I had a pretty decent time with Yoshi and the Mysterious Book. It’s a charming experience filled with wonder and imagination, but thanks to the repetitive, overly-simplified structure, that imagination is never afforded enough space to really shine.

I tolerated this, however, and had a good time discovering the game’s many weird and wonderful creatures. Before I even started, I felt at peace with the knowledge that it would probably never reach the heights of Yoshi’s Island on the SNES (honestly, what can?), and so I enjoyed it for what it was.

That is, until I reached World 6.

(Before I go any further, here’s your SPOILER WARNING in case you haven’t gotten that far yet…)

Your goal in Mysterious Book is to eventually discover a creature called the Bewilder Bird before Bowser Jr. and Kamek do so. I couldn’t divulge the existence of this creature in my review as it was under embargo, so the Bewilder Bird’s unique ability was also off limits.

Y’see, every creature discovered until this point possesses abilities that help you navigate the environment and bypass certain obstacles. Snurfboard lets you ride across waves in style, Swirm catapults you across wide gaps, Stickiwick lets you swing from platforms like Spider-Man… You get it.

Every level is specifically designed to take advantage of each creature’s ability. This is what I mean when I say the game’s creativity is somewhat stifled, as you’re constantly doing what it wants you to do. The illusion of freedom and creativity is there, but once you figure out how to trigger the various discoveries (and that doesn’t take long), you quickly sink into a tedious rhythm.

Until you discover the Bewilder Bird. See, this thing is special in that it can instantly transform into any creature you’ve previously discovered. Executing this for the first time felt like a lightbulb moment – suddenly, everything made sense. The game was building to this moment. Everything before was a mere tutorial, and now I’d be let loose to experiment with different creatures and see which ones best suit the obstacles that lie ahead…

After discovering the Bewilder Bird, you come across a large waterfall with no clear guidance on what to do. How do you get up? Well, let’s see what’s in the Creature Index… Ah, yes, the Glubbit will blow bubbles and let you float to the top, so that’s an option. Alternatively, the Goonie can simply fly up in short diagonal bursts – slightly less elegant, but a sound choice.

Once at the top, you come across a large body of water. Sure, you can toddle across just fine on your own, but why not break out Snurfboard for a slightly quicker jaunt? Better yet, you could try Bafloonder and explore the water’s depths, shooting through at speed to mop up any lingering collectibles.

My point is that the game’s surface-level creativity is finally unleashed once you discover the Bewilder Bird. I saw Mysterious Book being loosely described as a ‘platformer Breath of the Wild’ in VGC’s review, and when you’re tinkering with dozens upon dozens of creature abilities, I can kind of understand the comparison (though I would perhaps argue that it has more in common with Echoes of Wisdom).

The problem — the big problem — is that it only lasts for one level. It appears briefly much later in the game, but fundamentally once you’re done with World 6, you go right back to the status quo in which you find new creatures and use their sole abilities to make discoveries. So all of that potential to experiment and tackle obstacles and puzzles in multiple ways just…doesn’t happen.

Frankly, it makes me a little angry; angry that such a wonderful gameplay mechanic appears so fleetingly. Honestly, I don’t think it’s hyperbole to state that Good-Feel could have crafted an entire game based around the Bewilder Bird’s ability, and I’ve been scratching my head as to why it didn’t have the ambition to do so. Was it a lack of time? An obligation to keep the game simple for younger players?

My only hope is that we get some sort of DLC expansion at some point that really homes in on the Bewilder Bird’s abilities. I’m not asking for something exceptionally challenging, because that would fundamentally break from what Mysterious Book is trying to do, but just… something more, y’know? A selection of large, sandbox levels that let you experiment and push the boundaries of creativity would be wonderful.

As it is, Yoshi and the Mysterious Book genuinely could have been an all-timer. But in showcasing such a brief glimpse of its tremendous potential, it exacerbates its shortcomings.

What do you make of this? Do you wish Good-Feel did more with the Bewilder Bird’s ability? Let us know with a comment.