[REVIEW] Yooka-Replaylee | Nintendo Switch 2

Yooka-Laylee was first released in 2017 for consoles and PC. It was an ambitious project by ex-Rare developers who founded Playtonic and started a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for their Rare-vival in 3D Platforming Collectathons. The campaign was a complete success, and Yooka-Laylee was developed and published. Unfortunately, while the game was marketed as a “Spiritual Successor to Banjo-Kazooie” it received mixed reviews from critics and the general public alike. The controls were a little sluggish at times, the camera would misbehave, and its characters didn’t quite have the charm as the ones they were inspired by. These were just some of the critiques at the time, and there were many more that used far harsher words, but we shall not divulge them here.

Moving forward to 2025, and Yooka-Laylee has been given a complete overhaul with a Remake??? Remaster??? We’ll just call it a Re-dooie. Now renamed as Yooka-Replaylee, the developers over at Playtonic and PM Studios have been hard at work to rebuild the game from the ground up and have completely reworked the controls, gameplay mechanics, improved the visuals, and even added more collectibles!!! There were so many things that the developers wanted to do when they first developed Yooka-Laylee, but they didn’t have the means or the utilities at the time to do so. This time around, Yooka-Replaylee has been given all the time and care that it needed with plenty of polish to make it shine. So, let’s see if this Re-dooie has what it takes to be what it was always meant to be.

The story of Yooka-Replaylee starts a little differently from the original version of the game, with our titular characters, Yooka the Chameleon and Laylee the Bat, recently being shipwrecked after a terrible storm. Whilst exploring a cave nearby to their shipwrecked vessel, they come across a strange book known as the One Book. The valuable tome reveals to Yooka and Laylee that it has the power to make whatever is written in it become true. Before the duo could take advantage of the book, the One Book was all of a sudden whisked away to Hivory Towers, the corporate lair of Capital B. In a last-ditch effort, the book ejected its contents all over the world, scattering its Pagies so that Capital B cannot get his hands on them all. Yooka and Laylee are then tasked by the last remaining Pagie to collect all the others and reunite them with the One Book.

Yooka-Replaylee consists of five worlds that are found inside Grand Tomes and the hub world of Hivory Towers. Each of the five worlds has 50 Pagies to collect and an assortment of other collectibles to find that include Quills, Ghost Writers, Mollycolls, Rextro Coins, and Pagie pieces. The hub world, on the other hand, has its own 50 Pagies to find, but none of the other collectibles. That said, you can find mini Vendi figures hiding in places that can increase the goods available with Vendi the vending machine. The Pagies are the core collectible that the player has to find, as collecting enough of them can open up doors that grant access to other rooms in Hivory Towers, and in turn, access to other grand tome worlds to find more Pagies.

For those who may have played Yooka-Laylee, some things are different this time around. In Yooka-Replaylee, you will already have access to all of Yooka and Laylee’s moves, and the grand tome worlds are already in their expanded state. Trowser the Snake no longer teaches you moves, but instead, can grant you health and stamina perks, as well as increase the number of tonics you may use at any one time, all for the price of Quills, which you can find hidden in each world. As for Vendi, you can acquire all kinds of tonics from her at the cost of Q.U.I.Ds, the main currency of the game. She also has a range of cosmetic items that you can purchase to change up Yooka and Laylee’s style with some new threads. The Pirate Captain’s outfit is a particular favourite of mine, which you can purchase from Vendi in the very first world, and the Shovel Knight attire is also very cool (also available in the first world). Although Q.U.I.Ds are the same currency in each world; the Quills that you obtain in one world cannot be used to buy exclusive items from other worlds. That said, you can buy those same available items from another world using those particular Quills from Trowser by pressing L and R to change his lineup of goods.

Back to Yooka and Laylee’s moves, you can see all of them from the game’s sub menu by pressing the – button and then making your way over to the Moves section. This is particularly handy for new players, as not all of the moves are given tutorials unless in an area that requires the use of a particular move. For example, you may be prompted to use Yooka’s camo cloak ability to get past security doors if you accidentally trigger the door. Laylee’s Sonar ‘Splosion ability may be prompted when in an area with invisible platforms. The Tail Twirl attack (Y button) has been finessed so that you can pretty much use it indefinitely. Pressing the Y button three times in succession will allow you to do a longer twirl that can help push back and defeat enemies. Should you find yourself surrounded by minions, just spam the Y button, and you will clear them all out with nary a scratch whilst filling your coffers with Q.U.I.Ds in the process.

Another big change that I should mention is that Rextro’s mini-games are now gone and replaced with an all-new mini-adventure for Rextro. Rextro’s arcades can still be found in each grand tome world and require a coin that can be found in the same world to play them. Pagies can be collected by playing the mini-game with up to three of them to collect, depending on how well you do. Of course, for something to be given, another must be taken, and that is the multiplayer mode. In Yooka-Laylee, up to four players could participate in up to eight minigames. This mode has been completely removed, and while it is a great shame, it is also not the biggest loss. I found them to be more like a novelty that you would play a few times and then never again.

When it comes to visuals and music, Yooka-Replaylee has really hit it out of the park. Granted, I was skeptical at first about how it would look on Nintendo Switch 2, but it truly does look amazing. The details really do pop out on the Switch 2, and yes, Playtonic really did deliver with a Scaly Yooka and furry Laylee, and they both look amazing in TV and Handheld mode. However, for those who prefer the initial design of the buddy duo, there is a tonic that will turn them into their original form. When it comes to music, there was never a doubt in my mind. The original soundtrack was already peak, and it was never really an issue. The new and improved soundtrack, though, is fully orchestrated and just sounds so much fuller. Grant Kirkhope, David Wise, and Steve Burke worked magic before, but this time, for Yooka-Replaylee, it hits every note superbly.

Wrapping up on Yooka-Replaylee, I know that there were a lot of skeptics out there who thought this game was beyond redemption. It had its chance to revive ’90s 3D platformers and just failed to make its mark. I did quite enjoy it on the Nintendo Switch, but it was no Banjo-Kazooie. It so wanted to fly, but all it could do was glide back to the ground. This time, however, I am having so much fun with Yooka-Replaylee. It has somehow fixed every issue that I ever had with the original game and more so. Yooka-Replaylee is a game that “YOOu KAn REPLAY EEt” over and over again, and will have an incredible time every time.