▲
3
▼
Among files uncovered in the Gigaleak, a large-scale leak of assets from Nintendo's internal servers in 2020, are various assets from Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island depicting alternate ideas for Baby Mario. The earliest of these assets are a series of sprites from October 1993 depicting him in a bonnet and with a mustache similar to his adult counterpart; by comparison, the earliest sprites depicting his final design are dated to August 1994.
In the interim, however, Nintendo apparently considered omitting Baby Mario entirely; sprites dating to the spring of 1994 show that the developers considered having the Yoshi Clan ferry an infant wizard around instead. These sprites depict the wizard both in normal gameplay and in the pre-rendered CGI graphics used in the opening cutscene. Other sprites of the wizard show that they would've provided an in-universe reason for Yoshi's ability to transform into various vehicles: the wizard would cast a spell on a Yoshi egg while encasing themself and the real Yoshi in a bubble.
While the developers ultimately went back to using Baby Mario, the wizard still appears in a prototype build from December 6, 1994. In this iteration, the wizard is a form that Baby Mario can turn into through the use of an item depicting the projectiles fired by Kamek in the penultimate area of "6-8: King Bowser's Castle". This "Wizard Mario" form could similarly cast spells that transform certain enemies into objects such as eggs, watermelons, and Winged Clouds.
In the interim, however, Nintendo apparently considered omitting Baby Mario entirely; sprites dating to the spring of 1994 show that the developers considered having the Yoshi Clan ferry an infant wizard around instead. These sprites depict the wizard both in normal gameplay and in the pre-rendered CGI graphics used in the opening cutscene. Other sprites of the wizard show that they would've provided an in-universe reason for Yoshi's ability to transform into various vehicles: the wizard would cast a spell on a Yoshi egg while encasing themself and the real Yoshi in a bubble.
While the developers ultimately went back to using Baby Mario, the wizard still appears in a prototype build from December 6, 1994. In this iteration, the wizard is a form that Baby Mario can turn into through the use of an item depicting the projectiles fired by Kamek in the penultimate area of "6-8: King Bowser's Castle". This "Wizard Mario" form could similarly cast spells that transform certain enemies into objects such as eggs, watermelons, and Winged Clouds.
Development sprites:
https://tcrf.net/Development:Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/Sprites
Items in the December 6, 1994 prototype:
https://tcrf.net/Proto:Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/ys_romX_0/Items
https://tcrf.net/Development:Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/Sprites
Items in the December 6, 1994 prototype:
https://tcrf.net/Proto:Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/ys_romX_0/Items
▲
2
▼
While Bumpties can only bump into Yoshi and not hurt him, if Yoshi is hurt by a different enemy or obstacle and a Bumpty is on-screen, it will run to and steal Baby Mario similarly to a Bandit. This is the only game in the Yoshi series where Bumpties are known to behave like this, and is a rare interaction since there are few instances in the game where Bumpties and obstacles are close enough to trigger it.
▲
2
▼
In a 1995 developer interview, Shigeru Miyamoto stated that the Super Star was originally going to briefly transform Baby Mario into his adult self. However, the idea was discarded after one of the developers pointed out that it would clash with the game's premise of being an origin story for the Mario brothers. Instead, Super Star Mario was redesigned to simply be Baby Mario in a yellow cape.
In 2020, sprites for Mario's adult form were uncovered as part of a massive leak of data from Nintendo's internal servers. These sprites indicate that Super Star Mario was not originally able to float in the air and that he was able to ride Yoshi to some extent (in the final game, Yoshi reverts to an egg until the Super Star wears off).
In 2020, sprites for Mario's adult form were uncovered as part of a massive leak of data from Nintendo's internal servers. These sprites indicate that Super Star Mario was not originally able to float in the air and that he was able to ride Yoshi to some extent (in the final game, Yoshi reverts to an egg until the Super Star wears off).
Developer interview:
https://shmuplations.com/yoshi/
Development sprites of adult Mario:
https://tcrf.net/Development:Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/Sprites#Mario
https://shmuplations.com/yoshi/
Development sprites of adult Mario:
https://tcrf.net/Development:Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/Sprites#Mario
▲
2
▼
The game was originally intended to be the fifth installment of the Super Mario Bros. series, with two leaked prototypes from December 1994 featuring a title screen with the logo Super Mario Bros. 5: Yoshi's Island. Come the final release, and the prefix would be shortened to Super Mario. This explains why the international release was titled Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, as the original Super Mario World was subtitled Super Mario Bros. 4 in Japan.
Additionally, the later of the two prototypes features a radically different design for the logo, using a much sleeker and blockier font. The final release would revert to the earlier logo, barring the aforementioned truncated prefix.
Additionally, the later of the two prototypes features a radically different design for the logo, using a much sleeker and blockier font. The final release would revert to the earlier logo, barring the aforementioned truncated prefix.
December 6, 1994 prototype information:
https://tcrf.net/Proto:Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/ys_romX_0
December 19, 1994 prototype information:
https://tcrf.net/Proto:Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/ys_rom_0_D
Comparison between the final title screens in the Japanese and international releases:
https://tcrf.net/Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/Version_Differences
https://tcrf.net/Proto:Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/ys_romX_0
December 19, 1994 prototype information:
https://tcrf.net/Proto:Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/ys_rom_0_D
Comparison between the final title screens in the Japanese and international releases:
https://tcrf.net/Super_Mario_World_2:_Yoshi%27s_Island/Version_Differences
subdirectory_arrow_right Donkey Kong Country (Game)
▲
2
▼
In May 1995, an interview with series creator Shigeru Miyamoto and Rare co-founder Tim Stamper about the development of Donkey Kong Country (DKC) was published in the magazine Electronic Games, conducted by game journalist Steven L. Kent. Kent later claimed on an episode of G4's docuseries "Icons" that Miyamoto was angry during this interview, channelling it into bitter criticisms of DKC's gameplay and the Western market's praise of its pre-rendered graphics, and that Stamper "sat there and took it, even though really the anger wasn't meant to be at Stamper". Miyamoto clarified in a 2010 interview with IGN that he did like the game despite these rumored criticisms, and that he worked closely with Rare and Stamper during development.
Years after the interview's publication, Kent would print an alleged portion of a later interview with Miyamoto in his 2001 book "The Ultimate History of Video Games", claiming that the anger had stemmed from "touchy" internal discussions regarding Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. The hand-drawn crayon art style of that game was said to be a result of the alleged anger over DKC's graphics causing him to rebel against Nintendo's internal evaluation committee, who wanted Yoshi's Island to use pre-rendered graphics. Part of the Miyamoto quote reads:
Yoshi's Island director Takashi Tezuka would deliver a less angered statement that may be related to these claims in a September 1995 interview with the magazine Dengeki Super Famicom. He claimed that the choice in art style was done for sentimental reasons, as the developers believed that all video games from that point on would likely utilize 3D graphics, and wanted Yoshi's Island to be a bow-out for 2D graphics:
Years after the interview's publication, Kent would print an alleged portion of a later interview with Miyamoto in his 2001 book "The Ultimate History of Video Games", claiming that the anger had stemmed from "touchy" internal discussions regarding Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. The hand-drawn crayon art style of that game was said to be a result of the alleged anger over DKC's graphics causing him to rebel against Nintendo's internal evaluation committee, who wanted Yoshi's Island to use pre-rendered graphics. Part of the Miyamoto quote reads:
"In comparison with the graphics of [DKC], there was not enough punch to Yoshi's Island. That was what I was told by the marketing people. I intensified my hand-drawn touch on Yoshi's Island from the initial part of the program. Everybody else was saying that they wanted better hardware and more beautiful graphics instead of this art."
Yoshi's Island director Takashi Tezuka would deliver a less angered statement that may be related to these claims in a September 1995 interview with the magazine Dengeki Super Famicom. He claimed that the choice in art style was done for sentimental reasons, as the developers believed that all video games from that point on would likely utilize 3D graphics, and wanted Yoshi's Island to be a bow-out for 2D graphics:
"We deliberately chose not to go for realistic graphics like [DKC]: we wanted take a chance and do the opposite. Probably every game from here on out is going to look more like [DKC]… that being the case, we decided to go against the trend one last time and make something with a heartwarming, handmade visual style."
Electronic Games Issue #32 (Volume 3, Issue #8) - May 1995 (pages 48-52 in the magazine):
https://archive.org/details/electronic-games-1995-05/page/48/mode/1up
G4 "Icons" (Season 3, Episode 8) on Donkey Kong:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2EOpDWKOrI#t=819s
"The Ultimate History of Video Games: From Pong to Pokemon–The Story Behind the Craze That Touched Our Lives and Changed the World" by Steven L. Kent (page 518 in the book):
https://retrocdn.net/images/9/9c/UltimateHistoryofVideoGames_Book_US.pdf
Dengeki Super Famicom 09/1995 developer interview [link and info provided by Rocko & Heffer]:
https://shmuplations.com/yoshi/
Original DidYouKnowGaming blog post:
http://didyouknowgaming.com/post/41895525229/yoshis-island-and-donkey-kong-country-source
https://archive.org/details/electronic-games-1995-05/page/48/mode/1up
G4 "Icons" (Season 3, Episode 8) on Donkey Kong:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_2EOpDWKOrI#t=819s
"The Ultimate History of Video Games: From Pong to Pokemon–The Story Behind the Craze That Touched Our Lives and Changed the World" by Steven L. Kent (page 518 in the book):
https://retrocdn.net/images/9/9c/UltimateHistoryofVideoGames_Book_US.pdf
Dengeki Super Famicom 09/1995 developer interview [link and info provided by Rocko & Heffer]:
https://shmuplations.com/yoshi/
Original DidYouKnowGaming blog post:
http://didyouknowgaming.com/post/41895525229/yoshis-island-and-donkey-kong-country-source
subdirectory_arrow_right Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game)
▲
1
▼
During the second phase of the final boss fight in the SNES release, Baby Bowser has three fingers on each hand, contrasting with most official portrayals of Bowser, which show him with four. This error is fixed in the Game Boy Advance version, which redraws his sprites to give him the proper number of fingers.
YouTube video showcasing the final boss fight in the SNES version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anv1LZzX-Qw
YouTube video showcasing the final boss fight in the GBA version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btZF6Ym8h80
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anv1LZzX-Qw
YouTube video showcasing the final boss fight in the GBA version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btZF6Ym8h80
subdirectory_arrow_right Plok (Game)
▲
1
▼
According to Plok co-creator Ste Pickford, Mario creator Shigeru Miyamoto considered an early build of Plok to be the third best platforming game behind his own Mario in first, and the rivaling Sonic the Hedgehog in second. He reportedly expressed interest in helping Software Creations make Plok of a higher quality than Sonic, even if not Mario. Ultimately, he passed up the opportunity, with Pickford believing it was due to similarities with the then-unannounced Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island.
Retro Gamer Issue #122 (Page 78):
https://issuu.com/roylazarovich/docs/retro_gamer_122
https://issuu.com/roylazarovich/docs/retro_gamer_122
▲
1
▼
In a 1995 interview with Shigeru Miyamoto published in the September issue of Haou magazine, he was asked about how long it took to develop the game? He responded:
"The staff members who have been working on it the longest started around the time Super Mario World was released, so about 5 years. The first two years were mainly spent experimenting with different ideas. We had one idea where Yoshi would move around freely, and he’d support Baby Mario and lead him through the stage. Almost all of those early ideas came to naught, but the one that really stuck and bore fruit for us was the idea of a game where even though you hit enemies, you don’t die."
This trivia has been marked as "Not Safe for Work".
It may not be appropriate for all visitors and definitely isn't appropriate for work or school environments.
Click here to unhide it.
It may not be appropriate for all visitors and definitely isn't appropriate for work or school environments.
Click here to unhide it.
▲
1
▼
▲
1
▼
It's possible that Tweeters were originally going to appear in the game. Tweeter graphics from Super Mario All-Stars appear in the game's code, and could have been placeholder graphics for the enemy.
▲
1
▼
The enemy "Harry Hedgehog", a fast moving blue hedgehog, is thought to be a subtle reference to Sonic the Hedgehog.
subdirectory_arrow_right Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game)
▲
1
▼
In stage "Extra 3: More Monkey Madness", a 21st Red Coin can be found. The coin is hidden under a peg occupied by a gray Tap-Tap, with a rotating Paddle-Wheel above it, making it difficult to access. In the Game Boy Advance port, this coin is removed, indicating that it may have been present in the SNES version due to either a glitch or mistake.
subdirectory_arrow_right Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3 (Game)
▲
1
▼
In the Game Boy Advance version of the game, dying enough times during the intro level to get a game over will result in the game's save file displaying "World 0." This is the only time this icon is accessible in the game, and in any version of the game, as the Super Nintendo original gave you infinite lives to beat the tutorial level.
keyboard_double_arrow_leftFirst keyboard_arrow_leftPrev | Page 1 of 2 | Nextkeyboard_arrow_right Lastkeyboard_double_arrow_right |
Related Games
Yoshi's Woolly World
Dance Dance Revolution Mario Mix
Super Mario Sunshine
Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins
Mario Party
Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2
Mario Tennis
Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3
Mario Superstar Baseball
Mario's Early Years! Fun with Letters
Mario 128
Yoshi Touch & Go
Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars
Mario Is Missing!
Mario & Wario
Super Mario Kart
Super Mario Bros. Deluxe
Tetris Attack
Super Mario Bros. Wonder
Super Mario 64
Super Mario Spikers
Super Mario Bros.: The Lost Levels
Super Mario 3D Land
Super Mario Bros. 2
Paper Mario
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games
Mario Artist: Paint Studio
New Super Luigi U
Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker
Super Mario Odyssey
Super Mario Bros. 35
Yoshi's Crafted World
Super Mario Strikers
Yoshi's Story
Super Mario Bros. 3
Mario's Tennis
Super Mario Advance
Super Mario Galaxy
Mario Golf
Super Mario Galaxy 2
Mario no Photopi
Luigi's Mansion
Mario Sports Mix
Super Mario All-Stars
Super Mario FX
Super Mario 64: Shindou Pak Taiou Version
Super Mario Run
New Super Mario Bros. U
Mario Paint
Yoshi Topsy-Turvy