Since not long after its debut as Mario’s new friend slash mount, Yoshi has spawned a video game universe all its own. Yoshi platformers are notorious for cute art styles inspired by wool, yarn, etc. Now, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book brings us a brand-new Yoshi adventure and a new Switch 2 exclusive for 2026. The game releases on May 21st, and I got a chance to check it out early for review.
Yoshi and the Mysterious Book might have 3D cinematic cutscenes at its start, but the majority of the game is classic 2D platforming. As the Yoshis hop into the Mysterious Book, aka Mr. E, they are “drawn” into a storybook world full of strange creatures to study. Each creature’s habitat is a unique platforming level with different challenges to complete in order to fill in the missing facts of Mr. E’s pages. Though it’ll only take you a handful of hours to roll credits, the game’s charm and variety of level design nevertheless make this an entertaining platformer, especially for younger gamers.
Rating: 4 out of 5
Like many Yoshi platformers, The Mysterious Book delivers a pretty simple story. In fact, I rolled the “end credits” after just about 2.5 hours, though it may take you longer if you’re trying to collect every critter fact before moving to the next. The story is easy for younger players to follow, and with the credits rolling that quickly, the game delivers a sense of satisfaction after a short time. That said, the game does continue after the credits roll. In fact, with 4 new post-credit chapters, the ending is deceptively really just the middle in terms of overall playtime potential.
Along with an easy-to-follow, relatively short story, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book delivers bite-sized levels with low stakes. Yoshi might occasionally react like it’s in pain if you run into barbed creatures, but it never actually takes any damage. Even in combat against Bowser Jr., Yoshi doesn’t have an HP bar to match the boss. In terms of creating a cozy vibe that’s suited to younger players, this makes sense, but it does make battles have a certain lack of stakes. If Yoshi can’t get hurt and there’s no real “lose” condition, the boss battles are really just a slog against the clock. That said, they’re fairly few and far in between anyway, so it doesn’t take away from the overall enjoyment too much.
Because you’re jumping in and out of a book to study creatures, the level design is nicely compact. Each habitat is fairly contained, with one major goal that earns you the right to name your creature. There are a variety of other critter facts to unlock, but to “complete” the level, you just need to find its win condition. This makes Yoshi and the Mysterious Book easy to pick up and play for a short session, since each habitat has its own unique playstyle that you puzzle out as you go.
This level design allows for gameplay variety, as well, tasking you with a different problem to solve for each habitat and arming you with different tools to do it. Most habitats aren’t particularly tricky, but they do require problem-solving that’s perfect for teaching younger players the ropes. That said, some have surprisingly frustrating win conditions that require, for instance, jumping on musical creatures in the right order. Despite the occasionally surprisingly tricky challenge, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book offers plenty of helpful hints. Mr. E is there to give you tips if you’re not sure what the level’s win condition is. And in your quest to learn about each creature, you can use the coins you collected in prior habitats to buy hints.
For a seasoned platformer player who grew up with Yoshi and Mario, this is a fun but pretty easy game to complete. There are a good number of tasks for completionist runs, but the story itself is quick and straightforward to complete. It feels pretty clearly aimed at a younger audience, with plenty of built-in helpful tips to ensure newer gamers don’t get too frustrated… while still offering a bit of a challenge. The game even saves files based on your Nintendo profiles, so it’s easily shared between a whole family of Yoshi fans using the same console. If you enjoy platformers and want that Yoshi nostalgia or have a young one at home you’d like to introduce to the genre, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book will certainly fit the bill.
ComicBook received a Switch 2 copy of Yoshi and the Mysterious Book for the purpose of this review.
