It's MAR10 day! But in the spirit of celebrating the quirky plumber who has given us so many amazing games over the years, I think we need to focus on the real star of the show. In November 1990 (1991 in the US), Nintendo fans were given a gift. Super Mario World hit the shelves and introduced perhaps one of the best, if not most adorable, video game characters of all time: Yoshi. This green dinosaur added a refreshing new game mechanic to the legendary platformer and became a fan-favorite character who would eventually star in the game's sequel (Prequel? I'm not sure; Nintendo timelines are weird.)

It's been about 35 years since Yoshi came on to the scene, and he has plenty of amazing games to show for it. With the Nintendo Switch 2 release on the horizon, I'm just as excited for what's to come. For now, we've got some great Yoshi games worth playing. While you can find Yoshi in plenty of Mario "party" games, like Super Smash Brothers, Mario Kart, and the various sports games, we're keeping this list to the best games to feature or star Yoshi himself. So, saddle up and let's ride.

7 Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island

Pop-up art never looked so cute

• Platform: Super Nintendo, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo 3DS and Wii U Virtual Console, SNES Classic Edition, Nintendo Switch Online

Off the heels of his debut in Super Mario World, Yoshi stars in his own outing in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi’s Island. With stunning, hand-drawn-inspired graphics, Yoshi is doing what he can to keep baby Mario safe, and save his brother, Luigi, from the clutches of Bowser. Don’t let the cute art style fool you; Yoshi’s Island is a challenging 2-D platformer.

Players must make their way through each course, defeating enemies and keeping baby Mario safe. Yoshi may be invincible, but one hit will send baby Mario floating off in a bubble, easy prey for the Kooplings. Don’t worry; Mario won’t let Yoshi hear the end of it since he cries until you pop the bubble. Yoshi’s Island has a lot of heart and fun, and it is one of the best platformers you can play.

6 Super Mario Galaxy 2

Blasting off to outer space

• Platform: Wii, Wii U

How do you improve on the epic that is Super Mario Galaxy? You add Yoshi to it. Super Mario Galaxy 2 takes a page from Super Mario World, and Yoshi returns as Mario’s trusty steed. You can access Yoshi at specific levels, and he helps Mario by using his adorable arsenal of skills. Yoshi can eat enemies, use his tongue to cross gaps and pull levers, or he can perform his flutter jump to give players that extra boost.

He can also eat berries and other objects that grant him special abilities for a short time, like the Dash Pepper for extra speed and Blimp fruit for more air time. Like Super Mario World, if Mario takes damage, Yoshi will throw him off and run away. If you can’t catch him, you can always find him hiding in an egg elsewhere on the level.

5 Super Mario Brothers Wonder

You're practically invincible

• Platform: Nintendo Switch

Super Mario Brothers Wonder is a colorful and musical addition to the Mario cannon, where the gang is trying to stop Bowser from taking over the Flower Kingdom. In addition to other popular characters in the franchise, players can play as everyone’s favorite green dinosaur…or blue, pink, or red. Picking Yoshi has a few pros and cons, though.

While playing as Yoshi, players are invulnerable to enemy attacks and level hazards, except falling holes. He also has his signature flutter jump, which can help him clear jumps and reach a few higher platforms much easier than other characters. The downside, however, is that he can’t use any power-ups. That, and it does make the game a little bit too easy. Yoshi is the perfect character if you’re new to Mario games or are introducing your little ones to games. Plus, he’s just so adorable.

4 Yoshi’s Crafted World

Being adorable is an art form

• Platform: Nintendo Switch

My favorite part about Yoshi-led games is the art direction, and Yoshi’s Crafted World is no exception. Kamek is at it again, and he and Baby Bowser want to steal the Sundream Stone from Yoshi’s Island. While the plot is typical Mario-fare, this game is creative in every sense of the word. The entire world is constructed out of crafting materials, from the buildings to the scenery. It leans on the design to make for some fun, whimsical exploration, and puzzle solving. Every bit is intentional, from the cardboard cutouts to the somehow 2D feel to this 3D world. Pay attention to everything — you never know what you might miss in the foreground and background.

It’s charming, to say the least, but not incredibly difficult. But not every game has to be Dark Souls, making this a perfect game to get your kids into gaming. Plus, it’s multiplayer, so you can play together.

3 Yoshi’s Woolly World

Cozy, cuddly, and cute

• Platform: Wii U, Nintendo 3DS

Equally adorable, Yoshi’s Crafted World’s predecessor, Yoshi’s Wooly World takes creativity seriously. Everything in this world is fresh from the yarn basket, and the evil Kamek is determined to unravel it all. It’s your job to find all of the yarn and bring back the other Yoshis. The soft, plushie design is whimsical, and each level is ridiculously creative. It’s not a difficult game to play, which was one of the major criticisms of the title, but honestly, when you can unlock dozens of other yarn Yoshi in crazy designs, who cares?

If you’re one of the 10 people who owned a Wii U (like me), this is a sweet, fun game you should have. The accompanying amiibo also makes super cute decor.

2 Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door

Lovable even when smiting enemies

• Platform: GameCube, Nintendo Switch

While Yoshi has appeared in other Mario RPGs, in Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, one actually joins your party. Yoshi, or whatever you decide to name him, is an excellent companion the moment he hatches. Depending on a few factors, the color of your Yoshi companion will vary, but his skillset remains the same.

This little guy can eat nearly anything, and spit it back out, damaging your enemy and whoever else gets hit by the living projectile. For someone who just hatched, he certainly had a chip on his shoulder, and a personality for days. That doesn’t make him any less adorable, and he’s a great partner to have along on Mario’s journey to save Princess Peach.

1 Super Mario World

Nothing can beat the OG

• Platform: Super Nintendo, Game Boy Advance, Wii and Wii U Virtual Console, Nintendo Switch Online, SNES Classic Edition

Of course, there’s no better Yoshi game than the one that introduced us to the character. Super Mario World is arguably one of the best Super Mario games of all time, and Yoshi burst out of his egg onto the scene. Yoshi appears throughout the levels in Super Mario World, acting as a sort of power-up. He can eat enemies, spit out shells, and acts as a damage buffer for Mario. You can also heartlessly abandon Yoshi to save your own skin if you’re plunging to your death.

While you typically find the standard green Yoshi in most eggs, you can find Yoshis of various colors who have extra abilities when they swallow a shell. If you find the appropriate shell, the green Yoshi can get these abilities too, and he could stomp heavily, spit fire, or even fly. Regardless of how you plan to use Yoshi, he's always an excellent companion, ready to battle Bowser and his minions - unless you're going into a castle or a haunted house; Mario's on his own for that.

Yoshi!

From his epic entrance to his creatively inspired solo titles, Yoshi is an adorable staple in the Mario universe. With the announcement of the Nintendo Switch 2 and the anticipation over another potential Mario release, I hope that Yoshi will have another title of his own to usher in the new Nintendo era. While there hasn't been any rumblings, I am excited to see what they can possibly do next to push creative boundaries. Plus, I just need more Yoshi in my life.