Fill That Yoshi-Dex!
A review of "Yoshi and the Mysterious Book". A delightful little gem of a game, that I feel hasn't gotten nearly enough attention. Finally, the "Yoshi" series has its first great game!
In this game, you spend your time trying to suss out the quirks of all the unique creatures contained in each biome. It’s a super novel game, where you are constantly surprised by the ideas displayed in gameplay. Glubbit rocks too!
Throughout my roughly 7-8 hour playtime of Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, I was routinely surprised and delighted at the sheer imagination on offer. It is a supremely enjoyable experience that completely shocked me in more ways than one. The first way I was taken aback was my slow realization of: “Wow! They finally made a good video game with Yoshi in it!!” Yes, I truly do believe this. Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island should not be a mainline Mario game. Sue me!!!
The second realization that hit me was: “Man, this game is far deeper than I ever expected!” The intricate design of the game is apparent immediately, as you slowly uncover quirks about the creatures you are discovering and logging in your encyclopedia. There are a ton of interesting, novel ideas at play here in Yoshi and the Mysterious Book. A pure delight!
I love ‘idea games’. Games that stuff their innards with a plethora of interesting interactions and clever tricks. This game, more than a lot of other things I have played this year, is that, and more. It’s a true “Dark Horse” candidate to make a spot on my personal Top 10 Games of the Year list for 2026. It surprised me in many ways. I didn’t expect that! It’s very nice to stumble on a gem like this, because it makes taking a leap of faith and trying something you normally wouldn’t, more satisfying. I’m very pleased with how it’s all turned out.
So let’s talk structure. A group of Yoshis on an island (funnily enough) discover an old, weathered, leather-bound sentient book called “Mr. E” (for encyclopedia, I imagine), and are tasked with uncovering the peculiar secrets of the various creatures that appear between the mustachioed book’s pages. There are initially 6 biomes to explore, each with around 6 to 7 creatures in each biome to identify. You hop from biome to biome, cataloguing all the animals and minerals you find therein, optionally giving each of them names as you close out a level, and registering each subject’s personality quirks and mechanics underneath their newly written entry in the mysterious book. The goal here is to find an elusive mythical bird hiding in the pages called “The Bewilder Bird”. The bird in question is, by extension, Mr. E’s encyclopedic ‘white whale’, so to speak, and he wants you to find that magical technicolor avian, catalogue it, and find out all there is to know about it. The premise is simple enough, and engaging throughout.
One of the things I like best about this game is the pacing. It’s cozy, without being boring, and directed without handholding the player too much. It’s a relaxing game to take part in, and interacting with the local wildlife on your own terms is a fun endeavor, especially since you don’t feel rushed to do it in a certain time limit. You also can’t die very easily, either. Even when you fall in the inevitable pit, or deep hole, Yoshi will magically spring up just like new, immediately after a tumble. It feels tailor-made for families who want to de-stress and enjoy a relaxing time looking at fun, virtual animals together. It’s almost like digital sightseeing at the zoo with your kids. The sightseeing is a highlight here too, because this game looks absolutely gorgeous. I adore the art style here. The visuals are top-notch throughout the adventure. The painterly, storybook theming and delightfully playful animation kept my eyes locked to the screen, waiting for the next crazy and colorful thing to dance across my view. It’s a beautiful tapestry of Nintendo’s patented whimsy, and I adored looking at it.
My daughter and I played this together, and seeing her little 3-year-old eyes light up when Yoshi found a new little creature to be friends with was just magic. Nintendo magic. It was a very cool moment to see that click with her. She took the initiative (with a little help from her dad) to seek out a Glubbit (the bubble-frog guys) and have him climb on her back. The reward for doing so was that the Glubbit would shoot out bubbles as Yoshi ran (which can be used as platforms), and sussing out that interaction with minimal help other than assistance with the controls (3-year-olds aren’t the most coordinated humans around) was an extremely satisfying moment for her. Seeing the gears all turn in the right ways was a moment where it all worked. There were a few instances after that moment that also clicked, but this was the first time it felt like something had shifted in her brain when it came to playing a video game. Proud dad moment, here!
The game is full of authored mechanics that feel bespoke, and every level you complete is proof of that, since every stage, in the Nintendo tradition, primarily deals with one or two mechanics. Each stage has its own gimmick and way of interacting with it, and while those mechanics pop up in other levels, each time you enter a new place, the theme is completely different depending on the creature you are cataloguing. The hidden depth of the mechanics, though, is seeing just how many ways each creature can interact with other lifeforms, and how the animals all react to each other when their quirks collide with one another. A fun mechanical moment came as I was playing during one of my longer sessions. I asked myself: “What would happen if I bumped one creature into another? Let’s find out...” In keeping with the exploratory nature of the game, if you think you can do it, more often than not, it turns out it’ll work. It’s nice to see how much thought went into how everything situationally intermingles with other factors. Mixing the characteristics between creatures and biomes makes every page feel lively with its variety.
The environment can change creatures’ behaviors and abilities too. Since we have used Glubbit as an example before, I’ll do it again here with a few mechanics. When Glubbit gets covered in a bunch of honey, he and his bubbles turn golden, and the bubbles he spits out won’t rise like before. If he eats an apple, his bubbles get bigger, and when he gets covered in mud, the bubbles he spits out actually fall to the ground! There are lots of simple environmental changes that each creature can take on that will change their behaviors and capabilities, and finding out what each is and how all those factors relate directly to the stages and to even other creatures is something that gives the game the very deep systemic intricacies that make it so unique. I truly haven’t played a game quite like this. It feels wholly fresh and new as a result of its willingness to be something different.
The deep exploration of these systems, paired with the premise of cataloguing creatures in the mysterious book, incentivizes a completionist mentality in me that drives me to keep coming back to it. I want to do everything in this game, and the game pushes you gently toward that goal, if you indeed intend to pursue it. I love it when games interweave the completion aspect of it into the very fabric of its premise. By the end of the first 6 biomes, I found about half of all the stuff in the pages just organically, and by the time the credits roll and you are sent back to the book for the endgame cleanup, the book offers up 4 more new biomes to explore at the end. It’s a game that is chock full of satisfying content, and I imagine taking the time to get all the boxes checked will more than double my playtime by the time I am finished. I’m excited to keep playing!
Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is a genuine hidden gem that more people need to play! It’s shockingly well-realized and leagues deeper than I ever could have expected. If you are willing to take a leap of faith, like I was, you will be rewarded with one of the very best Nintendo games of the last decade. It’s really surprising just how much game is here, and how complex it all is. It all works marvelously well, and sounds, looks, and plays fantastically. It works in every way for me.
If you have kids, this is a must-own game for the family. Especially if you have little ones who are curious about video games. This is a perfect first game for Pre-K kiddos looking to investigate the world of early childhood gaming. The game is gentle, slower-paced, and less frenetic than other games, and is just right for developing minds who are interested in the medium. For adults looking for a relaxing game, this also fits the bill. It works completely for adults with short attention spans, and is chill enough to get you through after a stressful day at the office. It’s brilliant. I cannot say enough good things about this one. A pure joy and constant delight.
Thanks as always, and keep drifting!