintendo, we see this same theme except that it has
a spiked ball that likely swings back and forth.
This could indicate that the level is part of a castle.
Otherwise, we see that felt is being used for the lining and the torches in the background
are wooden spools with fire graphics placed on top.
The spinners do spin on their own but not strongly enough to push Yoshi.
Instead, his weight makes them spin in the opposite direction.
In the screenshot, we can also see that the castle is in rough shape with threads just
laying around in the background while the blocks are placed in no real order.
One final thing to note is the beads on the right side.
Could Yoshi ground pound to go through the fabric and collect them or did a different
path need to be taken to come up from below and get them that way?
But there are still more levels to see though not too much can really be gleaned from them.
At one point there’s a lava level that features Yoshi running across the returning donut lifts.
The entire background shows lava flowing thanks to alternating colors of yarn.
It’s a fun effect that was also used in Kirby’s Epic Yarn.
Another level that we get a short taste of features the yarn and other materials shaped
into candy, donuts, and ice cream.
It’s cute, but not exactly appetizing.
Then there’s this level which features bunch of giant balls of yarn in the background while
a frayed piece of cloth is featured in the foreground.
We’re not sure why that piece of cloth is there exactly, but the more interesting mechanic
is all of the spools of string hanging from moving lines.
Yoshi never uses them himself because he’s in Mellow Mode at the time, but it’s a different
type of platforming that Yoshi’s never really done.
It’s definitely going to be tricky to get across especially with Ukiki there ready to
spit melon seeds at you.
We do wonder though if the thread will unravel as Yoshi hangs onto it.
We honestly doubt it, but it would add an extra level of challenge to the section.
Finally, there’s this level that features a series of platforms on stilts that will
spin after a few seconds, forcing Yoshi to jump at the right time so he’s not sent
flying off.
The purple sky is also lined with some kind of constellation line or maybe something else.
The bits of string are designed in some kind of shape at least.
But the biggest reveal in this stage is that the pause menu is brought up.
It turns out that this is stage 6-7, or Kamek’s Last Ditch Flyby, indicating that this is
nearly the end of the game.
After all, the original Yoshi’s Island only had six worlds with eight levels each.
And after knowing that, we can see some visual hints to this being the lead-up to the final
castle.
The platforms actually have banners hanging below them and the stacked blocks in the background
could be the beginnings of a castle wall.
But there were more to these levels than just their visual design and the new gameplay elements.
Like many other past Yoshi games, there will be plenty of things to collect.
The most common item will be the beads.
Unlike the beads that could be collected in Kirby’s Epic Yarn where a certain amount
had to be collected in order to get the best medal, the ones in Woolly World carry over
from level to level.
We can see this right away as Yoshi starts a stage yet already has over 1200 beads.
This is completely different from how they were treated in the E3 demo where it was more
like Epic Yarn.
The icon for beads has also been changed since then.
But the big question is, why do the beads now carry over?
What are they building up to?
At first, we thought we’d be able to figure out the order of the levels thanks to these
beads.
But the more we looked, the more we realized it was impossible to say for sure.
This cave level has the bead counter at 12,000 while the windmill section shows him having
over 16,000.
That’s a lot of beads for what looks to be very early in the game, especially since
that same scene shows Yoshi collecting a stamp icon for the first time in that level.
So we suspect that Yoshi built his bead counter up by playing other levels multiple times.
And as we can see from these shots from throughout the trailer, the bead counter can vary wildly
depending on the level.
So what are the beads used for?
Well, thanks to the pause menu that we saw before, we can confirm that Yoshi only has
a paltry 263 beads.
That’s incredibly low for being the penultimate level in the game.
But maybe that’s because they’ve already been spent.
Under the Continue Game option is something called Power Badges.
Perhaps the beads are spent on these badges which can expand or even change Yoshi’s
abilities in some way.
We haven’t seen any evidence of this yet, but it’s certainly a plausible possibility.
The rest of this menu shows the other collectibles in the game.
We still have the five flowers to find in each level and it looks like the amount of
Wonder Wools that can be found in each level has been increased from three at E3 to five.
And we don’t think it’s just for certain levels either since Yoshi finds one while
climbing.
A notification pops up showing that there are five to collect n this level as well.
We still don’t know what the Wonder Wools do, but maybe they’re connected to the Power
Badges in some way; unlocking more badges for Yoshi to use.
But the menu shows that there will be one more new item for Yoshi to collect, stamp
icons.
We mentioned them before, but they actually show up quite a few times during the trailer.
There are twenty icons per level and they’re hidden among the beads, much like the red
coins from Yoshi’s Island.
That’s why it was so strange to see Yoshi have so many beads earlier yet collect a brand
new stamp icon.
If you recollect a red coin in Yoshi’s Island, it simply gives you extra coins.
That same thing should happen here with the beads.
The bigger question is if each icon unlocks a new stamp, or if collecting the twenty icons
in each level is what’s needed to get a new stamp.
That would be a lot of stamps if it was the former so we’re thinking that collecting
them all will be necessary.
Nonetheless, it’s a cool little update to the Yoshi formula.
Throughout the trailer, we see more of the hidden clouds though they’re usually not
broken open.
More than likely, they serve the same purpose of hiding collectibles or being the necessary
way forward depending on the situation.
Along with the collectibles, the new stages also showed off a host of returning and new
enemies.
But right away, it seems that the Shy Guys are taking notes from Waddle Dees.
They don’t seem inherently aggressive yet here’s Yoshi just devouring them.
This Woolly World is quite harsh.
Meanwhile, this pink Shy Guy is soaking in the sun and we can see Cheep Cheeps will make
a return as well.
They don’t actively do much, but falling in the water with them probably isn’t the
safest idea.
The air is full of danger too as we see Goonies have returned, both in their normal form and
as Skeleton Goonies.
And speaking of variations, this scene also shows off a Fly Guy but they pop up a couple
times throughout the trailer.
Just like the Spear Guys though they’ve dropped their tribal look.
Now it seems like they’re using toothpicks as makeshift spears.
They’re adaptable if nothing else.
One of the most interesting revelations though concerns the Chomp Rocks.
We saw Yoshi push them around several times at E3, but here we see that throwing yarn
at Chain Chomps actually transforms them into their Rock appearance.
It’s a pretty smart progression as not only do you defeat an enemy, but you can then use
that enemy for puzzles, or simply using them to crush the returning Tap-Taps on the other
side.
Like the Piranha Plants, the Tap-Taps are completely solid and cannot be unraveled.
We’re not sure how effective the yarn balls will be against them, but the Chomp Rock makes
short work of them.
Other returning enemies include the Bullet Bills and Blargg who, amusingly, has wires
holding up his eyes while pins are keeping his eyebrows in place.
We suppose that’s one way to make him out of yarn.
But then there are the Ukiki’s who also appear more solid, which makes sense since
Yoshi couldn’t eat them in Yoshi’s Island either.
And like that game, these little monkeys will grab melons and spit the seeds at you.
Finally, the trailer shows that Kamek will indeed be back, likely as the one creating
all of the game’s bosses as Yoshi makes his way through.
In this level in particular, Kamek can be jumped on, but it only seems to temporarily
stun him.
Along with all of these returning enemies, it looks like some new ones will be introduced
as well.
These green guys are stacked on top of each other and fire buttons from their mouths.
It doesn’t seem like Yoshi can unravel them either as nothing happens to them while the
twin Yoshi eats the one in front.
But they are taken out by throwing yarn balls, or in this case a Yoshi ball, at them.
It looks like Yoshi will have some momentum as a ball too since it bounces back and forth
between the other Yoshi and the enemies.
Strangely, this scene also has a block with Monty Mole printed on the side.
We never see him actually appear, but could he leap out of the block like other games?
Or is this simply a cameo appearance?
Screenshots provide a look at one other new enemy though.
This one is in the beach level and is some kind of crab.
Or is it a purse with clippers for claws?
Well, in this case it’s both so a Curse?
Sure, let’s go with that.
At any rate, it looks like it can use its claws to knock away Yoshi’s melon seeds.
If it spots him, it will get angry and likely give chase.
But if they can’t see him, they look a lot more innocent.
Meanwhile, another screenshot shows that Lakitus will be in the game as well.
But in this case, they’re not riding on their clouds.
Instead they’re hiding behind the cloth while Yoshi is climbing.
But their weapon of choice is still a Spiny shell.
There’s even a crosshair that will show where the Spinies will land.
Finally, the game’s box art shows off another new enemy that looks like some kind of yellow
spider.
It’ll probably cling to the climbable cloth walls as well which could mean that this new
ability is going to be used quite a bit.
Meanwhile, hiding near a stump is Baby Bowser.
It looks like he still wants to terrorize Yoshi or simply wants to go for a ride.
So it’s definitely sticking close to the Yoshi’s Island formula.
Even Poochy is coming back though we’ve yet to see his specific levels.
Okay, we’re almost done here, but we thought we’d mention the amiibo functionality really
quick.
We already saw before that players can eat the other in order to use it against enemies.
But looking closely, we see that the second Yoshi essentially mimics whatever the player
does.
Even if the two are separated like in this scene.
It gets thrown up to the higher area yet still mimics the lower Yoshi.
And if it gets stuck or left behind in this state, it’ll likely be warped ahead like
the normal multiplayer.
But another option is to simply push the select button to recall the second Yoshi since an
indicator pops up soon after the Yoshi is thrown.
And we thought that would be it.
But Nintendo had a surprise for us in the form of brand new screenshots that showed
off more of the game.
We already talked about one and how it seems that Woolly World will continue the transformation
rooms from Yoshi’s New Island.
But there are quite a few new elements to cover in them.
For one, another screenshot shows a Yoshi transformation; this time into a plane that
can shoot missiles.
He uses these to take down Fly Guys in the same Rainbow level that we mentioned before.
It’s probably safe to say that this section will be similar to a shooter, or even Super
Mario Land’s plane section.
But not every one of these rooms seems to involve transformations.
Here we can see Yoshi throwing yarn balls at hanging slices of fruit.
We’re not positive what collecting the fruit actually does, but we suspect that the more
you gather, the more beads you’ll be awarded.
It looks like Yoshi will come in from the pipe on the left and has a certain amount
of time to do this mini-game before continuing on to the right.
The Egg-Plants even return to constantly supply Yoshi with more yarn balls.
So I guess that actually makes them Yarn-Plants now.
The one thing that has us slightly confused though is that the time is at the bottom of
the screen rather than the top right.
Is this just so it doesn’t hide any fruit, or is this an extra mini-game that’s accessed
from somewhere else?
It’s hard to be completely sure yet.
The screenshots also show off two new levels.
One seems to be in a kind of playroom with bubbles flying up from below.
We think you can just bounce off them and continue through except Spear Guys will be
around to pop the bubbles.
It looks like this one in particular was holding onto a balloon that Yoshi just popped.
We can even see the confetti and the yarn ball flying toward the edge of the screen.
But doing this to the Spear Guy is intentional since he’ll pop the bubble below and allow
Yoshi to gather more beads.
The other new level seems to be cobbled together in patchwork.
There are different materials everywhere including flannel.
But the background is familiar with its giant yarn balls.
The major difference is that it seems to take place at dusk.
Shy Guys also show off their versatility as they’re all carrying bombs.
We have no idea if eating a bomb will hurt Yoshi or allow him to spit it back out at
enemies and obstacles.
Finally, we get another look at the cave level where Yoshi goes through the doors in order
to flip the perspective.
It looks like it may be a kind of maze since players will have to figure out how to get
the flower on the top right.
But the big new addition is the return of the Little Mousers.
But by far, the most important new screenshot shows the hub world of Yoshi’s Woolly World.
It is completely 3D and almost seems setup like a craft table.
You can even see the wood beneath the rolls of cloth.
In the center is a yarn ball.
We’re not sure if it serves as a centerpiece or Yoshi’s journey increases its size.
It could be anything really.
On the left, we can see that the grasslands will unsurprisingly serve as World 1.
But we can also see elements of the various levels.
There’s a flag on top of a castle-looking piece as well showing that Yoshi has conquered
it.
On the right, we see that the desert will be World 2’s theme, but it’s not just
the desert as the lava level that we saw before takes place here too thanks to the volcano
in the background.
We also get a better look at the world itself.
There’s a gate that’s been moved to the side since Yoshi unlocked it.
And the crystal cave will serve as the first level.
The green enemies are the focus of the next level while we can see a pyramid behind that.
Strangely, the path splits here.
One goes to a tower or castle that shows a picture of something on its banner.
It’s too blurry to fully make out, but could that be the boss of this level?
The left path takes Yoshi to the lava level and then some kind of layered level.
Going down the path, we see a black tower that’s also been conquered, but on the other
side of that is a level with Chain Chomps.
All told there are eight levels though, knowing Yoshi games, a ninth can probably be unlocked
by collecting everything.
What’s more curious is the fact that there seems to be at least a little choice as to
where Yoshi can go.
It’s a not an entirely linear progression like past Yoshi’s Island games.
Finally, we can see a building in the center with a pin cushion on top.
We believe this is where Yoshi can spend his beads for Power Badges.
The symbol on top of the building doesn’t match the one next to the Power Badge option
in the pause menu, but we think it makes sense.
The option will likely allow him to organize the badges or maybe activate or deactivate
them at will.
Yoshi’s Woolly World seems to be taking the best elements of the Yoshi games and combining
it with the adorable cloth world that Kirby’s Epic Yarn introduced.
It’s promised to have a great challenge yet still be accessible for those who just
want to take in the scenery.
But we can’t wait to see even more from it and hopefully get a firm release date in
the future.
Of course, let us know if we missed anything in the comments.
If you liked this video, be sure to like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter at GameXplain
to keep up with everything we do.
Thanks for watching, and make sure to stay tuned to GameXplain for more on Yoshi and
other things gaming.