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Baby Wario revealed as the extra attraction in Yoshi's Island DS

Nintendo's great green hope gets added magnetism

Baby Wario revealed as the extra attraction in Yoshi's Island DS
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DS
| Yoshi's Island DS

Green, reptilian and somewhat goofy, Yoshi might not be one of Nintendo's All-Star characters. But, as the run up to the Christmas buying season begins, he is the company's main man in terms of European DS releases, primed for a December 1st outing in the subtley renamed Yoshi's Island DS (as opposed to its working title, Yoshi's Island 2).

Nintendo has dripped out some new information on the game, too. From our Hands On earlier in the year, we knew baby versions of Mario, Peach and Donkey Kong would be helping Yoshi as he battled to save baby Luigi, the latter having been babynapped by the evil Kamek and taken away on his floating island.

Now we've learned that baby Wario will also be adding his powers to the fray. When little Wario's riding on Yoshi's back, Yoshi will be able to use the former's giant magnet to attract metal objects, such as the coins you collect to unlock bonuses, as well as solving metal-based puzzles.

Swapping in one of the other babies will provide Yoshi with different attributes: Mario gives speed, Donkey Kong strength and the ability to climb vines, while Peach provides floatability.

Of course, Yoshi is a skilled lizard thingie in his own right – notably he can gobble up enemies and either spit them out, or turn them into eggs that can be thrown at items or other enemies. He can also pound the ground to flatten whatever's underneath, and flutter jump.

In certain areas of the game, you'll even be able to morph Yoshi into various vehicles. The mind boggles.

In terms of longevity, the game will be spread over five levels, with the different babies being made available as you start a new level. Nintendo hasn't confirmed the order, but we'd guess you'll get Mario first, then Peach, Donkey Kong and finally Wario.

As you can see from the screenshots, the game uses the full height of both DS screens for plenty of platforming action; you'll also use the touchscreen to affect objects and enemies on the top.

Yoshi's Island DS will support fourway multiplayer modes too. Don't be a cry baby when the game comes out and you've forgotten all about it: click 'Track It!' to be alerted the moment it gets reviewed.

Jon Jordan
Jon Jordan
A Pocket Gamer co-founder, Jon can turn his hand to anything except hand turning. He is editor-at-large at PG.biz which means he can arrive anywhere in the world, acting like a slightly confused uncle looking for the way out. He likes letters, cameras, imaginary numbers and legumes.