While I prefer Mother 3, I still find Earthbound to be a masterpiece. Even though the gameplay is less refined and some parts have questionable additions that make the game more frustrating, at its core Earthbound is a game full of passion. It was a surprise to me when I heard that, at its launch it wasn’t really received well but after looking at the marketing it makes more sense - the entire way the game was presented was appalling, it didn’t even come close to showing how meaningful and special this game truly is.
Looking at the individual aspects, Earthbound’s comedy comes almost effortlessly, the timing is almost always on point and the game never really misses, creating a huge cast of lovable and endearing characters that make their mark, even random npcs that only have one-liners will make you laugh, and the ending only serves to reinforce this, something I really wish more games would implement. As I said the gameplay is pretty hit-or-miss, Mother 3 practically takes all the negatives and throws them away - such as the large amount of unnecessary debuffs that are a pain in the ass, but I also find that PSI is utilised a lot better here and your main 4 get a lot more opportunities. Something I also really appreciate is its completely unique art-style that works so well, every area has something to note about it and I respect the courage to do something like this in a period where many games wouldn’t have the balls to change up (clearly this choice didn’t work too well at its launch but the opinion of it has changed heavily over time).
The main focus here though is again the story, I can’t talk much about it without spoiling but I’ll highlight my favourite moment. Of course I have to comment on Magicant, one of the most iconic areas of the game but it isn’t praised for no reason, this area is absolutely stunning not only in the ideas it presents but how well it executes them. It is an otherworldly experience walking around Ness’ mind and talking to all of the people you have passed by, simultaneously being fun and unnerving, and I adore how this game focuses so much on it, it really hammers home the main themes of Mother and the transition from child to adult.
All in all, another must play, so many games have taken inspiration from this stellar achievement and some have even tried to surpass it, but for me not much will ever come close to the transcendent experience I had while playing this, except of course, the sequel.
10/10
Looking at the individual aspects, Earthbound’s comedy comes almost effortlessly, the timing is almost always on point and the game never really misses, creating a huge cast of lovable and endearing characters that make their mark, even random npcs that only have one-liners will make you laugh, and the ending only serves to reinforce this, something I really wish more games would implement. As I said the gameplay is pretty hit-or-miss, Mother 3 practically takes all the negatives and throws them away - such as the large amount of unnecessary debuffs that are a pain in the ass, but I also find that PSI is utilised a lot better here and your main 4 get a lot more opportunities. Something I also really appreciate is its completely unique art-style that works so well, every area has something to note about it and I respect the courage to do something like this in a period where many games wouldn’t have the balls to change up (clearly this choice didn’t work too well at its launch but the opinion of it has changed heavily over time).
The main focus here though is again the story, I can’t talk much about it without spoiling but I’ll highlight my favourite moment. Of course I have to comment on Magicant, one of the most iconic areas of the game but it isn’t praised for no reason, this area is absolutely stunning not only in the ideas it presents but how well it executes them. It is an otherworldly experience walking around Ness’ mind and talking to all of the people you have passed by, simultaneously being fun and unnerving, and I adore how this game focuses so much on it, it really hammers home the main themes of Mother and the transition from child to adult.
All in all, another must play, so many games have taken inspiration from this stellar achievement and some have even tried to surpass it, but for me not much will ever come close to the transcendent experience I had while playing this, except of course, the sequel.
10/10