In the retro-revelation that I'm going through, I've decided to pay a visit to the classic SNES game, "Earthbound" or "Mother 2" to the more indoctrinated gamer. Of course, I just know what people tell me. I know there is an almost cult following to this game. Well-warrented, I'm sure, but as for me, I've skipped over the "classic" game for years now. I can't tell you how many times I've downloaded and deleted the ROM. I can't tell you how many times I've gone up to the meteorite, only to be shooed away by the self-righteous Pokey. And that's as far as I ever got, I never bothered to venture any further. Why I stopped, I'm not sure, but I have an idea.



Perhaps it's because I don't like being led to someplace only to be shooed away, to go back home and then ordered to go BACK to the meteorite, and after all that to ONLY TO GO BACK A FOURTH TIME. It made me want to jump off that damn cliff!!! I can understand doing the same thing over the course of an entire game, but this happens in the first five minuets! I don't see what the reason is behind it, and it just rubs me the wrong way. Why couldn't you reduce it to one single visit? Why couldn't you establish the fact Pokey is a massive tool from the simple dialogue when he comes over to tell you his brother (or something) is missing?

But, now, I've ventured past that point, and continued on. (Despite a few minor aesthetic changes) I'm able to somehow coerce my Nintendo DS into playing the ROM file, and it suddenly feels like a different game. I now have buttons to push as opposed using my keyboard. And not, I'm finding every moment I can to boot it up, and play through as much as I can in between my classes.

But why? Why am I so compelled now to play when for years, I have, for the most part, ignored the game? I'm not sure why, but I'm writing to tell you, I'm in it until I finish it. I've taken some advice and decided out of fairness, to sit down and give it a good go around until I make up my mind on whether I like it or not.

First impressions:

The art style is excellent. I love the whole look and fell to the game. The sprites themselves seem a bit shallow, in that they don't move much and don't show much emotion. (I know, it's hard to show emotion with a 16 bit sprite, but others have done it, why couldn't this one?). I loved how the character name screen the option, "don't care" pops up, which made me giggle. Why a character name is "Poo" though... Nevermind, that's a rad name!

But, most of all, I think, is the character of the game itself. The Dialogue. There are moments when I laugh out loud because of the words on the screen. Even some of the action has tickled me a bit. It's fun just walking up to the houses and getting some of the quirkiest responses I've ever seen in a video game.

Right now I'm stuck on where to go. I know it has something to do with the sharks and that arcade and beating the robot behind there, but I'm only level six and my nub experience in RPG's isn't boding to well. I've even died to the dogs for Chrissakes. And that's another thing. Why does EVERYTHING go tame after you defeat it. How does a wild snake go tame? Even if you whacked it with a plastic bat, snakes are all or nothing. They'll either bite the shit out of you, or be dead.

This is my first thoughts about this "classic". I'll wait and see if this is really everything everyone makes it out to be.

Wish me luck.