Why Nintendo Waited So Long To Release EarthBound On Switch

This week saw the first two Mother games added to the Switch Online’s selection, an RPG series known in the West as EarthBound. The series has been one of Nintendo’s most neglected franchises in the U.S., with significant gaps between game releases. EarthBound, known as Mother 2 in Japan, was released in 1995 for the Super Nintendo, and it was added to the Wii U’s Virtual Console selection 18 years later in 2013, and later ported to the 3DS in 2016. The addition of EarthBound to the Switch Online selection comes roughly 6 years after its 3DS port and almost 5 years since it appeared as a part of the SNES Classic, prompting questions of why it took so long for the EarthBound games to make it to the Switch, and why the quirky series has been underutilized despite a vocal fanbase.

This month’s Nintendo Direct held great news for JRPG fans, including remasters of Front Mission and Chrono Cross, and the two EarthBound titles coming to Switch Online. Where the Wii U had a robust selection of Nintendo classics from legacy hardware through its Virtual Console selection, Switch owners have had to make do with the small library of NES and SNES games included with a Switch Online membership. The Expansion Pack added Sega Genesis and Nintendo 64 titles, along with DLC access for a few Switch games, but the service has a lot of catching up to do when compared to the Wii U’s selection of classics. Given the ease of emulating NES and SNES titles on the Switch, the long delay in adding the EarthBound games to the Switch seems to be a matter of calculated timing rather than overcoming technological hurdles.

The Mother trilogy games are among the most revered RPGs in Japan, but its popularity in the West came much later. Today, EarthBound is a quintessential “cult classic.” EarthBound has inspired computer RPGs like Undertale and Crossing Souls, and fan games like Oddity, which began as an unofficial Mother 4. At the time of its 1995 SNES release, EarthBound was a commercial failure in the U.S., by Nintendo’s standards, which likely contributed to the large gaps between domestic releases. The uniquely subversive marketing campaign for EarthBound made use of foul-smelling scratch and sniff stickers, and the game came packaged with an extensive strategy guide. These are regarded fondly in hindsight but failed to resonate with the audience back then.

EarthBound’s Quirky Graphics & High Price Hurt Its U.S. SNES Sales

While EarthBound’s rising popularity in the years after its release has made the game and its pack-in guidebook collector’s items, including the guide added to the game’s price, which negatively impacted its sales. EarthBound’s stylized graphics (in part an homage to the 8-bit original, and in part mimicking the look of the clay Nintendo character figures featured in the strategy guide) did not compare favorably to other SNES games, according to critics of the time. The RPG genre was also less popular in the U.S. than it was in Japan. The poor sales of EarthBound are likely part of the reason that the Game Boy Advance’s Mother 1 + 2 collection was never officially released in the U.S. The GBA’s Mother 3 still awaits official localization, despite an ongoing fan campaign since its 2006 release.

Though there are ardent fans of EarthBound voicing their support for the game, Nintendo did not choose EarthBound or the NES prequel EarthBoundBeginnings as part of its initial Switch Online game library. Up until this week’s additions to the service, SNK’s Crystalis was the best Switch Online NES RPG, but now EarthBound Beginnings can make a strong argument for that title. The Switch’s early years ran on the momentum of first-party, newly released games like Super Mario Odyssey and Breath of the Wild. Since its debut, the Switch Online service has done little to compete with PlayStation Now or Game Pass, in terms of its library, but by making it affordable, at $20 per year, it avoided direct comparison with the competition. The Expansion Pack to Switch Online costs more, and it’s $50 per year price is much closer to the $60 annual fee for PlayStation Now, thereby earning more scrutiny.

This makes the timing of the Nintendo Direct announcement that EarthBound was coming to Switch Online a bit more understandable. The announcement of exciting upcoming Switch titles helps in maintaining interest in the aging Switch hardware which now competes with the Xbox Series X and the PlayStation 5. Similarly, the EarthBound games help the damaged reputation of Nintendo’s Switch Online service. With Switch Online facing backlash over its Expansion Pack pricing and its initially poor Nintendo 64 emulation, adding two beloved RPG classics to its library helps offset some of the vitriol.

The original two Mother games were for the NES and SNES, meaning they are available at the $20 annual “base” Switch Online tier, which unfortunately leaves the Expansion Pack as a dubious value proposition. Still, for EarthBound fans in English territories, the inclusion is meaningful and reflects the game’s timelessness. Though it has taken some time, Nintendo has ported EarthBound to each of its most recent consoles: The Wii U, the 3DS, the Switch, and even the 2017 SNES Classic Edition mini-console.

EarthBound Has Built A Strong Fanbase That Nintendo Should Support

The strong U.S. fanbase for EarthBound is somewhat remarkable, given the age of the series and the lack of official promotion by Nintendo. Mother characters have appeared in the Smash Bros. series, and the Wii U re-release of EarthBound sold very well relative to other Virtual Console titles. Still, the series remains locked in cult classic status in the West, with far less notoriety than Mother has in Japan. Last year marked the 15^th anniversary of Mother 3’s release, but there are no signs that it is any closer to an official English release, despite fans and even celebrities like Terry Crews repeatedly asking Nintendo to localize Mother 3. Given the rumors that Switch Online might add Game Boy and Game Boy Color games, it is certainly possible that Game Boy Advance games could follow. That could be a prime opportunity for Nintendo to make Mother 3 available in English for the first time.

Longing for a domesticated Mother 3 aside, EarthBound fans have good reason to celebrate the games that have made their way to Switch Online at present. For a game that garnered underwhelming sales in the US and failed to impress critics to grow a loyal fanbase in the decades that followed is impressive. Many fans never expected to see the original Mother released in English territories, but the 2015 EarthBound Beginnings Wii U port proved them wrong. Nintendo has taken a step backward from the days of the Wii U, with the Switch, in terms of honoring its own gaming legacy.

Given the system’s ability to emulate most older hardware just as well as the Wii U, the absence of backward compatibility for Virtual Console purchases is inexcusable, and Nintendo continues to neglect the Game Boy Advance and its rich games library, which includes Mother 3. Including more prior generation classics with the Switch Online service is a step in the right direction, and adding EarthBound, one of the most underrated and unique RPGs of its generation, to the selection helps present a more hopeful future for Nintendo’s current hardware.

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