When I first played Yoshi’s Woolly World on the Wii U, I was hooked. The graphics were amazing and I thought the entire knitting and sewing theming was adorable. My daughter and I had so much fun playing it. We especially love the levels with Yoshi’s pup, Poochy. You can imagine our excitement to learn about Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World for Nintendo 3DS.
At first, I thought this was an entirely new game. But, after doing some research, I quickly found out that this was basically the same Wii U game we already owned but for the 3DS. The 3DS game does have some new features but the levels themselves are identical. I was curious as to whether or not it would be any fun to play this.
Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World Review
It turns out that Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World for Nintendo 3DS is just as much fun. It had been a while since I finished the Wii U game and I mostly played that in 2-player mode with Munchkin. So, my experience playing Poochy & Yoshi felt like a completely new one. There were several times in which I thought the levels were different or that there were new parts. But, then, Munchkin reminded me that they were in the previous game too. Plus, since I was playing by myself this time, I was able to better concentrate on the little details in each level.
Okay, so let’s talk about the game itself. The story is that Kamek turned all the Yoshis into skeins of yarn (yes, I had to look up that term) and kidnapped them. One green Yoshi (and Poochy in the 3DS game) were hiding so they escaped. Now it’s up to them to save everyone else. The goal is to collect five “Wonder Wool” pieces of yarn in each level to knit the Yoshis back together. To do this, Yoshi needs to swallow enemies and turn them into yarn balls. He then uses these to defeat other enemies, target power-ups, hit switches, build platforms, and more. Every level is so creative!
Playing Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World for Nintendo 3DS
Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World offers hours of enjoyment for new and experienced players. There are several items to collect in each level and many of them are hidden. Some are even invisible and almost impossible to find unless by accident or using a game walk-through guide. I had to play through some levels multiple times to collect all the yarn and flowers. Then, there are those horribly difficult special levels — my poor thumbs! I had to limit how long I played so I didn’t wear them raw!
There is also an option to use Mellow Mode if the regular one is too hard. During Mellow Mode, Poochy Pups help you find all the power-ups and hidden items. To me, this kind of takes the fun out of playing the game. But, I do get the fact that some levels are super hard or frustrating to finish. It’s a nice option to have and the addition of Poochy Pups as your helpers is genius.
Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World New Features
The new features include Yoshi’s Theater, Poochy Dash, and the ability to customize your Yoshi. In Yoshi’s Theater, you’ll find cute stop-motion shorts. After you watch one, a question will pop up about the clip. If you answer correctly, you will win beads or a power-up. The questions are always about little details that people wouldn’t normally notice so it’s pretty funny.
The Poochy levels are dash-type mini-games that you unlock during regular gameplay. Run, jump, and slide to complete level goals. These include collecting coins/beads, popping balloons, and finding Poochy Pups. You can also unlock Poochy Gold Dash where the points multiply and a generous Lakitu shows you the best route to take in future plays.
As for designing your own Yoshis, this is my daughter’s favorite feature. You can use pre-made patterns which are unlocked during gameplay. Or, you can design the Yoshi from scratch and every part of him can be changed. This includes his face, body, snout, left and right sides (arms, legs, feet), scales, and shell. You can choose solid colors or draw anything you can think of pixel-by-pixel. Munchkin even created one to look like me with heart-shaped red lips. Silly girl. You can then use these custom Yoshis to play the game.
The only major downside, in my opinion, is the loss of graphic resolution. The Nintendo 3DS doesn’t have as good of graphics as the Wii U and the difference is very apparent in this case. One of the reasons I loved the Wii U game was how detailed all the items were. You could see the little stray threads on the yarn, reflective foil, shiny sequins, different kinds of buttons, etc. But, on the 3DS, you only get a rough idea of what the items are made of. You lose the full effect. This is not a deal-breaker but it was sad to see the graphic quality had to be sacrificed for portability.
Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World for Nintendo 3DS is a solid game and worth the price. It’s a shame the graphics are lower resolution but the gameplay remains just as enjoyable. amiibo figures add bonus features like powerups, new challenges, and even patterns for Poochy. If you’re looking for a family-friendly platformer with hours of content, then you and your kids will love Poochy & Yoshi’s Woolly World. To learn more, check out the official site here.
I received this item as part of my participation as a Nintendo Ambassador. All opinions are my own.
