I do admit that it has its faults, of course. It has one of the most annoying sound effects in the world. My mother has never yelled at me as much as she did when baby Mario, ejected from Yoshi's saddle, started to cry. The volume dipped way down low when Yoshi's Island was in the SNES. Only one other video game sound effect has caused such strife, and that was back in second grade when my grandmother thought the phone was ringing every time Megaman's health meter refilled.
Also, the game spawned a sequel, one of the worst games--certainly one of the worst sequels--ever to be created: Yoshi's Story, for the N64. That game was just devastatingly bad. Such a waste of potential. Sigh.
But! Despite these things, I still contend that Yoshi's Island is the best Mario game ever made, and I have ten reasons why. These are in no particular order, by the way.
REASON NUMBER ONE: THE MUSIC
The boss music is catchy without getting annoying. The normal level music is limited in diversity but always appropriate. The ending theme contains a goosebump-inducing rendition of the original flag-raising fanfare from Super Mario Brothers on the NES. Yes, I said goosebump-inducing. I'm a geek, okay? Plus, a friend of mine wrote some spontaneous lyrics to the already kick-ass castle theme that I always sing to myself when I'm playing:
"Do do do do do, I want a tostada
Do do do do do, I want a tostada"
Repeat until the level is completed. I have no idea why he chose those particular lyrics.
REASON NUMBER TWO: THE GRAPHICS
I don't care if they look "kiddy." They're supposed to. It's a stylistic choice, and I don't think any other game ever made can claim such an appropriate style. The game looks like it plays: it's fun and whimsical and silly.
REASON NUMBER THREE: COOLEST. BOSS FIGHTS. EVER.
Play the Raphael the Raven stage. Fight Raphael the Raven. How can you deny that it is one of the best boss fights ever crafted? Or fight the giant slug whose weak spot is buried deep within its gooey flesh. Or fight that guy who dies of embarassment when you knock his pants off. Or fight the giant Koopa Troopa. Or fight the giant Pirahna Plant. Or get eaten by a frog and fight its stomach until it poops you out. Or go to the last level and fling gigantic eggs across incredible distances to fend off the most frightening incarnation of Bowser ever seen. Every boss fight in this game is poetry. Simple as that.
This is the first Mario game I ever played in which you could wreak havoc with your ass. Smashing bad guys, hammering poles into the ground, and making those rubbery cube things stretch out--all with your big ol' dinosaur butt! And as we all know, baby Mario picked up on the technique and put it to good use in Mario 64. It's the circle of life, butt style!
I still haven't gotten 100% on all the levels in this. It's pretty easy to beat the game, but can you consistently get ALL the flowers and ALL the red coins AND avoid getting hit so as to keep all of your stars? I bet you can't. Plus, after all of your compulsive collecting, what do you get? Do you get a lame cameo and 100 extra lives that you don't need since you've already done everything? No. You get six bonus levels to play. Take that, Mario 64!
REASON NUMBER SIX: YOU GET TO BE A HELICOPTER
Not ride one. Be one. That's badass.
The boss battles are cool, but the little guys carry their weight, too. How awesome are the Fuzzies? Touch one of them and the music gets all screwy and the whole level starts weaving around like Yoshi's been dropping acid. And I can spend long stretches of time jumping repeatedly on the squishy bad guys just to watch their body parts spurt all over the wall. It's just satisfying to kill them. And who doesn't love a Shy Guy--or, better yet, an undead Shy Guy?
REASON NUMBER EIGHT: PUZZLES
The puzzles in this game are wonderful. They're not particularly hard, but they all make sense in a way most puzzles don't. You have to figure out the game's physics if you want to solve this stuff. Want to jump up to that checkpoint? Backtrack a little, let a cannon fire, and then chase the bullet back to the checkpoint so you can jump onto it and bounce up. Want to get all those red coins? Throw an egg at a baseball bandit and have him do it for you. Want to break that box open with a butt stomp? Better make sure to push it onto some solid ground before you--oops, too late, into the bottomless pit you go. Better luck next time.
REASON NUMBER NINE: BABY BOWSER
Not the battle with him, but rather, just the idea of him. The first time I got to Baby Bowser's nursery, I laughed hysterically. He has a friggin' speech impediment! He thinks Yoshi is a donkey! It's hilarious!
REASON NUMBER TEN: MARIO ISN'T TOTALLY WHIPPED YET
I mean, come on, Peach should really give him a break. The bitch.