Editing EarthBound (section)

===Retrospective===
{{Video game reviews
| title = Retrospective assessments
| GR = 88%<ref name = "Game Rankings EB">{{cite web | url=http://www.gamerankings.com/snes/588301-earthbound/index.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180109130313/http://www.gamerankings.com/snes/588301-earthbound/index.html | archive-date=2018-01-09 | title=EarthBound | website=[[GameRankings]] | access-date = April 30, 2012}}</ref>
| Allgame = 4/5<ref name="allgamereview">{{cite web |url = http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=2481&tab=review |title = EarthBound Review |author = House, Michael L. |website=[[AllGame]] |access-date =May 19, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141114212003/http://www.allgame.com/game.php?id=2481&tab=review|archive-date=November 14, 2014}}</ref>
| GameZone = 10/10<ref name="GameZone review"/>
| IGN = 9.0/10<ref name="IGN review"/>
| NWR = 9.5/10<ref name="NWR review"/>
| ONM = 90%<ref name="ONM review"/>
| NLife = 10/10<ref name="Nintendo Life review">{{cite web|last=Frear|first=Dave|title=EarthBound Review (SNES)|date=11 Feb 2022|website=Nintendo Life|url=https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/snes/earthbound|access-date=3 Mar 2022|archive-date=March 4, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220304090443/https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/snes/earthbound|url-status=live}}</ref>
}}
Reviewing the game years after its release, writers described the game as "original" or "unique",<ref name="ONM review" /><ref name="IGN review" /> and praised its script's range of emotions.<ref name="ONM review" /><ref name="IGN review" /> ''IGN''{{'}}s Scott Thompson said the game teetered between solemn and audacious in its dialogue and gameplay, and noted its deviance from RPG tropes in aspects such as choice of attacks in battle. He found the game both "bizarre and memorable".<ref name="IGN review" /> ''[[Official Nintendo Magazine]]''{{'s}} Simon Parkin thought the game's script was its best asset, as "one of the medium's strongest and idiosyncratic storylines" that fluctuated "between humorous and poignant".<ref name="ONM review" /> ''GameZone''{{'s}} David Sanchez thought its script was "clever" and "sharp", as it displayed a wide range of emotions that made him want to talk to all non-player characters.<ref name="GameZone review" /> ''[[GamesTM]]'' wrote that the game designers spoke with their players through the non-playable characters, and noted how Itoi's interests shaped the script, its allusions to popular culture, and its "strangely existential narrative framework".<ref name="GamesTM review" /> Nintendo Life praised the game's touching story, charm and modern-day setting, with minor criticism of the slow pacing.

Critics praised its "real world" setting, which was seen as an uncommon choice.<ref name="ONM review"/><ref name="IGN review"/> Thompson noted its 1990s homage as "a love letter to 20th-century Americana", with a payphone as a save point, ATMs to transfer money, yo-yos as weapons, skateboarders and hippies as enemies, and references to classic rock bands.<ref name="IGN review"/> ''Official Nintendo Magazine''{{'s}} Parkin noted the theme's distance from the "knights and dragons" common to the Japanese role-playing game genre.<ref name="ONM review"/> Thompson noted the game's steep difficulty. He wrote that the beginning was the hardest and that aspects such as limited inventory, experience grinds, and monetary penalties upon death were unfriendly for players new to Japanese RPGs. He also cited the quick respawn time for foes and ultimate need not to avoid battles given the difficulty of bosses.<ref name="IGN review"/>

Reviewers described the game's ambiance as cheery and full of charm.<ref name="GameZone review"/><ref name="IGN review"/> David Sanchez of ''GameZone'' thought the game's self-awareness added to its charm, where the player learned through the game's poking lighthearted fun. He added that the music was an "absolute delight" and complimented its range from space sounds to themes to "bizarre" battle tracks that varied with the enemy type.<ref name="GameZone review"/> ''GamesTM'' wrote that the game's reputation comes from the "consistent ... visual language" in its [[Charles M. Schulz]]-esque character and world design.<ref name="GamesTM review"/> ''Kotaku''{{'s}} [[Jason Schreier]] found the ending unsatisfying and unrelieving, despite finding the ending credits with its character [[curtain call]] and photo album of "fuzzy pickles" moments all "wonderful".<ref name="Kotaku: Trippiest"/>

Thompson wrote that ''EarthBound'' balances "dark Lovecraftian apocalypse and silly lightheartedness", and was just as interesting nearly a decade after its original release. While he lamented a lack of "visual feedback" in battle animations, he felt the game had innovations that still feel "smart and unique": the rolling HP meter and lack of random battles. Thompson also noted that technical issues like animation slowdown with multiple enemies on-screen went unfixed in the rerelease.<ref name="IGN review"/> Parkin found the game to provide a more potent experience than developers with more resources and thought its battle sequences were "sleek".<ref name="ONM review"/> ''Nintendo World Report''{{'}}s Justin Baker was surprised by the "excellent" battle system and controls, which he found to be underreported in other reviews despite their streamlined, grind-reducing convenience. He wrote that some of the menu interactions were clunky.<ref name="NWR review"/> ''GamesTM'' felt that the game was "far from revolutionary", compared to ''[[Final Fantasy VI]]'' and ''[[Chrono Trigger]]'', and that its battle scenes were unexciting. The magazine compared the game's "chosen one" story to a "throwaway ''[[Link's Awakening]]''/''[[The Goonies|Goonies]]'' hybrid narrative".<ref name="GamesTM review"/> Thompson praised Nintendo for digitizing the Player's Guide, though noted that it was technically easier to view it on another tablet rather than switching the Wii U's view mode.<ref name="IGN review"/> Reviewers concluded that the game had aged well.<ref name="USgamer: the deal"/><ref name="GameZone review"/><ref name="ONM review"/><ref name="IGN review"/><ref name="NWR review"/>