Cover artwork I generate from the game data. I do not use publisher artwork.
Game profile
EarthBound
This cult classic SNES role playing game transplants the JRPG formula into a quirky present day suburbia and is playable today through Nintendo Switch Online. Its dry humor and unconventional storytelling earned it a devoted fanbase.
Affiliate link. If you buy through it, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
What kind of game this is
At its core this is JRPG, set in the present day. Visually it is built on pixel art, and the overall tone stays somewhere between light and heavy. The structure is guided rather than open, so you are moved along instead of dropped into a map. It rewards long uninterrupted stretches more than quick check-ins.
The difficulty is moderate and fair, demanding attention without punishing you for it. The narrative carries the whole thing, and the mechanics serve it. It is a single player experience from start to finish. It is available on one platform. It sits in the budget bracket.
What stands out
- Quirky present day setting
- Dry humor
- Unconventional storytelling
This fits you if
- you want to live through a story, not just play a system
- exploring for its own sake is the point for you
- you can sit down for a proper long stretch without interruptions
- the writing matters more to you than the mechanics
- you play alone and want a complete experience without other people
- you are watching your budget
Look elsewhere if
- you skip cutscenes and want to get to the gameplay
- you only ever get short bursts of play time
- pixel art puts you off
- you specifically want an open world to roam
What it costs you in time
About 24 hours in total. At three evenings a week and two hours each, you will be busy for roughly 4 weeks, or 12 sessions.
How the rating ranks
Critics settled on 93 out of 100, which puts it above 95 percent of the 1206 games here and at rank 39 overall. That is a strong score, comfortably above what most releases manage.
For comparison, JRPG averages 86 points across the database, so this one sits 7 points above its own genre. The figure rests on 568 collected ratings.
Released in 1994, which makes it 32 years old. A genuine classic, and worth checking how the version you buy holds up today.
The facts
- Release year
- 1994
- Genres
- JRPG
- Playtime
- approx. 24 hrs.
- Difficulty
- Moderate, fair
- Story weight
- Carries the whole game
- Play with
- Solo
- Setting
- Present day
- Visual style
- Pixel art
- Price bracket
- Budget
- Platforms
- Switch
- Critic rating
- 93 / 100
Direct comparison
| Genres | Release year | Playtime | Critic rating | Price bracket |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| EarthBound | 1994 | approx. 24 hrs. | 93 | Budget |
| Yakuza: Like a Dragon | 2020 | approx. 50 hrs. | 86 | Mid price |
| Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth | 2024 | approx. 65 hrs. | 87 | Full price |
| The World Ends with You: Final Remix | 2018 | approx. 30 hrs. | 72 | Mid price |
If you liked this, try these
- Yakuza: Like a Dragon Shared: JRPG, Present day, longer
- Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth Shared: JRPG, Present day, longer
- The World Ends with You: Final Remix Shared: JRPG, Present day
- Persona 4 Golden Shared: JRPG, Present day, longer
- Chained Echoes Shared: JRPG
- Suikoden I&II HD Remaster Shared: JRPG, longer