Yoshi's Safari

"Behold! Nintendo's Almighty Goomba Shooter!"

Right here in this SNES cartridge is half of my childhood. No, really - I spent a huge amount of time playing this game as a little kid. Before I cleaned it off to play it for this review, I could actually see where I used to put my face up to the Super Scope so I could look through it - gross but true. Back in the simple days when life was just eat, play video games, sleep, play video games, school, play video games. Easy as this game is, it's just too damn fun to complain about. This game is ridiculously hard to find (I've never seen it used in a store) and the parts are difficult to obtain. So, for one, feel lucky if you own it. Go play it right now. It's OK - I have my DS right here. It's really a crying shame that it'll never get another chance on the market, seeing as soccer moms would go ballistic if Nintendo re-released their Goomba shooter for the Revolution. But really, this is the sort of game that we need nowadays. Simple, clean fun.

Graphics - 10/10
My, SNES, how nicely you've aged. Even with the flashy 3D graphics of today, Yoshi's Safari still looks great. I've seen few to no graphical errors in the game, and the cutesy (yet not overly so) style of the game mimics a cartoon. Instead of firing bullets at your enemies, you fire blue pulsing sphere things. Which actually works out quite well, as bullets would be far too gory for a Mario game. And gazing through that Super Scope lens at the enemies flying at you, it really feels like you're there, about to be smacked in the face by a flying Paratroopa. Because of the perfect mood that the graphical style sets for the game, I give it a ten in this department.

Sound - 10/10
Much like the graphics, the music sets up the perfect mood for this game. It's also just great to listen to, if you have Meridian Advance (or a Winamp plugin that and the SPC files for it. Really good stuff - check it out for yourself if you can. My favorite tracks are Spirit Mountain, Cornice Cave, and Dark Sea. I would really like to see these remixed someday, even if I have to do it myself! The sound effects are equally awesome, though I'm not sure if you want to listen to the pulsing Super Scope noise all day like you would the music. Everything from the sound of the Hammer/Boomerang/Sledge Bros. flying off into the distance after being defeated to Yoshi's cry of pain when you accidentally shoot the poor sucker in the back of the head is well-suited for the game; nothing is distracting or annoying here.

Difficulty - 8/10
This is what gets me about this game. It's far too easy! Even when I was five years old, I felt that it was too easy. Then I discovered hard mode...I all but cried because no matter how many times I tried hard mode, I could not beat it. Ludwig would always blast me to smithereens every time I fought him, as would all of his evil siblings. That's the only aspect of this game I do not enjoy as much; there's no intermediate difficulty for those of us who want to get better at the game and see if we too can master hard mode. This really gets me, but it doesn't get in the way so much when I just want a casual play session. So it only loses two points for this glaring mistake, but if it made a huge difference, it could easily have earned a six instead. If it is ever remade, it needs more modes of difficulty.

Length - 7/10
I lied; this bothers me, too. In fact, this is really the only department where the game falls flat on its face. It's a great game, but it's just too short. Too short, too easy, too fun. If the game wasn't fun, it would suck. But that's true for anything, right? Who cares if it's long and difficult, if it isn't fun? This game takes me about forty minutes to beat if I take my time, and I don't know how quickly I can beat it if I'm in a hurry because I only play this game when I need something to relax me. Really, it's far too short for its own good. If it had more levels, and longer ones as well, it would be much better. But there's a slight upside to the game being short, and that is the fact that if you don't have much time to play a game, you can just go beat Yoshi's Safari and be happy with that. This slight upside saves it from a "fail" grade in this department.

Use of Specialized Hardware (Super Scope) - 10/10
This, my friends, is the reason to own a Super Scope. It feels great just holding it while you shoot down all manner of canon fodder, ranging from Goombas to Paratroopas to Mecha Koopas to Koopalings in their odd contraptions. It's difficult to put into words, but I can say this. It's like the Super Scope was made exclusively for this game. And if I could buy a better Super Scope (perhaps one that plugs into the wall so I don't feel like it's eating my batteries) compatible for the Nintendo Revolution just to play an extended version of Yoshi's Safari, I most certainly would.

Multiplayer - 9/10
The multiplayer is pretty good, but not perfect. If Yoshi had some method of attack, such as using his long tongue to eat certain enemies and recover a slight amount of health, it would be flawless. All the second player really gets to do is jump, choose paths, and doge attacks. But really, it's not that bad, as long as both people take turns being Mario and Yoshi. Second player can get a bit dull on the easier levels, so it loses a point there. I may not have played second for awhile, but I've done it with my brother enough as a little kid to remember it quite clearly.

Overall - 9/10
Even though the game has a few faults here and there, it's still a great game overall. It's fun to play, and one of my favorites for the SNES. Highly recommended, if you can find it. eBay is probably your best bet, as I have never seen it in a game store anywhere. It's a rare game, and I'm just glad that my mom had the foresight to buy it when it was new.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 09/06/05