The expansion of Nintendo’s sterile “New” branding to Yoshi’s Island platformers is a bit disappointing, but that doesn’t mean Yoshi’s New Island isn’t shaping up to be quite the worthy third entry to the series. Fittingly, the launch of the game will be accompanied by a green 3DS XL, emblazoned with some old-school Yoshi art. None of that Yoshi’s Story junk.
The design is pretty simple, with a lime-green coloring and a decal of both Yoshi and one of his eggs on its closed face. Surprisingly, the new 3DS isn’t a bundle – the game will be sold separately. Still, if you’re walking around with a Yoshi on your 3DS, you’re probably going to want a Yoshi game to go along with it. Perhaps that was Nintendo’s plan all along?
The new XL is slated for a March 14th release, the same day Yoshi’s New Island itself will be made available. The game looks fun, but it does feature more of a childlike slant than previous entries – whether this is strictly an art style or a shift in tone and difficulty remains to be seen. Regardless, there’s a whole new generation of gamers who’ve never experienced Yoshi’s Island, and it’s about time they did.