EarthBound for the Win

Last night I downloaded myself an SNES emulator for my mac-attack and it worked like a charm, with a little help from my girlfriend. She got the USB Controller to work for me. After figuring out how to save games, I was all set. I started off playing some classics that I was familiar with on the Genesis like "Zombies Ate my Neighbors," and "Earthworm Jim." Then I figured I'd go ahead and load up some of the games I've been waiting to play, having never had an SNES before. I booted up "A Link to the Past," "Super Mario World," and "Final Fantasy VI." It was awesome. Then I saw it, glowing bright, pushing the other ROMs aside, Earthbound.

If you're unfamiliar with Earthbound it's because you too probably did not have an SNES growing up, the only Earthbound game released in the US was for the SNES. The Earthbound series is a Nintendo franchise that is popular in Japan, where it is called Mother, instead of Earthbound. There are three Mother games released in Japan for the Famicon (NES) and GBA (Game Boy Advance). Mother 2 was released in the US for the SNES and renamed to Earthbound. US fans only got a small taste of the Earthbound series with that release, and have been clamoring for more ever since, especially because Nintendo teases us every so often. The Smash Brothers series have included Lucas and Ness, two characters from Earthbound, as fighters in some of the games. Other references in Smash Bros include the stages Onett and New Pork City.

Super Smash Brothers Brawl also included a "Masterpieces" section where you could demo several Virtual Console games featuring the characters in Brawl, which included Mother in the Japanese release, and not in the US release. Nintendo has been very resistant to demands to release more Earthbound material in the US. Who knows why? It could be because they are done with the franchise, don't want to develop RPGs anymore, or just don't like Americans. There are many fan sites working on translations of Mother 3 that you can install onto an imported copy of the game for the GBA, but that's asking a lot for most gamers. I'm excited to finally get my chance to play the SNES version after thinking I'd never have the opportunity, and after thinking Nintendo just didn't want us americans to enjoy the series.

The game sets itself aside from most other RPGs by having a setting in modern times, instead of the sword swinging fantasy camp eras that most RPGs undertake. You play as Ness, a little boy, who uses no more than baseball bats and other house hold items to stop an alien invasion, what more could you ask for? Cult favorite/forgotten/often teased at Nintedo franchises always get me excited. I'll be posting more about the game as I progress through it, and eventually will review it. I can finally put those Smash Brothers characters into context. Take that Nintendo.

Labels: Commentary, Nintendo, Retro