Zero Punctuation: EarthBound - Not Your Typical JRPG

[Anaphyis]

Really? I know it's summer release drought, but there are still quite a few (good) new games being released, you don't need to jump on that internet reviewer bandwagon years after the fact. Not that I watched it, mind. "Not Your Typical JRPG" plus Yahtzee's tendency to go for broad generalizations based on a laughable small sample size (can't shake your Something Awful upbringing, ey Ben?) when it comes to this genre makes me not want to.

 

[Jennacide]

Seeing as yahtzee has nothing new to play, how about a ZP on The Wolf Among Us now that ep 5 has been released?

Or Transistor for that matter?

Considering how much Yathzee went on about the ending of Bastion you'd think he would have picked up Transistor by now.

Could it be that Transistor just is not bad enough to review?

No, considering it doesn't hold a candle to Bastion. Transistor isn't bad, but it's definitely not as good as it's predecessor. And they lied about being able to fight without the pause, you take far too much damage for that to be a viable strat until you have almost all your functions.

 

[MB202]

IMO, I think the graphics look fine. I love the simplistic, stylized look of the game. Also, Buzz-Buzz dies at the beginning of the game... Does Ness's mom LIKE having sex with dead bugs? ...What?! The music, BTW, takes up most of the game's memory, and is probably one of my favorite video game soundtracks ever. Also, Yahtzee, there's a fan translation of Mother 3 you can play, though the translators DO tell you to legally purchase Mother 3 beforehand...

 

[mister R]

yahtzee's talking a lot more about games he likes lately it's pretty cool :3

 

[TheZaius]

FINALLY, he reviews Earthbound! FINALLY, a Wii U game he has something nice to say about!

 

[roski]

I personally don?t like literature but if other people do thats fine, it mostly just annoys me that people use literature as some kind of quality test.

when people say a game is like a comic book it typically means that it looks a lot like a superhero comic book, when people say a game is like a movie it typically means that it?s not very interactive, but when people say a game is like literature it typically means that it has a very good story.

Saying that a game is like literature should mean that its very VERY text heavy, ace attorney or zork are like literature, earthbound and mother 3 are not.

It also annoys me that disliking literature results in questions of why and people thinking less of you, but if you dislike movies and/or video games nobody bats a eye.

Don't be annoyed by such things dear, is not good for yours or anybody's health.
Still, saying that earthbound is the closest to literature games will ever get is a silly thing nonetheless.
Isn't literature just the art of writing in general? I assume you and the other guy meant books, which are just a determined format.
I like books a lot though, they smell nice and you can carry them around, I don't worry about dropping them and I don't need to plug them anywhere.

 

[WeepingAngels]

After all the praise this game gets I have tried it over and over again and I just don't like it enough to finish it. For one thing the inventory system sucks and I am not too fond of the save system either. Further it can be way too wordy, especially when all you want to do is save but your dad won't shut the hell up.

I do like the music though and I like that you don't have to fight really weak enemies. I also like the clean looking graphics, they may not be pushing the SNES to it's limits but that's just fine.

I also don't agree with Yahtzee's definition of a JRPG. He's basically saying that if it's a JRPG that he likes, then it can't be a JRPG. Earthbound is indeed a JRPG.

FINALLY, he reviews Earthbound! FINALLY, a Wii U game he has something nice to say about!

It's not a Wii U game.

 

[TheZaius]

FINALLY, he reviews Earthbound! FINALLY, a Wii U game he has something nice to say about!

It's not a Wii U game.

It's a game on the Wii U therefore Wii U game.

 

[WeepingAngels]

FINALLY, he reviews Earthbound! FINALLY, a Wii U game he has something nice to say about!

It's not a Wii U game.

It's a game on the Wii U therefore Wii U game.

No, it's an SNES game on the Wii U Virtual Console. We don't say that Earthbound is a PC game just because it can be emulated on a PC.

 

[CaitSeith]

So what exactly is interesting about this game then? For such a cult thing, it doesn't seem to have anything in it apart from being slightly quirky - but which JRPG isn't.

Maybe because of the details (it's a JRPG trying to be in a pseudo-american location; and instead of magic, it has psychic powers) and the ocasional creepy or weird things that happen in the game (a walking mushroom? and when it hits you it makes a mushroom grow up on your head? WTF!). The game first shows a screen with weird and omnious music and an image that seems taken from a 50s alien invasion flick like The War of the Worlds. And nothing in the game prepares you for the end boss location; and its battle music is the epitome of "you dared to play? welcome to hell!".

 

[TheZaius]

FINALLY, he reviews Earthbound! FINALLY, a Wii U game he has something nice to say about!

It's not a Wii U game.

It's a game on the Wii U therefore Wii U game.

No, it's an SNES game on the Wii U Virtual Console. We don't say that Earthbound is a PC game just because it can be emulated on a PC.

Emulation on a PC isn't legitimate so it doesn't count.
Sure, Earthbound is a game that was originally released on the Super Nintendo and is now available on the Wii U's Virtual Console.
But...
It's also a game on the Wii U therefore Wii U game.

 

[adsixx]

Earthbound, ah that brings back memories...

Of binge playing over 24 hours to lose it when the Talking rock says, Hi I'm a Talking Rock.
Keeping count of how many New Age Retro Hippies I can make tame in an hour.
Did I just put Salt in my Coffee, then drink it? Oohkaay.
Oh, time to drink the tea obviously laced with LSD to get the recap to this point.
Yes is no and no is yes in Neon Town.
Fuzzy Pickles!
Bologna sammiches, Where's the Steal command I need those.
Slog to the end, durnit put the Franklin Badge on the wrong character and now I can't pray.

Definitely a niche game even to the JRPG fans at the time. It didn't help that it was wicked expensive and if you didn't have that player's guide that came in the giant box, just about unbeatable. Remember, not really a lot of internet sites at that time to get help.