Checkpoint Ring

A Middle Ring (also known as a Checkpoint Ring  ) is a ring of light in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3, Yoshi's Island DS, and Yoshi's New Island. It appears partway through most stages and serves as a checkpoint. If a Yoshi loses a life after passing through one, he can restart at the point of the Middle Ring. Also, passing through a Middle Ring will increase Yoshi's Star Power by ten and turn all on-screen enemies into stars.

If Yoshi dies after reaching a Middle Ring in the SNES, GBA, or DS games, the player will keep the star count (including the extra 10 from reaching the ring) and eggs that they had when they touched it. However, in the 3DS game, the player's star and egg counts will reset to 10 and zero, respectively, if the player dies and restarts from a Middle Ring.

Despite their name, Middle Rings are not always placed in the middle of a stage. Some can be found at the very beginning, or not until near the end. A few stages even have multiple Middle Rings and there are always a couple before boss fights.