Introduction:

I will be quite honest with you here. Earthbound is my favorite game ever. But that won't stop me from making an honest review on the game, and keeping in mind it's playability and features for both today and the time in which it was released. Earthbound is a wonderful RPG that still lives on today, and it has an aspect that no RPG has dared to deal with before: a modern day setting. The game was a huge hit in Japan, and we may have a port to the GBA released in the US if we are lucky, along with the possible release of Mother (the name for the Earthbound series in Japan, of which Earthbound is number 2) 3.

Story:

We start this SNES classic with our main character, Ness, waking up in his otherwise quiet room in the modern mid 90s town of Onett to a loud noise. Ness goes downstairs only to be greeted by his mother, who surprisingly doesn't tell him to not go outside and investigate, but simply directs him to change out of his pajamas before he leaves. Even from the start, you see the strangeness of the text within the game, and I can guarantee you that this will continue on. Ness goes outside and climbs the small hill near his house on the outskirts of the busy town, and finds eventually after going home and coming back per request of his borderline friend Pokey, that the sound was created by a Meteor crashing. He meets a small bug called Buzz-Buzz who lets Ness know that he is one of the four chosen children who are destined to save the earth from the evil alien Giygas. And so his journey begins. The game will have you traveling to distant lands all throughout the course of its long span, and adventuring seldom gets tired. The only problem I can see is that sometimes things happen too fast in a few parts of the game. You may be redirected unexpectedly somewhere, which is just fine. You will know why you are going places if you have an open mind, but you may forget where you were supposed to go in the first place. The character development in the game is light on the main characters (mostly because they nearly never talk), and heavy on the main NPCs too, which lets it be more of a classical RPG than story based, but there is character development. It is there. Just keep an open mind. On the whole, just about 70% of the game text is humorous, coming from NPCs in towns or more main central NPCs with a funny personality. The other 30% of the text is either useful, or story related, so every piece of text in this game is deserving of being read. On top of that, there is a large amount of symbolism in the game generally, so my advice to you is to look at allt he aspects of the game individually before you make any judgments. Unfortunately, not all of this is possible for every gamer, but through the course of the game, you should try to read as much as you can to get the full enjoyment out of it.

Gameplay:

Through the course of the game, a small flow chart cannot explain the flow in which the game is directed. Everything is indefinite. You will find yourself traveling to new and exiting places almost every hour, and while you are there, you fight enemies, find your destination which is a "your sanctuary location" vital to your mission, and talk to new people who can give you helpful anecdotes or just plain useless information. You don't have your entire team from the getgo, but as you go along, the rest of your world saving crew is assembled, and you can start reaching other distant lands with a little less hassle. However, by no means are any aspects of the game routine. You will find yourself doing tasks such as destroying an evil relic, or disbanding a cult that has taken hold of a town, amongst other things. Not every event in the game is typical RPG material. Real life problems come into play. And problems that only a video game could present as well, but those situations still feel very reasonable. But you will find yourself doing things that a modern setting lets you do as well, like ordering pizza, going to department stores, saving by means of telephone, and arguing with authority figures over whether or not you should be let past a road block. As if that isn't enthralling enough, things start to go wrong in many places of the game. Villains are not the only ones giving you a hard time. Sometimes you might have to go somewhere you do not want to go, or were not even supposed to go. Sometimes, something that will happen that completely alters the flow of the game. But the flow of the game is very fluid, and you will never get bored while playing. Battles are done in a turn bases style, while each player utilizes their own special skills. Three out of four of your earth saving kids have psychic powers known as "PK" or "PSI", and the other one uses projectile weapons such as bottle rockets and ray guns, while having the ability to spy on enemy and release their statistical information. However, each character has special abilities like this. Be it healing psychic powers or the ability to pray and make unexpected things happen, your battle arsenal is good to go. The gameplay is what makes Earthbound shine.

I give the gameplay: 10/10

Graphics:

In this day and age, graphics can be very important to a games outcome, enjoyment, and even overall sales, as sad as it is. By no means are graphics the most important component to a game, but Earthbound utilizes it's graphics very well. Images are depicted colorfully and playfully. Realism isn't too much of a possibility in SNES games, especially with pixelized graphics. But Earthbound uses it's graphical prowess to it's fullest ability. In a small autumn town, graphics are smooth, colorful, and peaceful. But in a big city, colors are sharp, definite, and almost a tad gritty. Even small graphics are done well too. The fact that the game takes place in a modern environment helps with the enjoyment too. Roads, lamps, street signs, buildings, and telephones always make the game feel new and modern. Another fun graphical addition to the game is the cool psychedelic backgrounds that you get when the player is fighting an enemy. You will see. In the end, the graphics are not outstanding, but do their job very well. Gamers today are spoiled with rich 3-D graphics, and sometimes we forget how little realism matters to a game.

I give the graphics: 8/10

Sound:

Whoever directed the music and sound effects in this game should get a big, juicy, healthy raise or something. The colorful (not to be mistaken with "kiddy") graphics and feel are layered with colorful music that can fit any situation the game has. Onett, the town you start out in, has a happy "start to my adventure" kind of music, while a popular theatre features a twangy guitar early twentieth century blues track before the show starts. Another great example is the great city of Fourside (are you seeing a pattern here?) that you travel to later on. It opens up with a lively swing/jazz hybrid track that brings the bustling area to life. Sound effects are done well too. I have seen games where just moving around in a menu gets annoying, but simple clicks and smooth beeps make equipping a weapon not bad at all. When you get what is known as a Smash (critical hit in lamens RPG terms) on an enemy with Ness' baseball bat, his weapon of choice, there is a loud, cracking sound, which makes you giggle a little when your enemy is vanquished.

I give the sound: 10/10

Replayability:

I could play Earthbound over and over again. Honestly. The game grosses at about 60 hours of gameplay if you take your time to enjoy the game. Even when you are done, take a break for a while, and you will find the game easy to pick up again, which is just about as easy to pick up as any RPG, if not a little easier.

I give the replayability: 9/10

Challenge:

Lets just say, the game will keep you busy. You will be forced to do some training with the games typical RPG level up system. Bosses can be tough, but that isn't something that a healthy amount of training can't fix. Things are balanced well so that the experience is challenging, but it is not too tough. You won't spend all of your time battling either. Towns, cities, and other such places have varieties of places you can go to kill some time. If you are really stuck on something, there is always the hint man, who stakes out in nearly every town. For a small fee, he will tell you clearly where to go next or what to do.

I give the challenge: 9/10

Value:

The value for this game, is as high as it can get. It's highly unlikely that you'll walk into EB and find this game for anything lower then $60, if you can find it at all. I recommend ebay, because you'll get it much cheaper there.

I give the value: 9/10

Overall:

Downright outstanding. Very few games even compare to Earthbound in my book, and it is a must have for any hardcore RPG fan. The only problem is its availability. In the end, Earthbound is a classic. As close to perfect as it comes, for me anyway. I have met very few people who have played the game and don't like it, and I would recommend it to anyone.
 

I give Earthbound: 10/10

Written By: Adam
E-Mail: adamgach@gmail.com

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