This video is so nostalgic to me. I remember watching it like ten years ago. It probably is what finally got me to play the series.

Speaking from first hand experience, another reason for this game not selling well is that retailers didn't actually let anyone buy the game. I only remember this vaguely as I have a somewhat bad memory for no reaso but I was at my grandmother's house for my twelfth birthday and my father took me to some place (I think Sears although it could've been the Big Apple or the Staten Island Mall) that had a video game section and told me to pick something out. I had remembered the ads for Earthbound from wherever and so that's what I picked. Except that the clerk told me that they didn't have any in stock and that they never had any in stock. Yet the box was in my hands and I was telling him that it was right here. He kept arguing with me that it was just one of the oversized display boxes. Soon my father, brother and uncle were all yelling at me to pick something else as well. As you can imagine, I was so frustrated and that's what I remember most about what happened. That all of these people were not listening to me when I kept telling them that what I was holding was the game and that if they just opened the fucking box they'd see for themselves. That somehow I was a complete idiot because I was twelve and they were all adults so they knew more than me. I don't know how long the arguing went for but it felt like an hour although it was probably about five to ten minutes. Finally one of them opened the box to see that I was right the entire fucking time and that there was in fact a game in the box. So I while I did get the game, I never met another person who ever owned one. We moved around many times and nobody I ever knew had it. They all had or played other RPGs and like me, that was all they played for the most part but I seemed to be the only one who ever had that game. That could be a result of the strange marketing or the price of the game but it could also be that many copies were just thought to have been oversized display boxes due to the game coming with the full sized strategy guide. Fuck, I'm frustrated just remembering that whole debacle. If the me then was like the me now, I would've thrown the fucking box at someone's head to get them to listen because they were all being too fucking belligerent to listen to a kid. Hell, I probably should've just taken the box since the asshole employee thought it was empty anyway.

i remember renting Earthbound from Blockbuster Video over and over until I completed it. Sometimes I got it just to read the included guide again. It was a golden age...

12 years later and were still waiting for Mother 4 / Oddity. I don’t know how much longer I can contain my hype

Man, I remember in 2010 when I was going to buy a copy of EB for around $90 and thinking "Nah, that's just too much, it will go down eventually." And now it goes $200+, even with the virtual console release. Guess the only way I'll get this game is if I find it hidden in a pile of stuff at a flea market or something lol.

The fact that NOA never interfered with the translation project of mother 3 makes me immensely happy. It shows that they hold a respect for the fans of that particular franchise, yet still hold their stance that releasing it wouldn't have made business sense. Plus I got a free game out of it all, although I did purchase a copy of the japanese version to show my support and have never owned a GBA. This series of videos was an amazing and insightful watch, thank you. Subbed by the way.

That friggin'! "I Miss You..." at 8:05 always makes crack a little tear

I love these videos. miss having roo around on youtube. hope everyone is doing well

I find myself keep coming back to your videos over and over again even though they are old..... you are great at reviewing a games history keep it up

wow! your knowledge of the history of these games is encyclopedic. i've been a fan of this series for 15 years, and you just made my week.

very well said...this series is truly a hidden gem. the journey us fans had to take inorder to achive the ability to play mother and mother 3 was long, but in the end we where able to get what we deserve

Excellent video series. As a long time Earthbound fan, it's nice to see that word is still being spread about the game. Keep up the great work.

It's great to have a concise and entertaining source of Mother history for people new to the series. I thought the articulation was top notch and everything was very cohesive. Also, nice touch adding in Jared(BlkhtRaven)'s 3D Mother title Screen. He's got new stuff coming down the pipeline.

Thanks, blkhatRaven. And in case you couldn't tell, I really loved the redone Mother intro that you made recently. Amazing work.

I feel so sad hearing the history of this... I literally shed a tear. Knowing that there are so many fans who got screwed over, but they still stand strong. Its inspiring.

I'm just so glad Ness and Lucas was included in Brawl, it really helped let people know about the games. But seriously this video was amazing, big thanks from a Mother fan in Mexico!

this whole 3 part series dropped a nostalgia bomb on me and warmed my heart... im glad to see others got the same feeling from the game as me and my brothers.

Amazing how a exposition heavy video such as tis can be so entretaining to watch.Congrats.

I loved the original and knew about the heartache of the other games never being released. To add insult to injury was the Smash Bros, teasing us with characters never released here in the U.S. I appreciate how thorough you are with your documentaries. TY

The credits music made me shed tears!! I love Mother sooo much...WAAAaaaaaa *sob sob*

Mother 4 is looking nice. I like the touch where the level up songs for the characters harmonize with each other.

The fact that Earthbound is finally comin' to the US again puts a smile on my face.

Wow. This may be the greatest game review I've ever seen. Great work.

Nevermind. I just saw in the credits. Good job, and many thanks, for such an awesome Retrospective!

1:38 I imagine the dialogue bubbles are the exact word-for-word conversation about Mother 3's development. :P

This is really my fav RPG of all time plus the songs are amazing

I have to say, this was a very well-put together review. Why you don't have more views really doesn't make sense. I'm an RPG fan, but I've never played Earthbound. Though I am being prodded by a buddy to play it, I am considering it more than I was before. Again, props on the fantastic retrospective.

i remember seeing all the adds in nintendo power about earthbound and it got me pumped. it was the first RPG i got into. little did i know that the genre would become my favorite. i bought earthbound in like 1992? and it's still one of my favorite games.

I don't care how much I have to cough up, when I have the extra cash, I will be buying another EarthBound cart for myself in the future. Simply awesome game, transcendent!

I'm so glad I'm fortunate enough to own a copy of Earthbound AND Earthbound Zero. I fell in love with the Mother series. Favorite Series of all time...

Boy is Mother 3 heart wrenching. Without spoiling anything, it's simply a phenomenal story.

mother 3 had the most original ending of all time.. and marked the ending of one of the best trilogies ever. Thats what makes the earthbound franchise so great. They are so different from all other games. Even though myself being part of the fan base, its still touching to see how many peoples lives got changed by these games. I am european myself, but very proud owner of a Earthbound cartridge, and soon owner of a complete mother 1 + 2, and mother 3.

Thank you for these videos. I'm crying a little.

I got EarthBound a few days ago well for christmas and im happy I like how your EarthBound is in mint condition and you have the guide

Thanks for this man, really enjoyed your presentation of the history of eb.

Watched the whole thing; it was informative and funny to watch. Thanks for this.

Aaaannd Mother 4 is being rebranded.... such a shame..

This was amazing. So much information I never knew about my most favorite game of all time. Thank you very much for this.

There is a Mother 4! There is a temporary website for it at the moment but in 9 days on 13/8/13 the official website, were you find "big updates" to the project and eventually download the game itself, WILL LAUNCH. It is the very fan made game mentioned in this video.

@Maniac536 I certainly wouldn't mind anyone linking to this video. Thanks very much for the offer. Anything that can be done to spread the word of EarthBound is ok in my book!

Dude, amazing job! this video is about 100,000 views shy of what it deserves.

and the remixed music that jake kauffman arrange is incredible jake's arrangment of the moon theme is fantastic ^_^

For many years I felt the same kind of pain when it came to Dragon Quest. I still do to a certain extent when it comes to certain side games/re-makes. Keep up the good fight!

It's sad that Nintendo hasn't had any plans for the Mother series, but at least recently, Itoi tweeted that he's working on expanding the Mother series but stated that it's not Mother 4. He just wants to "make Mother playable." I'm praying each night for a trilogy release on Wii U and/or 3DS!

This video made me cry >.> I have been watching this 16 bit gems one after another and had a breakdwon after this one.

Part of me wishes I had been exposed to EB a long time ago so I could be part of some of those incredible petitions. I feel so grateful now that I am able to play the Mother series freely thanks to this awesome fanbase.

Man, I remember when I first found that song used at the end... Hearing it at the end of this review made me feel just so... satisfied!

Great job, I learned so much. I think the ending worked very well. God, I swear I always get misty-eyed when I hear Pollyana. XD

I've played all 3 Mother titles. Each was a great game. Earthbound 2 was a bit of a surprise with Gyigas and the lost cave. But Mother 3 for me, hands down, was the best RPG I have played in my entire life. No other game now or to come will ever change that

We are getting it over here too. They brought it up in a Nintendo Direct last month and I nearly shat myself.

Hell I wanst even alive for earthbound and this touches my heart

Stellar job man. Excellent work!

I have to admit, I was a bit surprised at the Magypsies when I first played Mother 3, but I really don't see why NoA should have much of a problem with them nowadays (if they can put out stuff like GTA: Chinatown Wars, RE4, and Conker's Bad Fur Day)

At 9:57 he states "I'll see you in the next part of this video" This video has ben rumored for years, with no word from ClanOfTheGrayWolf. Fans have speculated for ages what this next "video" would have been.

6:38 epic rhyming for poo, matches what happens when you first play as him petty much exactly

An excellent history series. The only thing I wished you had gone into a little more detail was the aftermath, you give Ness featuring as a character in Brawl which was great, but specifically you could have also given a mention to Ape becoming Gamefreak, and thereby creating the Pokemon Mew/Mewtwo as a throwback to their antagonist Giegue/Gyiyg from Mother 1 & 2. Not to mention the subtitles "Giygas strikes back" and the Pk movie "Mewtwo strikes back" means Nintendo does acknowledge Mother. :D

@TolaMacarino It's called "Fun Naming", by Katon on the Rock Candy 5 Album from Starmen *dot* Net. You can find the titles to all the music I used in the credits, by the way.

“No way Nintendo could ignore their fans in the west when it comes to (Mother 3), right?” All the years later, still getting ignored. 😔

Can you please upload a single-segment version of this episode? I'd love to favorite and share it.

09:58, okay, that is seriously the best version I've ever heard of Pollyanna, WHERE DO I FIND IT??!

Your best video game review so far and i really enjoyed earthbound it was very different.

This was an excellent review! I really want to play it now! XD Super Smash Bros. is the first time I've heard of Ness and I remember thinking, "Who on Earth is that guy??" Ever since then I've wanted to play his game and wondered why I had never heard of it before, but now I know why. Thank you for your insight. ^_^

Wow... that story was touching. I'm happy to have found you via vsauce, saw you had some retro gaming videos, got hooked up to this game though within half an hour, never having heard of it before (always pondering who the f*** this Nes is in the Smash games... :,D) Thank you so much, I guess I just fell in love with the game and the community. I'll grab any ROM I can get and try to buy any version's game that's reasonably priced. As a side note: Thank you eBay for making such purchases easier!

Thanks for making this! It was really well made! I wonder what ever happened to Ben Landis? He was a good piano player...

It's a 3D rendering of the Mother intro by blkhatRaven. You can find it on KZfaq by searching for "mother 3d intro".

not just Earthbound, the whole series!

This is the video that sold me on you guys, Earthbound saw even less love her in Australia as we didnt even get that game, or Chrono Trigger or Super Mario RPG. I dont know why but Aussie seemed to have a hatred for RPGs in the 90's

I'm relatively new to the Mother series. Of course I heard about Earthbound when it came out and how good and cool it was. For one I didn't own a SNES and 2 I had no idea where they even sold games at the time. I got the EB rom years later and it just sat there until I finally decided to buckle down and actually finish it. I loved it and I loved Mother 3 which I finished this week. It's really too bad that NOA has had a dismissive attitude toward the series it's great and now I know why.

Just Bought a Repo of Earthbound Zero!!! Can't wait to play it!

the name of that acapella song is called fun naming which is part of the fan-made earthbound album called rock candy just type rock candy 5 katon fun naming on the youtube search bar to find that song i hope that awnsers your question

Thanks and good job ive always wondered the story behind Earthbound and y we never got Earthbound 64. I remember playing for hours on my snes as a kid and wanting more lol.

The American Mother fan-base = "You won't give us fan translations and new games Nintendo? Fine. We'll make them ourselves."

I have been playing earthbound for a while I just beat again last week why oh why can they not make more games like this.... Greatest epic game EVER!!!!!

I remember FF2 and chrono Triggeer being 69.99 at toys r us and Earthbound being more like 90 dollars. It always interested me but I never bought it cuz of the price. Since then I ve enjoyed it and ur vids . Roo keep up the good work

Don't ya' just absolutely LOVE everything?

@Perroramirez Actually, it's taken from the song "Smiles and Tears" at the end of Mother 2 / EarthBound. You should be able to find a wav of it somewhere using the Google.

Supposedly, that Mother 4 project will finally be released this December. But there's not been much word from the team in months, so who knows if that's true or not.

That Mother 4 game is coming out this year, and ironically enough I just found out about it today :D

There is a fan game of Mother 4 that may come out this year. If its really made by dedicated die hard fans then I will certainly buy it.

Great documentary. I really hope someday Mother 3 gets to America, even if they have to remake it for DS. The Magypsies (blamed for a lack of release) really aren't that bad.

4:17 Perfectly explains why Nintendo re-released Earthbound on the WII U, given how much it's under performing compared to the WII

lol @ the end! "unassuming local guy" xD

why is there a little voice in my head screaming, " Nintendo release it NOW *Sirens go off* You shall make S*** Tons of money! GO GO GO!" ._.

Earthbound has been confirmed recently to finally be coming out on the US and EU Wii U virtual console!

Itoi tweeted it around the end of last year. He wasn't allowed to say much, but they are remaking mother, specifying that it was not a Mother 4. Probably meaning the whole franchise or the first mother game. Starman.net should have more detail on it now.

that song you heard at the end is a fan remixed version of the mother 1 song pollyyanna which the name of the fan remix is called home again you can find this song on youtube by typing earthbound home again ocremix on the youtube search bar i hope that awnsers your question

thanks for forgiving me i owe you one

I can definitely see where you are coming from, and I already know that the story isn't going to warm up to everyone. That said, just because you don't like the series, doesn't mean that the game isn't going to sell. There is a substantially large fan base for the game in the US, and most playthroughs of the game here have become very popular. You aren't apart of that base and that is fine. But don't doubt the game or insult its fanbase. Let's see what happens first then decide.

Secrets of Evermore is also an rpg with a similar feel as Earthbound.

Maybe now that Nintendo knows how much fans really care about Mother/Earthbound, because they didn't interfere with the fan translation, they might start releasing more Mother related things here.

The Mother 4 fan game is supposed to be opening downloads this month on the 13th.

thank you reggie for finally releasing mother 3 in 2018. oh wait.

"home again" on the overclocked remix compilation

@wyatt8740 thx for pointing out the obvious to those who watched chuggas playthrough!

Mother 1 has been released as Earthbound Beginnings. Let's hope this trend continues and Mother 3 is also released.

Allright, you've convinced me. I'll play earthbound.

oh and i should mention that i download earthbound on the wii u virtual console and did you saw the trailer of the fan-made mother 4 it looked fantastic and the music of mother 4 stays faithfull to the music of the first 3 mother games osts ^_^ and i must say the purple hair girl maryl is pretty cute ^_^

Earthbound...I need to experience this.

mother 4 is coming in just 1 year yeah!

i'm going to cry