At the Nintendo World Championships 2015, the company showed off a brand new two-player level of their upcoming Yoshi’s Woolly World, due out later this year.
In a first for Eggplante, we can offer up some (hands-off) impressions of Nintendo’s newest content before E3 even begins.
Yoshi’s Woolly World has long been a beautiful game with incredible uses of a familiar but underrepresented material in video games: wool. The unassuming, unthreatening, very friendly material actually helps Nintendo achieve some moody mystery about it as the level we saw included a dark purple aesthetic combined with a new gameplay twist.
As the fabric panels move around in the levels, they create shadows of platforms for Yoshi to jump on. However, as the fabric moves out of the way, there are no actual physical platforms behind them, so Yoshi’s natural tendency is to fall off the level. It’s somehow daunting and difficult while using a familiar, welcoming material. It’s a beautiful paradox that is nothing short of magical.
There are other small nods to games of Nintendo’s past also, such as the design of the key used to unlock certain doors in the game. Retro gamers will recognize it from Super Mario Bros. 2.
Of course, in Yoshi fashion, there are flowers scattered around the level, and the goal is marked by a ring of flowers that puts a friggen’ smile on our face.
Look for more impressions from the show floor at E3 2015 and all the press conferences this week! Stay tuned!