EarthBound (Super Nintendo, 1995)

I have been a HUGE fan of Ness since I was around six. Never owning a SNES at the time and only a PS1, I never got to experience Earthbound until I was in middle school. I owned a SNES at the time, but never could find Earthbound. Sadly disappointed, I tried multiple old video game stores and even current ones (Game Stop, etc.) if they perhaps had any. No such luck. Bidding on various items on Ebay, I lost quite a lot (mainly because I was poor at the time and couldn't pay for the high prices.) But when I finally got one though, I screamed and tackled the mailman as my game was being delivered.
But the main reasons why I absolutely love Earthbound and it is my favorite game ever is because everything about it is so memorable. Pokey asking Ness to get his brother and then being a chicken in battle. Digging through trashcans for food and then (eww) eating it when health is low. Even the other members of the Chosen Four were memorable. You can tell there is some quality about them that makes them different from others and has a special place in your heart, even when they all have to eventually split ways later, thus causing you to tear up and yearn to play it again. Earthbound has a LOT of stuff from our pop culture like the Beatles and Monty Python, and is chuck full of weird-but-funny stuff that will keep you occupied for hours. Yes, the graphics might not be so great compared to other games, but the storyline and characters make up for it a LOT.
The thing that touched me the most was the Gigyas battle. Nobody ever heard of little kids PRAYING to beat a scary devil man, yeah? So that was quite a surprise, and how the player (yes YOU) was the one who dealt the most damage was impressive too. Then when you arrive back in Saturn Valley and have to leave, you just want to cry because you have become so attached with these little pixelated characters that you just don't want them to go. So that's when you start the game over. and over. and over until you die of old age.
These are just some of the reasons why Earthbound has still remained in my heart for years and why I think you should buy it.

Okay, I hate turned based rpg's.... there I said it, I have betrayed my credo of fellow nerds and I'm ready to get thrown to the lions. I just feel like they take the most GED programming skills, and rarely offer anything to the genre. So what makes this one different?
Graphics/Design: 24 MB (EB has) is considered to be a big ass game for the time. Earthworm Jim was 24 MB and it looked amazing... this game was made by HAL (responsible for Kirby and Lolo) as well as APE (who would go on to make Pokemon) and boy does it look like it... 24 MB not spent on design. HOWEVER- part of the reason was this game POV wasn't a straight top down but a 45' angled downward, during the time this was a b**ch to program. Also this game is a sequel in Japan (Mother 2) and having seen Mother 1 (NES) it is a definite upgrade and I could accept that the character designs were the "style" of the game.
Music: A gemstone of this game, the music always fits the mood, it's eclectic, crosses genre's and was the first Nintendo game to use sampling (Public Domain Liberty Bell/Monty Python, Little Rascals) -unfortunately, some of these samples are not licensed (All you Need is love, Sgt.Pepper reprise, Tequila). And sometimes I feel the referencing might have moved into uncreative and dangerous legal waters.
Writing/Story: Some people find this game funny, the humour is punny and odd, But it does have some authentically amusing moments. As well the game does get serious but only during the last hour or so in which case it still manages to keep on entertained, as well as introduces the world to one of the most beloved and one of the first truly disturbing bosses of all time- a mind F**k that leaves you wondering.
Game play: So....very....standard..... walk fight walk some more and... why is that guy running away from me? what happens if i chase him down? BOOM! The truly original part about EB is the automatic win system- The first and one of the few games to use this. As well as the advantage system (depends on which way you're facing directly before the battle) This is what makes the game great.
Earthbound is a lost gem... also to an extent "nintendo's shame" (more due to lousy marketing). 4x the size box, pack in guide/magazine, scratch n' sniff stickers, and then the game... as a child i remember renting this game laughing as the "dung beatle" (appropriate play on words spelling) and then wondering- so, what the hell is this? Aside from Super Mario RPG I wasn't familiar with the genre, even most Final Fantasy games didn't hold my amusement, as I got older like most people I enlarge forgot about most games.
So when I got into collecting I tried to get this game... I found out that it's become a collectors item. The main reason I give this game a 4/5 is because even I myself having played and liked this game had a hard time justifying the price tag it often fetches (under 100 US is a "good deal"). It's one of those carts you get in case the internet gets "broken" or you're trapped in a bunker...or you just wanna brag your ass off.

As an avid female gamer for around twenty years now, I've known of EarthBound but was never fortunate enough to have owned and played it as a child. I discovered game play footage on YouTube last year and knew I had to give it a shot. I am so glad I did; EarthBound (or MOTHER 2 in Japan) has changed my gaming career forever. I am very madly in love with and passionate about the whole trilogy.

EarthBound is a very fun and addicting game. Unlike MOTHER / EarthBound Zero, leveling-up is a breeze and there's no need to spend several minutes or even hours grinding (I've been known to spent a couple of hours grinding Ninten and Llyod in Magicant). It flows really smoothly.

This game simply explodes with charm and humor, too. Pop culture references everywhere that many Americans will love and identify with. Whether you're chatting with someone that looks quite similar to Mr. T or enjoy the New Age Retro Hippie's "Johnny B. Goode" theme music, there's always a fun little quirk to enjoy. I often smiled and laughed out loud during my journey.

This game, rated E for Everyone, can be surprisingly profound and dark, too. At one point in the game, our hero Ness and his friend Jeff Andonuts fall under the spell of the evil Mani Mani Statue and enter the parallel town of Moonside. Not only does it looks like a funky Las Vegas after dark, you warp randomly and people often say creepy and disturbing things, like counting backwards and screaming at the end.
When you're done collecting the Eight Melodies, Ness passes out and enters his own subconscious, Magicant, where he sees and interacts with his memories, fights alongside his Courage which has taken the form of the brave Flying Men, and battles his own Nightmare. (Warning, I found Ness' Nightmare to be the hardest boss in the game, more so than Giygas.)
And Giygas himself is known on the internet as being the most disturbing video game boss of all time. He looks scary, has indescribable music, and the whole experience will blow your mind. The final boss fight is very much worth beating the game for; I don't think I've fought anything more epic than the Universal Cosmic Destroyer.

This game (like the whole trilogy) has an exceptional soundtrack that really sets it apart. I have it on my iTunes/iPod, in fact.

I can really think of only two flaws in the whole game.
1) The graphics. Being a Super FamiCom / Super Nintendo game, it does have poorer graphics and doesn't reach its full potential (think the three-dimensional Super Mario RPG). However, the graphics are quite crisp and sharp, and I found the enemy fight backgrounds pretty and, quite frankly, shiny. I love the bright colors of Ness' PK Rockin' attacks quite a bit, too.
2) Aforementioned pop culture references. This is preventing EarthBound to be re-released in modern times like via the Nintendo Wii Virtual Console. Nintendo fears lawsuits, and won't re-release the game unless edits are made, which the original creators of the game don't plan on doing anytime soon.

Despite these faults, the whole series is my favorite and must be enjoyed by all gamers. I really couldn't give this game anything lower than 5/5.

I bought Earthbound because I never played it as a kid. I felt a little left out when I eventually learned about it, so I decided to buy it online. When I started playing it, it kind of felt like a standard Nintendo game. Then, as I got further into it, I discovered it to be even more fun than I thought at first. The events within the game are simply amazing; from fighting monsters to reclaim Ness's sanctuaries to falling under the influence of a hallucination to find the world as the complete opposite of what it usually looks like. The events later in the game gave me a really good experience. I never expected the event where Poo joins Ness's party to actually happen the way it did. Then, the Kracken battle was really tough, but I managed to get through it without even leveling up beforehand. These events aren't the only ones, however. There were plenty more throughout the game to discover. Even though I say that the later part of the game is more exciting, other players might like all of the events since the beginning. After all, the game really starts off with a bang when Ness finds out that a meteor has landed next to his house. It was a nice way to start the game. Them, the actual plot is introduced later in the night when Ness walks out to the meteorite with his neighbor Pokey. When Ness finds Pokey's brother Picky, a strange thing that sounds like a bee rises out of the meteorite. He introduces himself as Buzz Buzz and then proceeds to tell Ness about what he must do to save the world from an evil being named Giygas. A man from outer space, named Starman, arrives to stop Buzz Buzz and Ness from defeating Giygas but fails. Then, Ness walks with Pokey and Picky to their house and finds out the rest of what Buzz Buzz has to say before he dies. Buzz Buzz then gives Ness the "Sound Stone" and passes away. Ness then really begins his journey. Yes, that's just the beginning of the game, packed into a whole 15 minutes at the least. It's simply amazing that the people who made it could actually do that. Anyway, now I suppose I should talk about how this game compares to others out there. What I think of Earthbound is that its one of the top games ever made. It has an amazing story, interesting characters, and fun events. To put it simply, it's just a fun game to play, and that's what a video game really needs in order to be successful. I know that, financially wise, Earthbound never really rose to its expectations, but with other factors such as game design, it's at the top of the list as far as I'm concerned.

But seriously, people go too crazy over it... I bet 90% of the people that bought this game didn't even know about it before Super Smash Bros. came out. Anyhow, I collect games from my childhood and that's really the only reason I was paying so much for it since I'm fond of my memories. The game has great music, alright graphics, good storyline, and it's funny, not to mention that the creator of the game and I have the same favorite band, The Beatles. Anyhow, the game is very fun and has obviously become an item for collectors of SNES games, possibly due to Super Smash Brothers which I am currently mad at for making a game a success for the worst possible reason ever and making it harder for me to find at a good price... I have searched long and hard for this game and finally decided to give in and buy it, and it only took 13 years

Also, proof that this game was very unpopular back when I was young is the fact that Mother 3 isn't being released into America, why? Because Mother 2/Earthbound didn't sell well. I only know 2 people in real life and online that have ever played Earthbound as a child. And they even say that they know very few people that played it before Super Smash Bros. The only reason I should thank Super Smash Bros for is helping me to remember the name of the game, though I would have gotten the name eventually considering I had a very good description of the game and knew one of the two people for a long time and he loved the game since he was young. I spend 2 of those 13 years trying to find the name of the game out.

I wanted to mention something else. I have more reason to care for this game than most people. First, it was a childhood memory of mine, second of all, the name of the game was after a John Lennon song, the leader of my favorite band, The Beatles. Third reason, as I stated before, I obsessed over the game because I forgot what it was about. Reason four, I play Super Nintendo like crazy, and if Earthbound was really "T3H GREATEST SUPER NINTENDO GAME EBER!" I would be playing it most often, why don't I? It's not that great.

I see some of these reviews, no offense, I'm sorry I don't usually talk about other's reviews, keep to myself, but this is just too bad, I would not do this unless it was because I have never bashed other's reviews before in my own, why? Because I don't think it's professional, but right now it's so very bad that I feel I have to, therefore, I shall. Forgive me.

"Earthbound like no other."

Play Dragon Quest. That's all I have to say to this one.

"BEST SNES RPG EVER!"

Yeah dude, I love Metal Gear Solid, but I don't say "IT'S THE BEST PLAYSTATION GAME EVER!" Probably because from a unbias perspective, it's not.

"Best Game"

It's not a rare game and I finally found out why. A HUGE amount of copies were mass produced in America, meaning you could find it under your toilet back in the day without buying it. Why would it be rare now? I'm pretty sure Earthbound didn't just leave Earth to fight off some aliens.

An RPG. Epic? Maybe not. Fun? Absolutely.

This one is accurate. The RPG is more fun than most RPGs on SNES. But from an overall standpoint, it isn't the greatest SNES game ever, I don't think personally that it deserves top 10. People treat this game like GOD created it. No offense, but it's not all that funny, I only laughed at the Beatles jokes. Fun game, just exaggerated, it's like people have only played THIS RPG and nothing else.