Enemies include possessed cars, magical tents, and corrupt police officers. Its contemporary setting helps everything feel very grounded, with the player using weapons like baseball bats, yo-yos, and bottle rockets. Your attacks are named after your favorite thing and food. Playing EarthBound is about going on an adventure as a little boy with three friends destined to save the world. It’s easier to look past its age and flaws because that’s not really what we’re here for. EarthBound escapes this aging process by being a game less about its mechanics and more about the experience of playing the game. This doesn’t make old games bad - far from it - but they can be harder to go back to as a result. Cutting edge mechanics become commonplace, graphics improve, and video games continue to evolve. Earthbound/NintendoĮvery video game gets old and develops flaws that would be considered unforgivable by today’s standards. Is EarthBound really that good, or is it a game that people felt was unjustly criticized and swung too far aggressively in the other direction? That debate can be had forever, and we don’t feel like contributing to it, but instead, we want to make the case for why it’s considered timeless, why you should play it, and how you can play it. It ranked second on our ranking of the top-100 games on the Super Nintendo and has received a cult classic status. As time has gone on, there’s been newfound respect for EarthBound. While most of the criticisms levied against EarthBound at the time of its release weren’t exactly wrong, in retrospect, it feels like they were missing what the game was actually going for. In comparison, a game with pixel graphics, combat with limited animations, and a contemporary setting just didn’t compare.ĮarthBound is also a timeless classic, oozes charm, and is a game that anyone who calls themself an RPG fan should at least attempt to play.

The year EarthBound came out, 1994, featured cutting edge games like Super Metroid, Final Fantasy VI, and Donkey Kong Country.

In particular, the game did poorly in the United States because of a bad marketing campaign where they literally said “This game stinks.” It didn’t even review that well, with a common criticism being it was too behind the times. EarthBound wasn’t a huge success when the game was released to the Super Nintendo.

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