This is a old school game that all lovers of RPG genre and Nintendo games should get now!
Genre: RPG
Developer: Nintendo
System: Super Nintendo (SNES)
Total Score: 82/100
Value Score: 8.2/10
• Story: 10/10
o Earthbound is the sequel to the Mother 1 game from the NES, it takes place several years after the events of the said game. You play as a boy named Ness who one day wakes up because a meteorite crashed behind his house, he was then joined by a accomplice of his to find out what the meteorite was, after encountering a life form from another time or world he was told that he will be the one who is fated to destroy a evil entity by the name of Giygas and that he is the only one (along with 3 others) who can stop him and save the universe. Throughout the game you will go on a adventure and encounter all sorts of baddies and enemies who are influenced by the corruption of Giygas influence along with that Giygas endless array of monsters and minions who will try to stop Ness and friends from accomplishing to collect 8 songs or memories known as the 8 Your sanctuaries.
• Characters: 9/10
o Earthbound's character list contains several parody characters and stereotypes, pretty much the entire character list is based upon the 1990s modern world, you will encounter all sorts of characters from different races and cultures. Along with that the main cast of characters in terms of storyline all have different backgrounds and origins and will interest you in every way. The characters in Earthbound are unique and each of them have their own unique role whether its just a regular NPC or a assisting character or item. You will also encounter several enemies most of whom have different shades due to the laziness of the usual RPG scheme. Regardless, Earthbound consists of several memorable characters, but they are not as iconic as some of Nintendo's most flourished series characters.
• GamePlay: 8/10
o Earthbound's gameplay premise at first will remind you of Pokemon (if you played Pokemon before this game or any of the Mother series). Helicopter view with the ability to go through a set of menu choices and actions similar to past games such as Dragon Quest, Paladin's Quest and other numerous RPGs from the NES era. During battle you are forced into a somewhat unique view, similar to what they had in Paladin's Quest and in Dragon's Quest. You have the basic controls and actions in battle such as the regular attack command, PSI command which applies to three characters which replaces "Magic", the item command, run command and unique commands unique to the specific character. Throughout the entire game you will be walking around similar to Pokemon, there is no overworld map or sailing session as you would see in other RPG games, the gameplay structure is similar to Pokemon in all ways to the point one can say this game inspired the Pokemon series.
• Graphics: 7/10
o Graphics are not Earthbound's strongest feature, yet despite that as a Nintendo game, Nintendo brings a unique flavor of design for all its games, Earthbound is no exception as there are no other Nintendo developed game or series that matches Earthbound's style of graphics, the closest would be Pokemon which of course was inspired by it. The graphics of the environment and the detailed sections of the towns and dungeons will leave you with never ending nostalgia that will last you for hours, if not for the main sake of the gameplay or story, you would want to come back to some of the older towns to just be of Awe and excitement.
• Sound: 8/10
o Sound effects in Earthbound are unique yet compared to other games that came out, the sound output doesnt seem to be top notch, this could of been intentional though due to the fact Earthbound is full of 1980s like nostalgia in terms of the game's theme, music and graphics. Sound effects are no exception to that either.
• Music: 10/10
o Possibly one of the best aspects of the game, the game includes a wide array of selection of songs arranging mostly from orchestra to Techno. Pretty much if you are a lover of songs from the 1980s or the early 1990s, you will enjoy the OST of the game.
• Length: 7/10
o Earthbound should not take you no more than 25 hours, although the game is quite huge and there arent that many side quests to do, it has a pretty decent length for a RPG of its time. Most RPGs of its time usually had around 15-20 hours, but Earthbound could easily stack 25-30 hours. Leveling up isnt a issue either as there are adequate places to level up, so the player doesnt have to worry about spending countless hours on grinding like any other RPG.
• Replay Value: 3/10
o Unfortunately, Earthbound's most weak aspect would be the Replay value aspect as most RPGs its time really had horrible replay value. Although Earthbound doesnt necessarily have a good replay value, you can still do some additional sidequests which are available in the game although they do not make a impact to the storyline nor does it actually do anything as most of the items you get from sidequests are usually just useless items.
• Player Value: 10/10
o As a old school player of the RPG genre and Nintendo fan since the early 1990s, I have to say Earthbound is one of the best RPGs ever created and paved way towards the creation of Pokemon, it solidified how RPGs should go in terms of design and has a unique feel of nostalgia you would not normally get from a game of its time. It might not be as good graphically or powerful in design as other games such as Chrono Trigger or Breath of Fire II, but it certainly is one of the best memorable old school RPGs out there, recommend anyone giving a shot to it if you are a lover of RPGs and a Nintendo fan!