The Countdown Begins is the first level of Outer Orbit and the thirty-sixth level overall of Yoshi's Crafted World. The majority of this level takes place at a space station, while the goal is located on the moon.

Overview[edit]

Front side[edit]

Yoshi must start by heading to the right, where there is a metal wall preventing him from entering the space station. A Woozy Guy on the other side will flip onto a button, lowering a magnet and attaching it to the wall. When the Woozy Guy flips off of the button, the magnet raises, taking up the wall and allowing Yoshi to enter the space station. After a couple of Woozy Guys, there is a metallic, magnetic platform. Below it is a hidden Winged Cloud Yoshi can hit to drop down four coins, including two Red Coins. To the right of it is a button Yoshi must hold down himself to lower a magnet until it attaches to the metal platform. Yoshi must then hop off of the button and onto the metal platform, which the magnet brings up to four coins, as well as a Winged Cloud to the right containing five hearts.

To the left are two metal platforms, with a Woozy Guy and a magnet above each. There is a button in the middle of them to lower the magnets. After the right magnet attaches to the right slab, Yoshi must wait a few seconds for the left magnet to pick up the left slab. The left platform raises Yoshi up to a Woozy Guy and a Winged Cloud Yoshi can hit to reveal a Smiley Flower. The right slab raises Yoshi up to a Woozy Guy and another metal slab already attached to a magnet. To the right is an electric, buzzing wire that harms Yoshi if he touches it. Above this slab is an Egg Block.

To the left, there is a set of three large crusher cans picked up and dropped by magnets one at a time. After the crushers is a Winged Cloud Yoshi can hit to make coins appear above the crushers, with four red coins among them. Once Yoshi makes it above and past the crushers, there is a wire he must jump through. Just after that is the first Checkpoint Bell, followed by a trio of Woozy Guys.

Shortly after the first checkpoint is a metal platform raised and lowered by a magnet. There is a Woozy Guy nearby pressing a button which controls the magnet. Once Yoshi makes it up, he can head left to find a moving magnet above three containers. To the left of the containers is a button Yoshi can press to lower the magnet, attaching it to the lids of the containers and pulling them up to release what is inside. There is a Woozy Guy inside both the left and right containers, while there is a Smiley Flower in the middle container. Once the magnet has picked up a lid, Yoshi can also use it as a lift up to a Winged Cloud he can hit to make coins appear in the shape of clouds, with four red coins among them.

To the right of this area is a button Yoshi must press to lower three magnets, which attach to three metal blocks he must use as a staircase. Yoshi can also drop below the right block to get to a Smiley Flower. After the blocks, there is another wire Yoshi must jump through. In this area, there are batteries which are picked up and dropped by magnets. Between them, there is a hidden Winged Cloud containing five hearts. After getting past the batteries, Yoshi must follow some stairs into the background. Yoshi's crafted world tulip house. Here, Yoshi must press the button for the magnet in the foreground to pick up a metal wall, then run past it before it lowers again.

After an Egg Block and a couple of Woozy Guys, there is a metal elevator with a button in the middle Yoshi must press to lower two large magnets. As the magnets raise, so does the elevator. On the way up, there are two red coins and Woozy Guys dropped by balloons. There is also a Winged Cloud in the background Yoshi can hit to reveal a Smiley Flower. Once the elevator reaches the top and locks in place, Yoshi must head right, jump through a wire, and board a rocket. Upon doing so, the rocket is launched, and Yoshi is ejected in a pod. Yoshi blasts into outer space, where he lands on the moon.

At the start of the moon portion is the second Checkpoint Bell. After that is an Egg Block. There are also space-themed Woozy Guys that appear in this section. There are also Takko, which Yoshi can stay on for a few seconds to get a cloud of ink, propelling him higher. Yoshi can also Ground Pound a Takko to get a quick cloud of ink and get launched higher. Near the first Takko, in the foreground, there is a present box containing multiple coins as well as one red coin. Yoshi can use the second Takko to reach a structure off to the left with a Smiley Flower. Above the second Takko is a similar structure where some coins can be found in the shape of a UFO, containing three red coins.

Just after this is a Winged Timer Cloud. If Yoshi hits it, the screen flips to reveal two planets, with two Monty Moles and a Big Monty Mole popping out of the craters. If Yoshi defeats them all before time runs out, the last Smiley Flower appears. Around here, there are five space-themed Shy Guys, each holding a coin, three of which are red coins. Yoshi can have a Takko expel a cloud of ink to get the Shy Guys out of their safe spot and collect the coins. Just after that is a Winged Cloud containing five hearts. In this last section, Yoshi must use Takko to get over a large crater. There is a Shy Guy bouncing on the second Takko, as well as a Winged Cloud above Yoshi can hit to make coins appear in the shape of a shooting star, with the last red coin at the top. After getting past this section, Yoshi can simply walk right to the goal.

Flip side[edit]

The level now begins on the moon and ends outside of the space station. Flipping the screen in the moon portion reveals a chalkboard with space drawings, while flipping the space station portion reveals cloud wallpaper and childish drawings, indicating a child's bedroom. There are now three Takko below the pod, which squirt ink to launch Yoshi off the moon and parachute onto the space station, with the black and pink Poochy Pups hanging on.

• The blue Poochy Pup is found at the end of the moon portion, running around the pod.
• The black Poochy Pup is found at the space station, in the metal elevator section. On the way down, Yoshi may spot a balloon in the background with the black Poochy Pup.
• The pink Poochy Pup is also found in the space station, in the container area, in the middle container where the second Smiley Flower is normally found. This time, the three lids are on the middle container, and Yoshi must use the button and the magnet to move all of them out of the way, freeing the Poochy Pup.

Collectibles[edit]

Smiley Flowers[edit]

• Smiley Flower 1: Just after the first metal slab, there are two metal slabs with a magnet above each. Yoshi must stay on the button, wait until the left magnet attaches to the left slab, and take it up to a Winged Cloud he must hit to reveal the first Smiley Flower.
• Smiley Flower 2: To the left of the block staircase area, there is an area with three containers, a button, and a moving magnet. The left and right containers contain Woozy Guys, while the middle container contains a Smiley Flower. Yoshi must wait until the magnet is over the middle container, press the button until the magnet lowers and attaches to the lid, then hop off the button. The magnet will raise the lid, opening the container and allowing Yoshi to pick up the second Smiley Flower.
• Smiley Flower 3: In the block staircase area itself, Yoshi must get below the right block to find the third Smiley Flower.
• Smiley Flower 4: In the vertical section with the long metal elevator, Yoshi must look for a Winged Cloud in the background. Yoshi must hit this Winged Cloud to reveal a Smiley Flower, which he must then hit to collect.
• Smiley Flower 5: In the middle of the moon portion, Yoshi must use a Takko to get up to a structure to the left with the fifth Smiley Flower.
• Smiley Flower 6: Shortly after that is a Winged Timer Cloud. Yoshi must hit it to flip the screen, revealing two planets with two Monty Moles and a Big Monty Mole popping in and out of the craters. Yoshi must defeat them all in the allotted time to earn the sixth and final Smiley Flower.

Three more Smiley Flowers are awarded for collecting at least 100 coins in the level, completing the level with 20 hearts, and collecting all 20 Red Coins. In the flip side, three are awarded for bringing all three Poochy Pups to the goal, and one more for doing so within three minutes and thirty seconds.

Crafts[edit]

Found on the flip side:

• Command Module: In the middle of the moon portion, Yoshi must use a Takko to get up to where the fifth Smiley Flower normally is. The golden command module is to the right, in the background atop a similar structure.

Found on the front side:

• Lunar Lander: In the last section of the moon portion, just before the goal, in the background obscured by the crater.

Found on the front side:

• Unidentified Object 1: At the very bottom of the space station, in the background near some metal cans.
• Unidentified Object 2: Above the first set of three crusher cans, in the top-left corner.
• Unidentified Object 3: Just before the metal elevator section, in the top-right corner of that area.
• Unidentified Object 4: In the metal elevator section, poking out from the left side.
• Unidentified Object 5: Atop the structure where the fifth Smiley Flower is found, hanging in the background to the left.
• Unidentified Object 6: In the final section of the moon portion, at the bottom-right, in the foreground.

Sprout[edit]

Close to the start of the space station portion, Yoshi must look for the first set of three crusher cans lifted up and dropped by magnets. Sprout is close in the background, atop a rail behind the middle crusher.

Enemies[edit]

• Monty Moles (2)
• Shy Guys (15)
• Takko (6)
• Woozy Guys (32)

“Thanks! That really puts a spring in my step!”

—Blockafeller, Yoshi's Crafted World

Blockafellers^[1] are a family of robot-like characters in Yoshi's Crafted World. They have springy arms, heads with a flower on top and a large nose, a singular 'foot' made out of a bottle cap, and bodies made out of cardboard boxes. All Blockafellers except for the one in Sunshine Station start out without any energy in the middle of the path, with their appearance being a box with a meter in front of it. Once they are given the required amount of Smiley Flowers to recharge them, they unlock the world and stay on the far left spot on the map of the world, or to the left of the boss battles. Their color scheme changes depending on the Blockafeller. Their name appears to be a combination of 'block' and 'Rockefeller.'

Three types of Blockafeller exist in the game. The first kind is the standard kind that appears in each world. The second is a larger variant known as Torques. These ones have two bottle cap feet instead of one, lack springy arms (having them directly attached to their bodies instead) and wear clothing such as overalls, sunhats, or sunglasses. These Blockafellers appear on each boss battle island. Finally, there is a single elderly Blockafeller with a cane and elf hat named Crumples who appears twice in the game, once to tell the player they can choose the order to search for the red, purple, and yellow Dream Gems, and again once the player collects said Dream Gems to access the final few areas. After talking with him in both of these encounters, he flies away with balloons on his back.

After the player beats a level, the world's Blockafeller assigns them a task that involves going back to the same level to collect a souvenir for them, such as collecting five cardboard cows in Rail-Yard Run. When the task is beaten, the player can choose to continue playing the level or to exit it. When the level is exited after the task is completed, the world's Blockafeller gives the player a Smiley Flower.

A Blockafeller costume can also be unlocked by finding Sprout in every level.

List of Blockafellers[edit]

Profiles[edit]

Yoshi's Crafted World[edit]

• North American website bio: 'The Blockafeller brothers and cousins act as gatekeepers to each new area and help roll out new challenges.'

Gallery[edit]

• Artwork of Fin Blockafeller with Sprout

• Blockafeller costume

Names in other languages[edit]

Trivia[edit]

• In the demo for Yoshi's Crafted World, the Blockafeller in Sunshine Station is named Fin instead of Coal, whereas his brother who is named Fin in the full game is not present in the demo at all. This can be discovered by speaking with the Blockafeller first before playing Rail-Yard Run.

References[edit]