Yoshi Topsy-Turvy (2004). Play online

Summary

Yoshi Topsy‑Turvy treats the entire GBA as a playground for physics. By tilting the handheld left or right the cartridge’s motion sensor makes the game’s picture‑book landscape rotate, sending enemies sliding and turning walls into ramps. This adds a tactile layer to the usual platforming: swinging pendulums, rolling carts, and gravity‑shifting platforms become tools rather than obstacles.

Each stage is ruled by a mischievous spirit who imposes a clear obsession—whether it’s amassing fruit, racing against the clock, or sparing certain foes. Satisfying that spirit’s conditions advances the chapter, turning simple runs into puzzle‑solved goals. Yoshi still jumps and darts his tongue to gobble fruit and foes, but instead of laying eggs he breathes a puff of air after a successful bite.

The tilt‑based design feels like an early experiment in motion control, a novelty that stands out in the GBA’s library. Watching the world tip, roll, and reshape under my thumb gives the platforming a fresh, almost kinetic rhythm.

Storyline

In Yoshi Topsy‑Turvy (often just called Yoshi Topsy‑Turvy), Bowser launches an assault on Yoshi’s Island, scattering trouble everywhere. A mystical book spirit named Hongo reacts by sealing the entire island inside the pages of a giant storybook. Hongo tells Yoshi that the only way to free the island is to lock Bowser away within the same tale. Determined, Yoshi sets off to travel through each chapter of the living book, solving puzzles and battling foes. By completing the chapters and imprisoning Bowser, Yoshi convinces Hongo to release the island back to the real world.