Yoshi’s Safari
The only Mario game requiring the Nintendo Scope
Overview
Yoshi’s Safari is a light gun shooter for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System — and uniquely, the only Mario game to require the Nintendo Scope (the SNES bazooka-style peripheral). Players ride on Yoshi’s back through twelve stages across two realms — the Light Realm and the Dark Realm — blasting enemies and bosses with the Scope to recover twelve stolen magic gems and rescue the imprisoned rulers of Jewellery Land.
The game uses Nintendo’s Mode 7 technology to process the Nintendo Scope’s targeting, recognising exactly where the player is pointing the peripheral at the screen. A second player can join in cooperative mode: one controls Yoshi’s movement while the other handles the shooting — making it one of the few Mario games with a genuine two-player co-op mode where each player has a distinct role.
Bowser and the Koopalings each pilot outlandish mechanical robots as the stage bosses, making this one of the few games in which all seven Koopalings appear as individual boss fights. The game is notable for its colourful, imaginative boss designs.
Story
“Jewelry Land, a peaceful land ruled by King Fret and his son, Prince Pine, was named for the kingdom’s greatest treasure: a set of twelve magic gems. These magic gems had protected the land from natural disasters for all time. Then one day, Bowser and the Koopalings moved in, stole the twelve magic gems and kidnapped both the king and the prince. The earthquake that resulted from the theft of the jewels split the kingdom into two parts, a Light Realm and a Dark Realm. The Koopas held King Fret captive in the Light Realm and Prince Pine prisoner in the Dark Realm. Prince Pine’s friend, Princess Peach heard the news and asked for help from Mario and Yoshi.” — From the instruction booklet
Mario and Yoshi set out on a journey through the twelve stages of Jewellery Land. After clearing all six stages of the Light Realm, King Fret is freed. Clearing the Dark Realm’s six stages — and ultimately defeating Bowser in his mechanical armour — frees Prince Pine and restores peace to the land.
Gameplay
Yoshi’s Safari is played from a first-person perspective seated on Yoshi’s back. Yoshi walks automatically along a fixed path through each stage; the player’s only direct control is aiming and firing the Nintendo Scope at enemies, obstacles and eventually the stage boss.
Players fire a continuous stream of shots by holding the fire button, or use the turbo button for a faster rate of fire. Each enemy has a hit point total and must be shot enough times to defeat it. Yoshi has a health bar — enemies that reach Yoshi deal damage, and if his health is depleted the player loses a life. Health and power-ups appear in floating bubbles throughout each stage.
Stages end with a two-phase boss encounter: a mini-boss mid-way through, and one of the Koopalings (or Bowser) in a large mechanical robot at the end. Both boss phases require shooting specific weak points while dodging attacks.
Promotional artwork
The promotional group artwork produced for Yoshi’s Safari features Mario, Yoshi, Princess Peach and the Koopalings in a distinctive painted style — a vivid snapshot of the full cast:
Official promotional group artwork for Yoshi’s Safari (1993)
Artwork showing Yoshi’s back-of-saddle viewpoint
Mario and Yoshi ready for action
Playable characters
Mario aims and fires the Nintendo Scope from Yoshi’s back, targeting enemies throughout each stage. He is not directly visible during gameplay — the player sees the world from his perspective.
Yoshi carries Mario automatically through each stage along a fixed path, stopping when a boss blocks the way. If hit by enemy attacks, he loses health. A second player can control Yoshi’s movement in two-player co-op mode.
Non-playable characters
The princess of the Mushroom Kingdom who receives news of Jewellery Land’s plight from her friend Prince Pine. She calls on Mario and Yoshi to help and sends them on their journey.
The King of Jewellery Land, held captive by Bowser in the Light Realm. He is rescued after all six Light Realm stages are completed.
King Fret’s son and Princess Peach’s friend, imprisoned by Bowser in the Dark Realm. Rescuing him — by defeating Bowser — brings peace back to Jewellery Land.
Enemies
Most enemies fly at Yoshi in waves and must be shot before reaching him. Each has a set number of hit points. Some enemies appear only in specific stages:
Normal enemies
Flying GoombaStages 1,2,4,5,6,10,12
Koopa Paratr. (Green)Multiple stages
Koopa Paratr. (Yellow)Multiple stages
Koopa Paratr. (Blue)Multiple stages
Koopa Paratr. (Pink)Multiple stages
Bullet BillStages 1,5,7,10,12
Koopa ShellBounces off walls
Lava BubbleFire stages
Nipper PlantGround enemy
Monty MolePops from ground
Cheep CheepWater stages
BlooperUnderwater stages
Para-bombDrops from sky
Bob-ombExplodes on contact
Spiny EggThrown by Lakitus
SpinyCannot be stomped
BooGhost House stages
MechakoopaMechanical; walksMini-bosses
Bosses — the Koopalings & Bowser
Each stage culminates in a two-phase Koopaling boss fight. All seven Koopalings pilot elaborate mechanical robots built by Dr. Nakamatsu, each with a unique attack pattern and weak point:
Levels
Twelve stages are spread across two realms. Within each realm, stages can be tackled in any order — except Bowser’s Castle, which unlocks after clearing stages 8–11. Completing the Light Realm rescues King Fret; completing the Dark Realm rescues Prince Pine.
Map of Jewellery Land’s Light Realm
Light Realm
Dark Realm
Items
Stage items
These items appear in floating bubbles throughout each stage and can be collected by shooting them:
| Item | Description | |
|---|---|---|
 |
Coin | Worth 100 coins for an extra life — but in Yoshi’s Safari they function as a small score bonus. |
 |
Super Mushroom | Restores a portion of Yoshi’s health bar when shot and collected. |
 |
Fire Flower | Grants a brief period of rapid-fire shots from the Nintendo Scope. |
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Super Star | Briefly makes Yoshi invincible — enemies that reach him do no damage. |
|
1-Up Mushroom | Grants an extra life immediately. |
Boss battle items
These items appear exclusively during boss encounters in special floating bubbles:
| Item | Description | |
|---|---|---|
|
Super Mushroom | Restores health during a boss fight — important for surviving the tougher two-phase bosses. |
 |
Berry | A Yoshi Berry that restores a small amount of Yoshi’s stamina. |
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Clock | Temporarily freezes the boss in place, allowing a flurry of free hits. |
|
Scope Power-up | Boosts the Nintendo Scope’s firepower temporarily — more damage per shot. |
Nintendo Power coverage
Nintendo Power devoted significant coverage to Yoshi’s Safari in Volume 55 (December 1993) — not just one article, but two separate features in the same issue:
Appearances in Super Mario manga by Kodansha
Yoshi’s Safari received unusually extensive treatment in the Super Mario manga published by Kodansha — adapted into two dedicated volumes of the Yoshi no Road Hunting series, plus appearances across three volumes of the long-running Super Mario-kun series.
Super Mario: Yoshi no Road Hunting (Kodansha)
Written and drawn by Kazuki Motoyama, this two-volume series is a direct adaptation of Yoshi’s Safari. Bowser forces Dr. Mario Nakamatsu to build mech suits for him and the Koopalings. Mario and Yoshi retrieve the Nintendo Scope from Big Bertha and Yoshi (characters from the Super Mario Bros. film) before heading to Jewellery Land at Princess Peach’s request. Click any cover to view full size.
Super Mario-kun (Kodansha)
Yoshi’s Safari also appears across three volumes of Super Mario-kun. Click any cover to view full size.
Trivia & interesting facts
- Yoshi’s Safari is the only Mario game to require the Nintendo Scope — the SNES bazooka light gun peripheral
- The game uses Mode 7 technology to track where the Nintendo Scope is pointing on the screen in real time
- Two-player co-op is supported: one player controls Yoshi’s movement while the other operates the Scope
- All seven Koopalings appear as individual boss fights — one of very few Mario games to feature all seven in the same game
- Each Koopaling pilots a unique mechanical robot — designed by the fictional in-manga character Dr. Mario Nakamatsu
- Wendy O. Koopa is the only Koopaling who does not use a robot — she fights directly
- The game received two separate manga adaptations by Kodansha — the two-volume Yoshi no Road Hunting series — plus appearances in three volumes of Super Mario-kun
- Nintendo Power Vol. 55 (December 1993) featured two separate articles on Yoshi’s Safari in the same issue
- The twelve magic gems correspond to the twelve stages — one gem is recovered per stage
- Bowser’s Castle is locked until stages 8–11 (all four Dark Realm stages except Bowser’s Castle itself) have been completed
- The game was released in Japan on 14 July 1993 and North America on 3 September 1993
- Jewellery Land’s split into Light Realm and Dark Realm mirrors the structure of many Zelda games of the era
Reference & downloads
Guides & reference
Nintendo Power coverage
Media