Yoshi's Crafted World Review: 5 Ups & 2 Downs

7. Down: It Doesn't Evolve The Series Enough

The jump from the Nintendo 64's Yoshi's Story to Wooly World for the Wii-U was considerable and noteworthy. The almost two-decade gap allowed Wooly World to shine in so many ways because the release gap between 3D Yoshi titles was so considerable. This puts Crafted World in a tough spot as it's 'only' been 4 years since WW and the differences between instalments aren't grand.

After playing both the previous title and CW, there's just not much of a difference between the two. Crafted World is a smoother, more inventive experience overall, but there's a lacking sense of ambition here. Exploring the foregrounds and backgrounds of levels for secrets is entertaining as always and keeps you analyzing to see what you've missed, but there's just not much else added on top of the foundation established with Wooly World.

This is a series known particularly well for its well-suited simplicity, but that doesn't mean they couldn't have gone bolder. If any company can add on features and evolve a series while maintaining a core values, it's Nintendo.

This is still the quality Yoshi series fans remember, but just a bit too familiar feeling.