This is Why Earthbound is Trending on Twitter

Earthbound is regarded by many in the gaming community as one of the most influential JRPGs ever created. Possessing numerous eccentricities, a bizarre, yet memorable narrative, and heartwarming characters, Earthbound is one game that many players may have heard about, but likely haven't actually played. Though, today provided a unique opportunity for Nintendo to allow many players to experience Earthbound for the first time, but Nintendo ultimately passed on it.

Within the last couple of years now, the Nintendo Switch Online service has given subscribers the chance to either newly experience or replay a selection of classic games from the NES and SNES. For the most part, the selection is what most would expect, with beloved games like Super Mario Bros. and Castlevania on the NES and titles like Donkey Kong Country and Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past on the SNES made available to play. That said, many fans were expecting Earthbound to appear on the service at some point.

The newest batch of games being made available on Nintendo Switch Online, although considered good games by many in the community, did not include Earthbound, which many fans see as a major missed opportunity by Nintendo. With more and more people utilizing the online service, having something comparatively underground like Earthbound to play, would provide users a chance to experience something different. It reached the point where fans got Earthbound trending on Twitter with a large variety of different reactions.

In all fairness, the JRPG genre, especially as it applies to older JRPGs, is not nearly as popular or recognizable as some of the other games available on Nintendo Switch Online. In fact, one of the primary reasons why Earthbound has maintained its longevity for so long is due to characters from the Mother series like Ness and Lucas making appearances in Super Smash Bros.

However, on the flipside, if these Tweets are any indication, there is clearly a demand for not just Earthbound, but the Mother series in general to be promoted more in the West. After all, when there are celebrities like Terry Crews calling to have Mother 3 localized in North America, then its obvious that many people want to play these games.

In recent years, a lot of unexpected games have seen localizations in North America, most of which being JRPGs. The fact that Atlus is releasing an HD remake of Shin Megami Tensei 3 Nocturne in less than a week proves that new players want to experience these older games on newer consoles. With any luck, Nintendo will recognize the demand and potential the Mother series has in the West.

Mother 3 is infamous among Nintendo fans for never releasing outside Japan after its release on the Game Boy Advance in April 2006. The game, which is a sequel to Earthbound (Mother 2,) has become a cult classic despite never officially releasing in English. Much of this is due to the 2008 Mother 3 fan translation, a full English translated patch for the game that has become the only way to experience Mother 3 in English. To celebrate the game's 15th anniversary, the original translator has released a new patch that aims to fix technical issues.