Whenever there’s a big new franchise release coming to the 3DS (or the DS before it), you can always count on Nintendo to ship a special edition hardware companion. Well, Yoshi’s New Island is launching next Friday, and right on cue Nintendo has announced plans for a Yoshi-themed 3DS XL system.

The Yoshi Edition Nintendo 3DS XL will ship day and date with Yoshi’s New Island on March 14. The $200 system is green with a white backside, featuring an image of Yoshi emblazoned on the front leading a trail of Yoshi eggs displayed across the back of the system.

The only bummer is the fact that this system does not come in a bundle featuring a digital copy of the game like many previous themed 3DS systems. If you want the matching pair, you’ll still have to fork over $39.99 for a sold-separately copy of Yoshi’s New Island.

Pre-orders for the Yoshi Edition Nintendo 3DS XL are now available in the US at Best Buy, GameStop, Target, Toys R Us and Walmart. Point your browser to this page for a list of participating retailers and the corresponding pre-order links.

Hook up with the nearest Nintendo travel agent and start planning your next vacation to Yoshi’s New Island. All you need is a Nintendo 3DS and an eagerness to go on an eggscellent platforming adventure alongside Yoshi and his precious Baby Mario. The only problem is, I don’t know a specific date to plan around yet. Nintendo’s E3 master press release says the game is scheduled for this holiday season, while the game’s fact sheet lists a 2014 launch date. I guess that means we can expect it either late this year or early next, but I’ll keep an eye out for additional details in the coming months and let you know once a firm release is set.

It’s been close to seven years since the last Yoshi’s Island romp hatched on the DS. In that time, Yoshi has learned some new tricks. He can still Flutter Jump, Ground Pound and Egg Throw with the best of the anthropomorphic dinosaurs, and now he has mastered the ability to hurl super-sized Mega Eggs that fill the screen and crush everything in their path. The series’ hand-drawn aesthetic is also expanding to include additional artistic styles, such as watercolors, crayons and oil painting.

See, look how delightful Yoshi’s New Island is. It’s like taking a vacation inside a child’s arts and crafts project.

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Another exciting Wii U game announcement from this morning’s Nintendo Direct presentation was the reveal of a new Yoshi game, the first console game to star Mario’s loveable dinosaur sidekick as the main playable character since Yoshi’s Story graced the N64 15 years ago.

Currently, the new game is carrying the working title of Yoshi Wii U, so obviously Nintendo isn’t going crazy with specifics just yet. What has been revealed, though, is that the game is being made by the team behind Kirby’s Epic Yarn, under the supervision of Yoshi’s Island and Yoshi’s Story director Takashi Tezuka, and will similarly take place in a “fanciful world of yarn and textiles.”

As you can see from the first screenshots on this page, Yoshi’s Wii U adventure is a traditional side-scrolling platformer romp within a 3D landscape, sorta like LittleBigPlanet, with twine-textured graphics straight out of Kirby’s Epic Yarn.

Knit Yoshi sure looks cute, don’t you agree?