Constant Limit

Everyone knows who Yoshi is, Mario’s (and Luigi’s) little green dino buddy. With a bottomless pit appetite and steel-toed boots, Yoshi quickly became an icon in the Mario franchise. In fact, Yoshi ends up with his own starring role in Yoshi’s Island. Was there anything in Mario history that could have hinted at Yoshi’s arrival? Was there anything at all that could have foreshadowed that the white egg with green polka dots on it would one day hatch Mario’s newest buddy?

If you have played Super Mario Bros. 3 then you may have noticed something the served as precursor for Yoshi. In world 5-3, you have noticed this strange little goomba inside a green shoe. If you can knock the goomba out of its shoe then Mario can use it just like Yoshi. This shoe is called Kuribo’s Shoe and it works very similar to Yoshi. Both Yoshi and Kuribo’s Shoe can walk on top of enemies that would normally harm Mario. Mario rides inside the shoe just like Mario rides on top of Yoshi. Yoshi can jump and Kuribo’s Shoe can hop around. They are both colored green, which is Yoshi’s main color. Yoshis come in several colors but green is his signature color. There is a strong possibilty that Yoshi evolved from Kuribo’s Shoe and hence surfaced in the later game Super Mario World, which followed Super Mario 3. Yoshi however evolved from Kuribo’s Shoe as expected since he came after the shoe. Yoshi can fly and also eat enemies.

 You can view Kuribo’s Shoe in action in this YouTube video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6n-jtXDqys4

Do you notice any other similarties between them or have other insight to offer? Feel free to post a comment!