The Nintendo Museum is getting ready to open in Kyoto, Japan, and it looks to be an incredible collection of Nintendo ephemera. but it is alsoPerhaps inadvertently, it became a way to resolve age-old online disputes, and it has provided a clear answer to the question: Yoshi’s Island (aka Super Mario World 2) Is it a Yoshi game or a Mario game?
According to Dan Ryckert’s impression during a special press preview of the museum, one exhibition room has dedicated space to specific franchises and is divided into separate categories. The showcase for the Mario series is the largest yet, including not only the plumber’s solo adventures but also various spin-offs such as kart racing and sports games. But he also noted that Yoshi’s Island wasn’t actually included in the Mario showcase, but was included in a separate Yoshi series showcase.
So there you have it. According to Nintendo’s official classification, Yoshi’s Island is not a Mario game in a space dedicated to carefully cultivating its own history. If you won $20 on this unlikely bet, now is the time to claim it.
Granted, Rector has also vowed to continually harass his Nintendo contacts until this alleged mistake is corrected, and we don’t underestimate his ability to annoy anyone into compliance. Therefore, it’s likely that Nintendo will reclassify or, if space permits, include Yoshi’s Island in both series.
Yoshi’s Island stars Yoshi (or a series of Yoshi) as they transport baby Mario across a colorful island. It’s available as part of the Super NES library on the Nintendo Switch Online service, so you can play it there and judge for yourself which series it fits best into.
For more information about the Nintendo Museum, be sure to read our detailed Nintendo Museum impressions and check out the gallery of Nintendo Museum exhibits.
