Zuhzuhzombie!!
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Developer: Nintendo/Ape
Publisher: Nintendo
Release Date: June 14th
Platforms: Wii U eShop
Price: 6.99
I was surprised. Were you surprised? I was surprised.
After a canceled release in '91 as "Earth Bound", the United States finally gets to experience the genesis of one of gaming's most respected and one of it's most little known games in the form of a Wii U release on Nintendo's eShop. After more than 25 years of existence, Mother finally comes state side with an official release. Nintendo, and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayrcVjrIHBk Itoi announced the stealth release for this evening, 6PM Pacific time.
Official?
The cancelled '91 release was eventually leaked onto the net by the well known fan translation group Demiforce. They hacked the game's ROM and renamed the game "Earthbound Zero", which has been it's unofficial title for the past 20 years. The USA was skipped out even when Nintendo bundled a rerelease with the sequel Earthbound for the GBA as Mother 1+2.
So what's the big deal?
WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL? Well, other than this being only the second Stateside release of a game from the Earthbound series in it's 25 year + existence, it has only been accessible in unofficial methods. This game oozes the same style, vibe, and ethos that everyone fell in love with on the SNES with Earthbound. Everything from the music to the art style, from the story line and the characters, scratched that itch that only Earthbound could reach. If you're like me, the moment you watched the announcement trailer you began to feel a tightness in your chest and sensed a presence you haven't felt since...
We're actually lucky to even have the series at all. The game was originally pitched by Itoi to Shigeru Miyamoto directly, who turned the game down due to his distaste for celebrity developed video games. For whatever reason, Shiggy called Itoi back and reversed his opinion, leading to us having one of the strongest examples of world, characters, dialog, and interaction in all of gaming history.
So what now?
Many of us are suspicious that Nintendo may be releasing this as build up for another announcement. Earthbound fans have been clamoring for Mother 3 for years and with the eventual release of Earthbound on the eShop and now Earthbound:Beginnings, some of us are getting our hopes up.
Would buying this help? Maybe. Hopefully. Surely Earthbound's success on the VC helped in this situation. Just keep in mind that this is a very old game. While it still drips in post modern stylings, it was created in '89, for the NES, heavily influenced by the original Dragon Quest. There is lots of grinding, a big difficulty jump, and Itoi himself said that the final sections of the game got little to no QoS testing. But it should be experienced for anyone who enjoyed Earthbound. It is a necessary purchase for anyone who considers themselves a major fan of the game.
Fun Fact:
Mother is named after a John Lennon song.
The game should be available as the Nintendo World Championship comes to a close, which is happening as I type this.
ed
I meant to hit preview, instead I hit submit.
Hope no one else has claims on this OT.
