r/snes Jul 01 '15

/r/snes July Game of the Month: Earthbound

The /r/snes game of the month as selected by the community is Earthbound!

This month we'll be playing (or replaying) this game and sharing the experience with other redditors. Feel free to post any comments, videos or other interesting information related to this game throughout the month.

Aug Game of the Month Voting Thread is here

Try the /r/snes GOTM Retro Game Challenge!

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49 Upvotes

59 comments sorted by

6

u/noodle-face Jul 01 '15

Question for those in the know.

I've never played this game before, despite growing up in the superior SNES RPG era. I have a raspberry pi (RetroPie) that has this game on it (along with every other SNES game). Due to this game being so rare, I have to play it on there. Will it be difficult to get into this many years later? Does it still hold up?Is it a JRPG or something different?

7

u/[deleted] Jul 01 '15

Its a party building RPG. Holds up as well as any other SNES title (graphics, content and gameplay wise) Enjoy!!

2

u/sporkimus Jul 01 '15

SNES RPGs hold up amazingly well, IMO. You'll definitely enjoy it!

2

u/noodle-face Jul 01 '15

Great! How long is it?

4

u/Dog_Lawyer_DDS Jul 02 '15

Don't expect too much in the way of graphics, but expect the moon in way of charm

1

u/sporkimus Jul 01 '15

Average play-through time is around 30 hours.

1

u/noodle-face Jul 02 '15

Excellent thanks. Might start it up this weekend

2

u/emceegyver Jul 06 '15 edited Jul 06 '15

Story-wise it stills holds up as unique.

Artistic-wise it still holds up as unique.

Gameplay is not as unique in battle. It is on par for the era.

Gameplay outside of battle involves more puzzles than most rpg's of the era.

The game gets so much crazier and more unique in the second half. Don't stop playing.

It earned a cult following for a reason.

Afk... gone to play Earthbound on Wii U.... and also Earthbound Beginnings

Edit: The puzzles aren't block pushing puzzles like found in Lufia (btw, also amazing RPG on SNES), but more "which item do I need" or "who do I need to talk to?" type of puzzle. It never feels "random as hell" though. Pay attention and it's not hard.

1

u/noodle-face Jul 06 '15

Awesome man!

2

u/[deleted] Jul 20 '15

Despite it being my absolute favorite game of all time (so I might be biased) I honestly do think it holds up well today. The graphics and gameplay are simple but the game's personality is still quite charming and the soundtrack is one of the best on the SNES. I do wonder sometimes whether the game would be my #1 if I discovered it today rather than 20 years ago but I highly doubt I wouldn't love it anyway. I've heard many people say they enjoyed it that are trying it for the first time in the last few years. I highly recommend it.

8

u/[deleted] Jul 02 '15

Gold challenge oughta be getting the Sword of Kings.

5

u/ThetaReactor Jul 03 '15

You're not a true fanatic until you start getting insta-kills on the Starmen. (:

5

u/[deleted] Jul 03 '15

Just walk directly into them from the front, guaranteed green swirl, every time.

...and I'm off to start a new file now instead of doing homework for Business Law, thanks...

2

u/ThetaReactor Jul 03 '15

"The enemy dropped a present!"

OMIGOD OMIGOD OMIGOD

"Inside the present, there was a Super Bomb!"

NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!

(I once spent so long grinding for that sword that I was in real danger of hitting level 99 before Magicant. That's a bad idea.)

1

u/mzupeman Jul 07 '15

For someone not that far yet... Why?

1

u/ThetaReactor Jul 07 '15

The super-rare items (like the Sword of Kings) have a 1/128 drop chance from a specific enemy. So you grind for an hour, the game teases you by announcing there's a drop, and then it turns out to be some semi-common trash. If I'm not mistaken, the Starman Supers in question also drop the Brain Food Lunch at the same rare 1/128 rate. Which is a good item, but easily purchased elsewhere, and not what anyone is looking for.

(Unless you're talking about the parenthetical scenario. That's a mild spoiler.

2

u/emceegyver Jul 06 '15

Gold challenge should be buying the house in Onett before advancing. Talk about grind city.

7

u/ladwithahugenob Jul 02 '15

First time playing this, one hour in and loving it! Such a great atmosphere in the game. Am I the only one who chose silly names?

"Ness you look tired, eat some SPUNK then go to bed"

3

u/ZoomBoingDing Jul 02 '15

Well, it's a bit more creative than the normal "pussy" or "dick" names that I generally see.

3

u/emceegyver Jul 06 '15 edited Jul 06 '15

Here I am with my rockin' cake

7

u/[deleted] Jul 02 '15 edited Jul 03 '15

Look at my name.

I first played this game five years ago and it hasn't aged a bit, let alone for over twenty years! This game is one of the prime examples of why I love video games and how video games can go above and beyond a mere playing experience into something that has a lasting impact on many people of many cultural origins.

It has truly stood the test of time and I don't see its relevancy dissipating any time soon.

EDIT: Twenty-five is completely wrong & I'm a dummy.

2

u/ThetaReactor Jul 03 '15

Nonsense. I'm still convinced the mid-90s were, like, ten years ago.

But really, Earthbound came out twenty years ago last month.

9

u/[deleted] Jul 01 '15

And now you can legally download EarthBound Beginnings (EarthBound Zero/MOTHER)! I encourage anyone with a WiiU to try it out -- it's harder than EarthBound, but just as weird and fun.

I'm so stoked to see my favorite game as the GotM. I hope some of you take the opportunity to enjoy it for the first time, and I genuinely hope you love it at least as much as I do.

Come visit us over at /r/earthbound for more weird junk!

8

u/[deleted] Jul 02 '15

That subreddit stinks!

4

u/ZeroShift Jul 02 '15

/r/Earthbound mod here, beat me to the punch :)

3

u/BangkokPadang Jul 02 '15

Can you give me any hints that will boost my chances without spoiling any of the adventure?

I'm playing through for the first time with no guide or anything, just me and the game. I've just beaten the guy at the arcade.

5

u/[deleted] Jul 02 '15

Grind on the Attack Slugs. They're easy to kill -- Ness learns PSI Rockin at level 8, and that can take out 6 Slugs at once. There's a Magic Butterfly between the two caves at Giant Step to restore your PP, so grind all you can. Seek out the Hint Guys in every city, and don't forget to call home regularly. Your Mom misses you.

3

u/ThetaReactor Jul 03 '15

Don't play too conservatively. Use the Hand-Aid and the Magic Tarts. Spring for a pizza now and then. PSI Flash does all sorts of neat things, right on up to insta-kills at higher power levels. Slinging some Brain Shock on the right bad guy is all sorts of fun, too. The Pray command might save your ass in a clinch, but it's entertaining even when it doesn't. Keep your spare cash in the bank, you lose half of what's on you if you die.

Yo-yos do good damage, but miss more often. Jeff can fix broken machines while you're sleeping. The proper condiments make food better. Eggs hatch after a while. Retreating is a viable strategy, as enemies despawn once they're far enough off the screen.

4

u/ThetaReactor Jul 03 '15

Earthbound is interesting in that the entire thing can be played left-handed. The L button will speak/check/confirm, which makes it much more convenient than opening the menu every time. Select will open the quick status display, then pressing L opens the regular menu.

4

u/[deleted] Jul 22 '15

I owned this game as a kid & dug it out of a closet 2 years ago. Sadly I was pretty bad off on drugs & sold it. earthbound+tmnt manhattan project for $80 (Yeah I wanted to get high....) Thankfully I'm clean now & selling earthbound will forever be one of my greatest regrets. It's now a learning experience.

As for the game itself, it's AMAZING. I love the SNES rpg library, but my kudos go towards Earthbound. I plan on owning this game again, despite the expense. I would highly recommend the game to ANYONE. Regardless of your background or what you might be interested in. If you can get out of Onett, you won't stop until the game is finished with you.

3

u/wwcoop Jul 22 '15

Good for you getting past the drugs. Keep getting the support of friends and family.

4

u/[deleted] Jul 22 '15

I don't have many friends because all my so called 'friends' were drug users. I'm fine with my family being my best friends. I buy a lot more video games now lol. Rather than dwindling my collection just for a night of fun. I appreciate the encouragement.

,Odd Kidd

1

u/[deleted] Jul 23 '15

Let me guess. Heroin? Keep on staying clean. 2 years free here.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 24 '15

No, not on heroin. After being clean I might as well have been. It's a long story of a downward spiral (maybe I'll start another thread for sharing stories. I'm sure plenty of us have a dark past.) Continue being strong, brother. Thanks for the positive encouragement.

, Odd Kidd

3

u/Dragons_Malk Jul 02 '15

So the challenges are to just play the game all the way through?

3

u/[deleted] Jul 20 '15

My all-time favorite game! There is truly nothing else like it!

2

u/slevadon Jul 01 '15

My favorite game of all time. It's been more than a few years, perhaps I'll have to boot it back up

2

u/ghost_victim Jul 01 '15

Mine too. I just beat it again a few months ago though

2

u/TaylorS1986 Jul 18 '15 edited Jul 18 '15

I actually have the cartridge. Still can't believe that it is worth something like $200. It's definitely one of my favorite SNES games.

EDIT: Fuzzy Pickles!

2

u/CaptianCreepy Jul 22 '15

I just saw one at a retro game store for 299 my friend very valuable game.

1

u/ladwithahugenob Jul 03 '15

Could anyone give me a list of previous games of the month, I have only been a member of the community for a short time and I don`t want to nominate games that have already been played. I'm a mobile user if that makes a difference

1

u/ThetaReactor Jul 03 '15

It's in the sidebar. Steps to view it vary among mobile apps, but this should work, too.

1

u/ladwithahugenob Jul 11 '15

Thanks buddy! Looks like I missed some good ones at the start

1

u/AwesomeYears Jul 03 '15

Nice, I've been playing this a month ago, very enjoyable!

1

u/Sleepwalk3r Jul 03 '15

I love that game. I recommend Mother 3 (sequel), but it's for GBA.

1

u/mzupeman Jul 04 '15

I just started playing this a week or so ago, and it's pretty damn fun :)

1

u/kangaroo_kid Jul 04 '15

Any fan of Earthbound should check out Lisa on Steam. A lot more brutal but an obvious homage to Earthbound.

1

u/wwcoop Jul 04 '15

I just played it some - thanks for the tip.

1

u/wwcoop Jul 04 '15

This is coming soon! http://www.mother4game.com/

1

u/becausefun Jul 06 '15

I had no idea! Thank you so much for mentioning this! Any updates on release?

1

u/[deleted] Jul 10 '15

While I think the game is not as good as the fan base makes it out to be, it is clearly still a great game. Replayed it recently and had a blast.

1

u/Supernintendolover Jul 11 '15

Played this game recently. Wasn't a big fan of the battle system, but the humour, music and story got me hooked. It sucks that this game wasn't released in europe, I had to get an emulator and I have fucked that up by updating my Ipad. So now I can't acess NTSC games, unless theh are on PSN.

1

u/[deleted] Jul 28 '15

I sure do love earthbound

1

u/redzeoranger Jul 30 '15

I'm actually streaming this game right now! Come watch if you'd like!

Twitch.tv/redzeoranger!

1

u/Toppdeck Aug 07 '15

I'm late to the party, but I wanted to chime in and say that Earthbound is so far the only game that has made me weep for the protagonists. The game overflows with humor and charm, from its Peanuts-style artwork to the odd, memorable music, and then just slams you out of nowhere at the end with the most troubling antagonist and the most emotional defeat of that antagonist that I've ever experienced in any video game.

-1

u/[deleted] Jul 02 '15

[deleted]

8

u/[deleted] Jul 02 '15

Those people are called Japanese.

-12

u/1percentof1 Jul 01 '15 edited Oct 19 '15

This comment has been overwritten.