Is Yoshi a Dinosaur?

Yoshi is a classic character from Nintendo’s Super Mario games. He first appeared in Super Mario World, released in 1990. Since then, he’s appeared in a wide variety of Nintendo Games, from their Mario Party franchise to Super Smash Bros. and more! But Yoshi’s design doesn’t exactly reveal all of his secrets. He’s got more to him than meets the eye, even though he looks a bit inspired by a T-Rex.

But is Yoshi really, truly a dinosaur? The short answer is: yes. The long answer (about as long as Yoshi‘s tongue) is a bit more complicated.

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Yoshi’s Design

Nintendo always wanted Mario to have a dinosaur companion. They wanted him to have a steed, and they were open-minded to horses, lizards, dinosaurs, or just about anything. However, the technology simply wouldn’t permit such gameplay at the time.

Despite the limitations, they were eager to create a new character for the moment technology allowed it. Eventually, Yoshi was designed by Shigefumi Hino, who was inspired by both dinosaurs and the green dragon Tamagon in the Nintendo game called Devil World.

Yoshi finally came to life when the Super NES was released, and while his original designs borrowed short arms and powerful legs from the dinosaurs, there were other characteristics that stood apart. Perhaps the most notable are the classic brown shoes on his feet. His round face is also much more friendly that any dinosaur’s snout. Over the years, Yoshi’s long neck was shortened, his sharped edges were smoothed out, and he was given full length arms and fingers, unlike his prehistoric counterparts.

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Yoshi’s Powers

Yoshi’s primary power is his ability to eat absolutely everything. He can rocket out his sticky tongue and latch onto objects, then retract and devour them in an instant. One big gulp later, and Yoshi can encase his capture in an egg shell that has spots the very same color as the creature’s skin. Yoshi can also rocket those eggs out in a projectile attack, just like in Super Smash Bros!

There’s more than just the green Yoshi! There are many different colored Yoshi, including: Red, Pink, Yellow, Light Blue, Orange, Green, Blue, Purple, White, Black, and Brown. Depending on the game, different Yoshi colors have different powers.

Red Yoshi can shoot fireballs. Blue Yoshi can fly when they have Koopa Shells. Yellow Yoshis can ground pound. Black Yoshi can eat anything without damage. White Yoshi runs extra fast!

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Yoshi’s Language

Each type of Yoshi has slightly different abilities, but all Yoshi have one thing in common: they are there to help. Whether it’s saving Baby Mario and Baby Luigi, or just fighting alongside their friends, Yoshi has always been there to step up to the plate when there’s a challenge ahead. Yoshi is extremely intelligent, and can understand all forms of communication. Not only that, but some Yoshi can even speak!

It’s rare to find a talkative Yoshi, but all of them are very expressive and make noises to communicate their moods and emotions. And while we don’t know exactly what sounds dinosaurs made, we know for sure that they didn’t speak English or Japanese. But Yoshi has done that, and more. He is intelligent and compassionate, through and through!

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If Yoshi is a dinosaur, then he is by far one of the most unique dinosaurs of all time. He is certainly dinosaur-inspired, and his official description lists him as a dinosaur!

What do you think Yoshi’s official classification should be? Let us know in the comments, and don’t forget to Let Your Geek Sideshow!