One of the first video games I ever owned. I played it so much when I was a kid. It's really weird running through a level and remembering where the collectables are when I haven't played this game in almost 20 years... melancholic. I cried a little bit at the credits screen.

I went and did a 100% run. When I was younger I could never quite master some of the more maze-like levels. It was fun, the secret levels are a great addition to the base game (the final one ends on a recreation of the prologue level, how cute is that?!)

The game also gives you a tracker saying how many lives you've lost when you 100% it. I lost 383 lives trying to finish the game. Wow!

This was the way I first experienced this classic. My feelings on this game are pretty much the exact same as the SNES version since it's easily the most faithful of the Super Mario Advance games. It's still a great game with solid levels and visuals. I do prefer the way the original sounds but this one isn't bad or jarringly different, not even the voices, which I'm cool with. I've never played the extra secret levels added to this version so no comment there. If this is your only means of playing this game, you're still in for a good time.

Pros: One of the most impressive SNES games runs pretty great on the GBA. I'd say, in some ways, it plays even better. For one, egg-aiming/throwing is now mapped to the R button, which, is actually a lot more comfortable than it being mapped to the A button on SNES! Going from licking to aiming/throwing doesn't require you carrying your thumb across the controller to press different buttons, it's a plus! Another plus to this version, are the six new original levels unlocked after beating the game, and they're great levels too! One of them involves every single transformation of Yoshi's in the game, like an Animal Antics from DKC2, and it's a great stage! Some other minor additions too, like an overworld map where you see Baby Luigi at the end of the road in Baby Bowser's Castle, and the SHOES!! Each colored Yoshi has their own unique corresponding colored shoes, like in Yoshi Story or in the intro of SNES original. The game, we all know it, we all love it, it's a masterpiece, and thankfully it still is here.

Cons: Some of the content from the original that was Super FX didn't all transfer over perfectly, such as the Touch Fuzzy Get Dizzy moments, as well as the framerate of the end credits... And that's unfortunate, as the end credits made for a very important and emotional conclusion in the original, it's still fine here, but not as great because of it. Also the resolution of the GBA is a bit smaller, and larger resolution is something that's more important for a game like Yoshi's Island where you're exploring every corner of the stage, as well as aiming and firing eggs in all directions too. And my last complaint... The baby Yoshi voice from Yoshi's Story is all over this port... just permeates the whole thing, replacing the original weird squishy trumpet-y sound Yoshi made in the original. And yeah, I will say it, that Yoshi voice is more annoying than Baby Mario's crying.

What it means to me: One of my favorite games of all time, on my person, to play anywhere at any time. I loved it. It was in my GBA SP more than most other games even, played it a lot on the train rides to and fro work or school, it was a great companion game. Hard to go wrong with this one!

I put this game down for so long, I started it back when I was in High School I think, right around the time I started getting into JRPGs and game collecting so this game fell by the wayside after only getting 1/3 the way through the game.

Finally picked it up again, playing on a frontlit NES GBA to emulate the look of the DS phat I played it on originally back then. I find some of the game design annoying, like baby Mario flying off over pits or inside bosses where he is hard or impossible to reach, and how slow the game can feel at times, but it's all really minor and I think the game is great. I'm sure the SNES version looks and sounds better but this was the only version I knew originally.

I love the backgrounds so much, especially the autumn forest ones and the caves. The cave theme in this game is AMAZING. Slightly spooky slightly soothing. I suck at video games so this game can be a little hard for me, but otherwise it is such a cozy game with pretty graphics and great music and a laid back approach to gameplay (in most levels).

If you haven't played it already you should give it a try on a lazy afternoon.

This was my childhood platformer. Others played Mario or Metroid, I played this on my GBA, and I have no regrets. This game was awesome. The visual design of the levels was always beautiful while still being easy to navigate, the music was fantastic, and the gameplay was engaging throughout, with small mini-games or set piece sections to break-up the flow. Baby Mario's cry is seared into my brain, a testament to how effective a gameplay mechanic it is when playing.

Truly a defining game of my childhood, and one that I replayed many times over trying to perfect each and every level.