The 'Shroom:Issue IV/From the Mushroom Vaults

From the Mushroom Vaults by

From the Mushroom Vaults: Easterly Eggses and Things that go OW in the Night!
This month, I’m offering a full-fledged walkthrough for the YIDS level “Yoshi’s Island Easter Eggs”, plus a couple of miscellaneous tips for DKC2 and DK:KS. Also, I’m introducing the Monthly Challenge section. Have fun!

“Gaze upon my knowledge!” ~ Cranky Kong

Easter? In March?
We know it probably took you forever to complete that annoying Yoshi’s Island DS, but Easter? Already?

Yoshi’s Island Easter Eggs is an annoying collection of extremely annoying tricks. Though you’re probably mastered most of them (Lakitu hijacking, anyone?) there’s still plenty to be learned… through trial and error. With this guide, though, it’ll even out the chances to mostly trial.

Egg #1: Yoshi Terrorists attack Civilian Lakitus!
Poor Lakitus. What have they done to deserve mauling and cloud-stealing of the first degree? They chuck Spiny eggs at Yoshi and attempt dive-bombing of the second degree, that’s what.

Simply leap atop the Lakitu while he whizzes about the room, trying to find a shot. Then into the spiky room, on the Lakitu’s cloud, you go! Grab the key to the right before going to the left. (A small note: Try not to land atop the platform the key is on, as this will cause the cloud to drift out from Yoshi’s feet, marooning him in spike land! Instead, grab the key by going through the platform from below.)

There’s Red Coins hidden in that patch of yellow coins in the corner, so snag them before unlocking the door.

I Can’t Believe It’s Not A Trampoline!
They’re floating, bloated, rotund, not fun, A-N-N-NOYING… the Bouncie room is one of the most annoying features of this level. If Yoshi watches his bounce, he can soar to extreme heights. But bounce off the wrong end of the pink blowhards, and Yoshi gets propelled into the depths.

There are red coins in the following areas: After two formations of coins, drop down a bit to find a formation of coins shaped like three “+” symbols. There’s a Red Coin in the middle! At the edge of the wall, the closest coin to the wall is a Red one in disguise. Leap off the ledge with the door and flutter through the nearest row of coins for one more Red Coin.

After reaching the door, Yoshi should flutter and Bouncie all the way to a Flower and a platform with a key to the door.

Crouching Shy Guy, Hidden Platforms
This one has straightforward items… but a really annoying gimmick. There’s a Shy Guy in the middle of the room, shielded from all Yoshi attacks by a brick wall, turning the platforms on and off! It takes awhile to get the rhythm… after wasting about 83 lives, though, you’re bound to get it. There’s a Flower in the bottom-right corner of the room; lock the aiming cursor down-right, then flutter across the room and snipe it when the platforms go off. Plus, the five-coin formation to the right of Shy Guy’s barrier conceals two red coins. With perfect timing, Yoshi must grab the key without being crushed by the platforms, then race to the left and unlock the door… which also sits precariously on a temporary platform!

Lemme On! Lemme On! My Turn! My Turn!
After the last “egg”, the solution to this one should be obvious. Slurp the Shy Guys, then, holding down Up on the D-Pad, spit them so they land on all four switches. Be sure to save one or two eggs to shoot the two Red Coins and the Winged Cloud above the pipe for the key first, though!

LIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGHTS OOOOOOOOOOOOOOUT!
Remember those dark, dank levels with torches? This “egg” takes that a bit further. Without the lights from stomping the ! Switches, the room goes entirely black, except for a halo of light around Yoshi! Plus, this little gimmick is a real ”help” to item collection.

After hitting the third switch, take a ride on the platform for a Red Coin. Hit the switch again as soon as the lights go out. After bouncing for a Flower, flutter right until a switch is seen. Above it is a Red Coin. (Incidentally, after hitting this switch, one can bounce off it and, with extreme fluttering finesse, make it to the next platform with a switch without riding a precarious moving platform. Also, this allows easy access to the key and last Red Coin, which are located right by the highest switch!)

A Yoshi in a Foreign Spiky Land
By far the hardest of them all, this “egg” has Yoshi riding an egg-fueled platform across a deadly land of spikes. One misstep and Yoshi is a Kamek kebab.

To start, throw five eggs at the platform, but, when the platform nears a spiked weight, leap off. Grab the free eggs, and grab the Red Coin in the “+” shaped formation. Throw all remaining eggs at the handing weight, wait for it to rise, then flutter under and onto the nearest platform. Fill up with yolky ammo, throwing one at another “+” coin formation for another Red Coin. Once again, throw about five eggs at the platform, but this time, throw them very slowly. Chuck three eggs at the next weight and wait for it to come all the way up, fill up with the Egg Blocks, then fling enough eggs at the weight to allow Yoshi to pass under. HOW-EVER, when Yoshi passes under, the weight will be low enough to smash Yoshi’s eggs thrown at the platform. So, before passing under, throw as many eggs as possible to propel Yoshi from under the spiked thingamajig. Grab the eggs with Yoshi’s tongue to avoid losing the platform, then, once again, fling an egg at that formation there for one more Red Coin. Whew! By the way, save one egg to hit the Winged Cloud with for a key, or Yoshi has no way out but suicide.

Pimp my Arrow Wheel
This one features those hard-to-maneuver wheels…. upgraded with (finger quotes) invisible rocket engines! (/finger quotes) Fortunately, the items are obvious. Whenever a “+” formation of coins is seen, there’s a Red Coin in the middle. Plus, there’s a Flower that’s smack dab in a corner. Throw an egg at it to avoid a spiny end.

The door presents an interesting problem, as there’s no platform underneath it! Yoshi must use the wheel as a makeshift ledge to enter it.

Herbicidal Hero
Ever wish there was a chance to use Superstar Mario to the max? This “egg” grants that wish. However, there’s a catch. All Piranha Plants in this room must meet their doom before the large block blocking the entrance to the exit can be opened! Fortunately, there are only two Red Coins here; the last two top rows of coins before the exit conceal the two prizes. Oh, and grab the Flower too.

A winning strategy to win this level is to backtrack as much as possible. The Stars resupply themselves when Mario wanders off-screen, making an opportunity for unlimited super power! By the way, it wouldn’t hurt to supply an egg for the end, as the key for the door is stuck in a Winged Cloud. Woes betide those Yoshis that do not bring supplies. Tsk, tsk.

The Egg which is an Egg
Finally, there’s a real honest-to-crawfish Easter Egg in this level. Something in this level, that can be seen in every “egg”, that reduces itself every time Yoshi goes in a door, which appeared in the original Island, is found here. What is it? Let me know on my talk page if you figure it out!

Brambly Scrambly
OW! Those brambly levels of Donkey Kong Country 2 are one huge pain in... various places. But there is a way to bypass the pain of getting thorns imbedded in your rear. When using Squawks, the Kong’s underbellies become invincible. So you can land on briars without getting hurt! At least, in the GBA version you can. Research for the SNES version is currently in limbo due to the writer’s cheapskate parents not wanting to buy an SNES off eBay.

Right on the Sweet Spot
In Donkey Kong: King of Swing, when you hit an enemy/obstacle, you go flying back, right? This can be annoying. But it can also be the key to completing the most horribly horrendous level of the whole game (and that’s pretty bad). The Diddy Kong time trials are most likely the most annoying thing since the advent of faulty Wi-Fi connectors and dishonest eBay sellers. And the last level, the K. Kruizer engine, takes the grand scoop as THE most EVIL level in a peg-grabbing GBA adventure. That’s really bad. And, as you can guess, the Time Trial for the level doesn’t ease up one bit in toughness. But there is a way to cheat a little. When Diddy lands on top of a spiked ball, he flies into the air, much higher than even when he Goes Bananas. In the first area of the K. Kruizer Engine level, instead of slamming all the ? Barrels, you can just leap on top of the spiked balls to propel Diddy to the top of the area. After that, completing it should be EZ. Have fun beating the rest of it. Not.

Monthly Challenge: Race through the Galleon
This month’s challenge: See if you can beat the first three levels of Donkey Kong Country 2 in less than 30 seconds! If you are able to, PM your achievement to me on the forum or here on the Wiki, and I’ll list you as a winner both here and on my user page.

Have fun with your newfound knowledge! And for those of you who think that Waluigi is in SM64DS, or that Wario is in SM64, go jump in the lake.

64/\/\3 0\/35!